Bullying: Putting the work into having students ‘who are upstanders, not bystanders’Parental response crucial as ‘it’s about trying to work out a strategy that works for both the parent and the child’Tue Jul 11 2023 - 05:31
Bullying: School days can be the best days of your life – but what about when they’re not?In a new series, we’ll be looking at how bullying affects people, the lasting impacts and asking how we can best support those affectedTue Jul 04 2023 - 05:31
Five tips for parents to help survive the summer breakJen Hogan: The break from routine is fabulous and the unpredictability is chaotic but school holidays can also be a time of stress when trying to be all things to all peopleMon Jul 03 2023 - 06:01
Tips for a stress-free family holiday: Write packing lists and don’t be afraid to do things separatelyFrom savvy packing to factoring in some alone time, here’s how to ensure your family holiday goes as smoothly as possibleThu Jun 29 2023 - 06:00
How often do we give our children mixed messages?Jen Hogan: I hadn’t prepared my kids for what to do if a stranger asks a perfectly reasonable questionMon Jun 19 2023 - 05:31
Jen Hogan: Why this time of year specifically makes me feel unsettledNot even a DeLorean with a working flux capacitor can take you back to those times you wish weren’t overMon Jun 05 2023 - 05:01
‘Who works 10am-1pm?’ Parents share their frustrations with finding the right summer campsMany activities run for just a few hours per day, meaning not only that the cost per hour is higher, but parents still have to navigate around working hoursTue May 23 2023 - 05:31
Jen Hogan: I’m doing the Leaving Cert for the third timeThis is not my first rodeo at the main State examinations. You’d think after all this time it’d get easier thoughMon May 22 2023 - 06:01
Andrea Mara: ‘Dark stories were always rattling around in my head’The crime writer how her latest thriller was inspired by a real-life event from her own childhoodSun May 21 2023 - 05:00
Pat Shortt: ‘My daughter didn’t recognise me at the airport. I got very upset’Parenting in My Shoes: The actor believes losing his mother at the age of seven has partly shaped his approach to parenthoodTue May 09 2023 - 06:01
‘Period poverty’ is a misleading term that gets bandied about. I think it has become very, very trendyIf a woman can’t buy period products, it’s just one aspect of her poverty as she will be struggling to buy all basic necessities, from food to fuelTue May 09 2023 - 06:01
Flights were booked quicker than you could say, ‘but what about the one doing his Leaving Cert’?Jen Hogan: Children grow up so fast, I’m glad we’ve made memories that will lastMon May 08 2023 - 05:31
That challenging time for parents, when you have to be everything to everyone, is on the horizonJen Hogan: Summer holidays throw up the perennial dilemma of trying to work and take care of the children at the same timeMon Apr 24 2023 - 05:31
Bean an tí shortage means Gaeltacht experience may not be available for many Irish studentsNumber of host families in the Gaeltacht region has declined by 30% since 2018Tue Apr 18 2023 - 05:01
Jen Hogan: I have a love/hate relationship with WhatsApp groupsIn ways we never quite credit, amid the relentless beeping, perhaps there is a virtual village in the makingTue Apr 11 2023 - 06:01
‘The stuff they wear leaves nothing to the imagination’: At what age should teenagers be allowed go to parties and discos?These are the times those rules you made get called into question, often sooner than you were prepared forFri Apr 07 2023 - 06:01
‘My 14-year-old daughter was stared at by adult male’: When should teenagers use public transport alone?Parents worry about the safety of their teens on the bus, Dart and Luas - and the concerns are greater for those with teenage girlsThu Apr 06 2023 - 06:01
‘We’re not French’: Irish teens and alcohol – what exactly should they be allowed to do?The dreaded drink is often one of biggest fears parents have for their childrenTue Apr 04 2023 - 06:01
‘I wouldn’t let an under-16 babysit my child’: At what age should teenagers be allowed to mind children?A series looking at the freedoms we should or should not allow for our childrenFri Mar 31 2023 - 06:01
‘I’ll check their phones until they’re 18′: What should our teenagers be allowed to do on their mobiles?A series looking at the freedoms we should or should not allow for our childrenThu Mar 30 2023 - 05:01
Jen Hogan: Maybe my kids will look back and think their childhood was grand (in spite of dropped balls)Jen Hogan: I obsess about wanting my kids to be happy and contentMon Mar 27 2023 - 05:30
Parenting tweens: What exactly should our children be allowed to do?A series looking at the freedoms we should or should not allow for our childrenThu Mar 23 2023 - 06:01
Parenting under-8s: What exactly should our children be allowed to do?A new series looking at the freedoms we should or should not allow for our children - starting with those aged eight and underThu Mar 16 2023 - 05:31
Paul Murphy: We don’t want to limit our baby by saying you’re a boy or you’re a girl. Let them decideParenting in My Shoes: As a politician and a father, Paul says he’s conscious of respecting Juniper’s privacyTue Mar 14 2023 - 06:15
There are those who know how to fill a dishwasher, and those who don’t careJen Hogan: My husband rearranges the dishwasher after I’ve loaded it. Amazingly, I haven’t divorced him yetMon Mar 13 2023 - 05:31
What age would you allow a child to use a swimming pool dressingroom on their own?Some pools require children to use gendered changing rooms from aged seven, which may be well before parents feel their child is readyMon Mar 06 2023 - 06:01
Peace Proms return with strong message on harmony and inclusivity Children’s Cross Border Orchestra of Ireland to perform wide-ranging selection of musicWed Mar 01 2023 - 05:01
Another year, another child due to make his Communion or ConfirmationJen Hogan: ‘Bouncy castle Catholics, I think my sort is called. I prefer to go by a la carte Catholic’Mon Feb 27 2023 - 05:31
Amongst women: Why are there so few men in caring roles? What’s it like to work in a women-dominated profession? A nurse, SNA, drama teacher, childcare worker and occupational therapist share their experiencesSat Feb 18 2023 - 05:00
Woman says she was shocked to be asked to stop breastfeeding her baby at UCDMarguerite Simmons was reportedly asked to move to a cubicle at swimming pool if she wanted to continue to feed her babyThu Feb 16 2023 - 16:19
Girls, sports and periods: ‘I’ve been playing in Croke Park and had to say, Would you check my shorts?’Encouraging younger athletes to talk about their bodies’ normal functions could help them maintain their sporting activitiesTue Feb 14 2023 - 06:01
Dreading maths in the Leaving Cert? Have some roast potatoesThe trials and tribulations of those mocks are upon us — they’re just a timing exercise, right?Mon Feb 13 2023 - 05:01
How to spot parents on a night out? They’ll be nervously watching the phone on the tableJen Hogan: I’m going to break my habit of spending Friday nights on the couch. It’s my carpe diem attitude to 2023Mon Jan 30 2023 - 06:01
Should children be allowed to consume disturbing news? A child’s temperament is the best guide when it comes to ‘how much is too much’, says expertSun Jan 22 2023 - 05:00
‘I used to go into work really hungover from partying, yet I’d be saying, I think I should become a priest’Neil Fox began the process at 32 but left the seminary four years later. He explains why hereWed Jan 18 2023 - 05:31
How do other people manage to have conversations without swearing?Jen Hogan: It’s perfectly normal, though not necessarily laudable, for mums to use expletives while ordering their children not toMon Jan 16 2023 - 06:01
Homework: ‘If educators saw the stress it causes, they would be horrified’Jen Hogan: It’s been a topic of discussion for years, yet nothing changes. Perhaps it’s because we just don’t seem to hear children and womenMon Jan 02 2023 - 06:01
Six reasons to be thankful this year, from an autism diagnosis to discovering a new sibling2022 in review: Despite the up and downs, our readers share their joyous and unforgettable moments from the past 12 monthsFri Dec 23 2022 - 06:00
All I want for Christmas is to pretend we’re more like the Waltons than the Addams familyJen Hogan: It’s a stressful time of year, especially when you’re trying to gather the kids for a family photoMon Dec 19 2022 - 06:01
Small gifts for the loved ones in our lives who are impossible to buy for at ChristmasJen Hogan: At this time of year, we like to say thank you with a small gift. Finding something different isn’t always easyMon Dec 05 2022 - 05:31
Charities that need our help in the run-up to ChristmasIt can be a tough time of year for many, but there is an array of charities working to ensure that those most in need are not forgottenThu Dec 01 2022 - 06:01
People make allowances for fussy eating when you’re a child. It’s much more problematic when you’re an adultConfessions of a fussy eater: please know it’s not you, it’s meWed Nov 30 2022 - 05:31
Jen Hogan: Your beautiful babies will grow up. Where does that leave you?Remember to protect yourself too as your children will one day enter the big, bad world, without needing to hold your handMon Nov 21 2022 - 06:01
‘They think we’re all diddly-dee and made of potatoes, and drink pints for breakfast’Irish in London: The stereotyping isn’t welcome, but living in such a diverse city gives you the freedom to be yourself, say Brian Gillespie and Kate GleesonThu Nov 17 2022 - 06:01
Vicky Phelan: Even heroes need to restJen Hogan: Vicky always expressed amazement about the kindness she encountered, as if she never quite realised what an inspiration she wasMon Nov 14 2022 - 12:56
‘The English have definitely got no concept of their own history, and I do challenge people on it’Oliver, from Co Donegal, is a policeman in London, where most people assume he’s ‘a Protestant from Northern Ireland and not a Catholic from the South’Thu Nov 10 2022 - 02:00
I went on a trip down memory lane with one of my kids. The fallout was unlike anything I’d expectedJen Hogan: For me the 1980s were about Raleigh Strikas, crammed Ford Fiestas, and playing outdoors. I’d completely forgotten about some darker thingsMon Nov 07 2022 - 06:01
18 spooktacular things to keep your little monsters busy over midtermThe season outside may be frightful, but there’s lots to do that’s delightful this HalloweenFri Oct 28 2022 - 05:00
‘People think people with ADHD don’t pay attention. That’s not true. We’re paying attention to everything’The singer Louise Barry struggled for years, and was greatly relieved when finally, at age 43, she was diagnosed as having ADHDTue Oct 25 2022 - 06:01
‘Don’t call your baby that. My ex-husband was called that, and he was a proper b******’Jen Hogan: Lots of thought went into my children’s names. Long, long before I was a mother I considered what I’d call the kids I might one day haveMon Oct 24 2022 - 06:01
