‘If you dig a hole through the centre of the Earth, you would arrive in New Zealand’. As Spanish children, we learnt that at school. Spain is the Antipodes of New Zealand. Both countries are at the same time joined … Continue reading →
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "Jill Weston and husband Peter with three of their six children: Tahlia (10), Nathan and Liam (12). Jill has been driven to tears in her dealings with EQC after their house was badly damaged in the 4 September earthquake".
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "Children in Diamond Harbour and Purau who decided to try and cheer up all the sick and elderly in the community after the quake by taking them bunches of daffodils. Liam Schmidlin-Wilson who came up with the idea".
A photograph submitted by Anonymous to the QuakeStories website. The description reads, "The demolition of our preschool opposite Cranmer Square. All children and teachers were evacuated safely with the help of builders working on the old Girl’s High building in front.".
A photograph of children and parents painting rocks for Rock on Eastside on the corner of Linwood Avenue and Aldwins Road. Rock on Eastside was an outdoor lounge and art space facilitated by Gap Filler and Youthtown. The paint was donated by Resene.
A photograph of children and adults in superhero and Star Wars costumes at Christchurch Botanic Gardens for the farewell party of local hero 'Flat Man'. All Right? posted the photograph on their Facebook page on 6 December 2014 at 2:53pm.
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "Jill Weston and husband Peter with three of their six children: Tahlia (10), Nathan and Liam (12). Jill has been driven to tears in her dealings with EQC after their house was badly damaged in the 4 September earthquake".
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "Christchurch family Craig Yates and his partner Kim Blazey and their children Kass, 8 months and Sonny, 2, relax in the playground at Tahuna Beach Holiday Park as they recover from the trauma of of last Saturday's earthquake".
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "Jill Weston and husband Peter with three of their six children: Tahlia (10), Nathan and Liam (12). Jill has been driven to tears in her dealings with EQC after their house was badly damaged in the 4 September earthquake".
“It must have been a happy household,” was the remark made by one of our team members when she saw the artefact assemblage we are discussing on today’s blog post. Whilst children’s artefacts are relatively common finds on New Zealand … Continue reading →
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "A big day of moving out of the caravan up the drive of their house to a rental home, for earthquake-stricken Kaiapoi mum and children. From left: Tyler Entwistle (13) Paige Entwistle (14) and Flynn Entwistle (10)".
A video of interviews with students from Banks Avenue School about their experiences during the 4 September 2010 earthquake.
Post-traumatic stress symptoms are a common reaction to experiencing a traumatic event such as a natural disaster. Young children may be at an increased risk for such mental health problems as these catastrophic events may coincide with developmentally sensitive periods of development. Treatments currently recommended for children with post-traumatic stress symptoms insufficiently acknowledge the role of neurobiological stress related systems responsible for these symptoms. As such, alternative approaches to the treatment of posttraumatic symptoms have been explored, with nature-based interventions offering a potential alternative based on two different theories that uphold the stress reducing benefits of natural environments. To date, there are a limited number of experimental studies that have explored the use of nature-based interventions with children, and no known research that has used a simulated nature experience with child participants. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of a simulated nature experience on the physiological and behavioural responses of children with post-traumatic stress symptoms that experienced the Christchurch earthquakes. A single-case research design with repeated measures of heart rate and teacherreported behaviour was gathered across a 20-day period. Heart rate data was collected before and after participants watched a 10-minute nature video, while data from a teacher rating scale provided information about the participants’ behaviours in the 30-minute period after they watched the nature video. Comparisons made to data collected during two different baseline phases indicated that the nature video intervention had no recognisable effects on the participants’ physiological and behavioural stress responses. Limitations to the current study are discussed as possible reasons for the incompatibility between the current study’s results and the findings from previous research. Suggestions are made for any future replications of the study.
A photograph of children riding a large-scale puppet titled The Knight, in Cathedral Square. The puppet was created by Free Theatre Christchurch for Canterbury Tales, which was the main event of FESTA 2013. It is on display for the Meet the Puppets event.
A photograph of All Right?'s Ciaran Fox talking to children at the All Right? stall during the 2015 Te Matatini National Kapa Haka festival in Hagley Park. All Right? posted the photograph on their Facebook page on 10 March 2015 at 2:29pm.
A photograph of children making silhouettes on stage at The Worry Bug book launch. The screen is illustrated in the style of The Worry Bug book. The photograph was taken at The Worry Bug book launch at St Albans School on 8 July 2015.
A photograph of children making silhouettes on stage at The Worry Bug book launch. The screen is illustrated in the style of The Worry Bug book. The photograph was taken at The Worry Bug book launch at St Albans School on 8 July 2015.
A photograph of Ciaran Fox from All Right? and Deputy Mayor Vicki Buck watching children cut The Worry Bug Project cake at The Worry Bug book launch. Also in the photograph is Sue Turner from All Right? and Julie Burgess-Manning and Sarina McCormick.
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "Ian Thomson, a qualified fire-fighter and secretary for a Wellington-based volunteer fire brigade, holds vouchers valued at $1000 to go out to children of Kaiapoi fire-fighters affected by the earthquake. With him is Toyworld manager Scott Granger".
Beware the darkness, children, for there be monsters We love to characterise the dark as something to be feared, the territory of nightmares, of ghouls and ghosts and things that go bump. In our collective psyche it belongs to the … Continue reading →
Three leading artists: the singer Madeleine Pierard; the children's book illustrator Gavin Bishop and playwright and actor Jacob Rajan discuss why they create work with Paul Bushnell. Awa Press writer Jane Bowron reads from her book Old Bucky & Me: Dispatches from the Christchurch Earthquake.
Three leading artists: the singer Madeleine Pierard; the children's book illustrator Gavin Bishop and playwright and actor Jacob Rajan discuss why they create work with Paul Bushnell. Awa Press writer Jane Bowron reads from her book Old Bucky & Me: Dispatches from the Christchurch Earthquake.
David Rockefeller has died. He was a believer in great responsibility coming with great wealth. What the Panelists Ali Jones and Michael Moynahan want to talk about. Kim Button of the Neighbourhood Trust talks about the emotional scars Christchurch children are bearing after the earthquakes.
This thesis seeks to examine how the integration of play, small toys specifically, and the use of solution-focused brief therapy techniques can affect the outcomes for primary school aged children undergoing counselling. The setting is a counselling agency in Christchurch, New Zealand. A qualitative research approach is used and the data analysed using a narrative inquiry approach. The context of this study is the counselling service of an agency where young children, adolescents and their families are helped and supported through a variety of life issues. The counselling the participants are offered uses a combination of a solution-focused and play therapy where the purpose is to encourage clients to find exceptions to their presenting problems and identify their preferred future. The aim of this study is to help the children navigate their problem through a better understanding of and the gaining of personal skills and strengths. Participants were invited to be part of this study through the agency waiting list. The four included presented with a variety of reasons for coming to counselling yet these proved similar to that which the agency has been routinely presented with in the aftermath of the Canterbury earthquakes from 2011 to present day. Each participant had the consent of their parents or caregivers to engage in this project. The participants themselves separately agreed to engage in a solution- focused counselling process where the counsellor also integrated the use of small toys as part of the course. Counselling sessions were audiotaped, aspects photographed and analysed with a specific focus on client engagement. Four key themes emerged as the participants explored their personal narrative. Firstly, the “I’m OK” theme depicted in their first scaling activity, secondly a recognition that things could indeed be better and they needed help. Thirdly, a realisation of their own strengths and skills and finally that the future was an optimistic place to look forward to. These themes are described and explained through descriptions of the participant’s stories as well as self-reflection by the researcher. Transcriptions of sessions are included as are excerpts from the research journal and photographs of the use of the small toys by the children.
A photograph of preschool children and adults posing for a group photograph with the All Righties and Sue Turner of the All Right? campaign, Christchurch City Councillor Glenn Livingstone, and Anna Mowat of SKIP (Strategies with Kids, Information for Parents - a project of the Ministry of Social Development). The photograph was taken at the Tiny Adventures launch at Niu Early Learning Centre in Linwood. Niu Early Learning Centre is managed by the Tongan Canterbury Community Trust. The Tiny Adventure card packs and smartphone app offer ideas, games and quick fun ways for parents to spend time with their children. They are a project of the All Right? mental health campaign.
A photograph of young children at the public launch event for Agropolis, which was part of FESTA 2013. Agropolis is an urban farm on the corner of High Street and Tuam Street. Organic waste from inner-city hospitality businesses is composted and used to grow food.
A photograph of children in Cathedral Square, playing with one of the large-scale puppets titled The Friars. The puppet was created by Free Theatre Christchurch, for Canterbury Tales, which was the main event of FESTA 2013. It is on display for the Meet the Puppets event.
A photograph of children in Cathedral Square, playing with one of the large-scale puppets titled The Friars. The puppet was created by Free Theatre Christchurch, for Canterbury Tales, which was the main event of FESTA 2013. It is on display for the Meet the Puppets event.
A video clip of children playing with inflatable balls inside a large-scale, temporary installation titled Upload. The installation was created by students from The University of Auckland for CityUps - a 'city of the future for one night only', and the main event of FESTA 2014.
A photograph of children in Cathedral Square, playing with one of the large-scale puppets titled The Friars. The puppet was created by Free Theatre Christchurch, for Canterbury Tales, which was the main event of FESTA 2013. It is on display for the Meet the Puppets event.