The monster showed up after midnight. As they do. These are the opening words to Patrick Ness’ 2011 children’s fiction book, A Monster Calls. A recent visit to a book shop ended the way it often does for me – I go in with my thoughts and purse trained towards one particular book or author, […]

This is the philosophy that early childhood educators hold onto in their practice – the belief that children of all ages are active participants in all matters affecting their lives. Children are regarded as equal members of society whose feelings, thoughts and actions are respected and valued.It seems fitting for early childhood educators to hold […]

Narrative Therapy continues to be a popular therapeutic model, particularly for children and adolescents. Narrative Therapy involves re-authoring stories or conversations by using a non-blaming approach where the counsellor focuses on the young person being the expert in their own lives. This leads to the assumption that the young person has the required skills, abilities, competencies, commitment, […]

The SKATTLE team have been having a lot of conversations recently around the relationship between productivity and happiness. There are bounds of studies and research into how these factors can have a positive effect on one’s work lifestyle. It has had the team wondering; do these factors interact in the family life, too? Many studies argue […]

As National Youth Week comes to a close for another year it seems timely to reflect on some of the knowledge and skills that young people have shared with us this term. The theme for 2015’s celebration of young people is, It starts with us. This is a celebration that we want to be a part of […]

I will be the first to admit that sometimes, I’m not the best at communication. More than once I’ve written a SKATTLE article, and upon proofreading it, wonder “What was I even talking about here?!” Sometimes I’ll be having a conversation with a friend and see them become totally lost in my rambles. Even though […]

There are some pretty fancy names floating around that describe the bond that people have with objects such as toys or blankets. ‘Attachment objects’, ‘comfort objects’, and ‘transitional objects’ are some of the terms that have been coined to describe soft favourites like ‘blankies’ and stuffed animals. Pretty scientific, hey? While I’ve been interested to read up on some of […]