Category Archives: culture

A month of unschooling in photos: What did learning look like in June for my unschooling kids? | Sacraparental.com

A Month of Unschooling (or ‘Phew! They ARE learning heaps!’)

‘If they’re not being assessed and tested, how will you know if they’re learning?’ ‘What do they do all day?’ Today I’m not meaning to go into why ‘testing’ can be counter-productive to learning (but if that catches your eye, please do read Jolisa Gracewood’s bleak report of US testing terror and read or listen to […]

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The Maisy Test for Sexism in Kids’ TV Shows and Movies: What to look for and what to do about it

This is something of an experimental post, so please be kind in your comments! I’d love your help to hone it. I’ve been working on it for months, so it’s time to let it out into the world and get your help. Thanks! Sexism in kids’ TV and movies I’m thoroughly, wretchedly ambivalent about children’s television and […]

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‘We Refuse to be Enemies’ #3: Peacemakers in Palestine

A very warm welcome to guest poster Chris Chamberlain. Chris grew up in Timaru and West Auckland.  He has been in Baptist church pastoral leadership roles for over 20 years in exciting places like the South Island’s West Coast and central Christchurch.  Experiencing the destructive forces of the 2010-2011 Canterbury earthquakes has introduced him to […]

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‘We Refuse to be Enemies’ #2: A Christchurch Minister visits Palestine and Israel [Guest]

A very warm welcome to guest poster Chris Chamberlain. Chris grew up in Timaru and West Auckland.  He has been in Baptist church pastoral leadership roles for over 20 years in exciting places like the South Island’s West Coast and central Christchurch.  Experiencing the destructive forces of the 2010-2011 Canterbury earthquakes has introduced him to […]

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‘We Refuse to be Enemies’: A Christchurch Minister visits Palestine and Israel [Guest]

A very warm welcome to guest poster Chris Chamberlain. Chris grew up in Timaru and West Auckland.  He has been in Baptist church pastoral leadership roles for over 20 years in exciting places like the South Island’s West Coast and central Christchurch.  Experiencing the destructive forces of the 2010-2011 Canterbury earthquakes has introduced him to […]

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Advent in Art with He Qi: The Visitation

A warm welcome to this year’s Advent in Art series, where we join thousands of others in contemplating artistic works while we wait, wait, wait for Christmas. For an introduction to this series, and He Qi, the artist featured in 2014, please see the first post, on the Annunciation. Week 2: The Visitation The mood […]

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Jamie Oliver and I Are Not on the Same Parenting Page

It seems that Jamie Oliver – cheeky television chef with the ‘beestung lips’ and the Essex accent – and I aren’t on the same page when it comes to our attitude to children. To put the differences between us starkly and bluntly, I’m not into assault, or punishment, or treating children as lesser humans. I […]

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Why Father Christmas Doesn’t Visit Our House

I grew up with Father Christmas visiting each December. We had a particularly awesome system, in fact, that involved pillowcases instead of stockings (primarily so a board game could fit, I think). As I got older, I became aware that Father Christmas from the adult point of view was part of our family history, too. My […]

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Kids for Social Justice: 6 Ways Kids Can Change the World

  Even if you’re little you can do a lot, you Mustn’t let a little thing like ‘little’ stop you – Matilda the Musical, ‘Naughty’, Tim Minchin Changing the world is a hard job. Best to start early, don’t you think? Here are a bunch of ways you can help your kids live a life […]

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