It Takes A Village

When Jennifer Anderson became a mother, she - like many new parents - realised the uphill battle that can be mealtimes. Getting young kids to eat their greens, voluntarily, isn't always straightforward - and advice on how to encourage them is polarising. Do you force them to sit and finish their plate, bribe them with dessert... and at what point, do you just give up on the brussel sprouts? But Ms Anderson, a registered dietician, took that angst, and honed in on a specialty in feeding children and picky eating. She founded Kids Eat in Color - a resource to help families feed their children, from their first bite of solid food right through to elementary-aged nutrition needs.

The phrase "there's an app for that" certainly applies in the education space - one estimate puts numbers available on the Apple and Google Play stores at nearly 400,000. But are they any good?

The big question for many parents of young children is - how can I get my kids to do what I'm asking them to do?

New York Times contributor Andrew Reiner writes about traditional roles previously assigned to men and boys affects their lives.

Parenting commentator Nathan Wallis joins Paddy Gower to talk about what to do when child only wants the other parent.

Dr Lucy Foulkes is an academic psychologist at the University of Oxford, and her new book draws on decades of research to reveal why teens behave they way they do.

A University of Auckland led study has investigated how parents discuss setbacks with their children - and the correlation with a child's fear of making mistakes.

Tips and tricks for keeping your cool with your children.

Clinical and health psychologist Dr Toni Lindsay says anxiety is a bit like chocolate: a little bit is ok, but too much can make you spin out.

Wellington speech and language therapist Christian Wright discusses the different spoken language stages preschoolers go through as they learn to talk.

Psychologist Jacqui Maguire discusses tips and advice for parents struggling to carry the mental load of parenting, family life and work.

How young is too young to watch Stranger Things (M with a content warning)? What do you tell a 16-year-old who wants to watch Euphoria (R18 so actually illegal for those 17 and under)? To make informed decisions about safe family viewing, parents should take into account not only ratings and content warnings but also their child's individual sensitivities, says Kate Whitaker from New Zealand's Classification Office.

When Rob and Zareen Cope's four children began wanting phones and screens, the pair decided to dive into the research. They travelled overseas talking with experts and made a documentary. Today, the Cope's company - Our Kids Online - educates parents about the dangers of handheld devices and the internet-age, and how best to mitigate them. They spoke to around 500 parents in Wellington last night.