Zookeeping
STEM education: why are we still waiting for change?
There is lots of buzz about changing the nature of science education this week – at the STEM across Europe conference that I was lucky enough to attend; with the launch of BBC Learning’s Terrific Scientific, and at today’s Cambridge Primary Review Trust Conference (find out more: #euroSTEM, #CPRT2016, #terrificscientific). Just over 100 years ago, […]
The perils of going with the flow…
This weekend, I threw a party for 30 five-year-olds. Call me naive (and many parents did) but this was the plan: The reality was less Oranges and Lemons, and more like riot control. At least I had plenty of time to think about this blog, as I re-rolled 105 metres of toilet tissue (first rule […]
It’s official: Sons are bad for your health
So, the hot news in evolutionary biology is that women with sons die earlier than women with daughters. Nature, which I read all the time (when I’m not following links tweeted by @zooarchaeologis), reported that each son born shortens a woman’s life by 34 weeks. I have three boys, so that’s nearly TWO YEARS of […]
Say it with flour
There were Mother’s Day cards to collect at preschool pick-up. They’d asked every child to answer the question ‘I love my Mummy because…’ and stuck the answers to hand-painted pictures. I got a preview of other kids’ answers as my four-year-old’s keyworker flicked through the pile: I love my Mummy because… “She tickles me and […]
World Book Day costume for mischief makers!
I wrote a piece for Guardian Children’s Books for World Book Day on 7 March. Click here to read it on the Guardian website! Red Riding Hood and Cinderella are huddling at the bus stop. Horrid Henry is hanging around the school gates. The playground is packed with Gruffalos. It can only be World Book […]
Boy oh boy oh boy
Happy news: this week saw the publication of MOB Rule, a book that celebrates life as a mother of boys. Like the author, I’m besotted with my bunch. But I know that most passers-by are not thinking ‘lucky you’ as I stride past, towing three trainee men. I know this because so many have taken […]
A spoonful of salt helps the offal puree go down… and other retro parenting advice
I’ve been reading my parents’ parenting manuals recently. It’s astonishing how much has changed in 33 years. Many 1970s child development experts advised the exact opposite to their modern equivalents. Haven’t taught your child to read before s/he is three? You’ve missed your chance, bozo, is the message of Teach Your Baby to Read (Glenn […]
Battle of the adjectives
My lucky, lucky sisters are on grown up gap years, spending 2012 travelling the world. Great timing on their part, as they are several continents away just as my desperation for a babysitter peaks. Still, I get occasional updates to break up the domestic slog. ‘Just been hang gliding over Rio’. ‘Survived the parachute jump! […]
Setting an example
The moment I saw this Post-it Quote on my son’s nursery wall was the moment I realized he has no idea I work from home while he’s at nursery. Cue an explanation that I write books for children to read, and plenty of references to Mummy working on the computer. A few months on, I’m […]