I grew up in Wānaka in the 1980s and have a background in psychology and marketing, followed by 20 years in the local tourism industry. Becoming a parent in 2015 opened a transformative new chapter, with my children becoming my greatest teachers and deepening my curiosity about parenting, child development, and behaviour.
Our family homeschooled for nine years before joining a wonderful local school community in late 2024. I’m passionate about building strong foundations and relationships for families, and about creating opportunities for parents to connect, share experiences, and support one another as we grow alongside our children.
In "What Were You Thinking!?" renowned neuroscience educator Nathan Wallis unpacks how the human brain develops - from newborn to adult - and why different behavioural stages make sense once you understand what's happening upstairs. Written in plain English with warmth, humour and lots of lightbulb moments, this book distils complex neuroscience into practical insights any parent, teacher or caregiver will find invaluable.
After more than a decade of stability or improvement, the mental health of adolescents plunged in the early 2010s, with rates of depression, anxiety, self-harm, and suicide rising sharply. The author lays out the facts about the epidemic of teen mental illness that hit many countries at the same time, and then investigates the nature of childhood, including why children need play and independent exploration to mature into competent, thriving adults.
How can we live a happy and exciting life without a smartphone? 'The Anxious Generation' started a world-changing conversation about the effects of smartphones and social media on young people. Now authors Jonathan Haidt and Catherine Price have teamed up to talk directly to those young people about how they can live a life without screens.
Packed with facts, stories, and secrets that tech leaders don't want you to know, this book will not only help kids break free from phones, but also show them how they can be their most confident and adventurous selves. It can help them be amazing.
