We are a Happy Families School!

Our school is subscribed to the Happy Families School Membership! Owned and run by Dr Justin Coulson, one of Australia’s leading parenting experts, the membership offers a wealth of parenting education and resources.  We will regularly share resources available through our membership with you, including Insight Articles and Live Webinars.

Insights Articles:  A new Insights article is released weekly during the term and we will include these with the school newsletter. Insights articles are written by Dr Justin Coulson and provide parenting education and support for a wide variety of traditional and contemporary parenting challenges.

Here is your weekly Insights Article - Meta-AI is Designed to Prey on Your Kids for Profit

Friendship ups and downs are a normal and important part of growing up. Experiencing and resolving small conflicts helps children develop essential social skills, including empathy, communication, problem-solving, and self-regulation. Research shows that children who learn to navigate disagreements constructively are more likely to form strong, lasting relationships and develop resilience in social situations.

As parents and carers, there are practical ways you can support your child at home:

Listen calmly and validate feelings:

Acknowledge your child’s emotions without immediately trying to “fix” the problem. Simply saying, “I can see that you feel upset because of this situation” helps them feel heard and understood.

Talk about what makes a good friend:

Discuss qualities like kindness, respect, honesty, and sharing. This helps children reflect on their own behaviour and understand the behaviours they value in others.

Practise possible responses together:

Role-play simple phrases or strategies your child can use in tricky situations, such as: “Let’s talk about this calmly” or “I need some space right now, but I want to play later.” This prepares them to respond thoughtfully rather than react impulsively.

Remind them that sometimes friendships need space:

It’s normal for friends to have occasional disagreements or time apart. Encouraging children to take a step back and return to the friendship later can prevent conflicts from escalating and reinforces emotional regulation.  By guiding children through these experiences, we help them build confidence empathy, and the skills needed to maintain healthy friendships throughout life.