The Parent Squad

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PARENTING
UPDATED WEEKLY

If it takes a village to raise a child, it must take a whole country to raise a family! Newstalk ZB’s Parent Squad helps to do just that. Joined by expert guests The Weekend Collective team delves into the complexities of Kiwi family life.

1 DAY AGO

Sara Chatwin: Should you stay together for the kids?

Whether it's a friend, your own parents, or you may be going through it yourself - we've all heard the question of whether a couple should 'stay together for the kids'. Realistically, a divorce does have a significant impact on children, even if they're prioritised and not put in the middle of it. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

37 min
21 FEB

Dr Maneesh Deva: Is social media harm inescapable without isolating our children?

Child safety reform in the world of big tech is sweeping the globe at the moment. Australia's leading the charge in the social media ban for under 16s, and California has expanded the Coogan Law to cover child influencers, to name a few. Although we haven't seen any change here in New Zealand, the conversation has truly started and we may see moves being made soon. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

38 min
14 FEB

John Cowan: Stress is making you a bad parent

Many parents will be starting to feel the exhaustion from getting back into school and extracurriculars. We often go into the new year with high expectations of ourselves - like completely homemade school lunches, no takeout, keeping on top of house work - but quickly realise there was a reason we weren't accomplishing all that last year. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

36 min
7 FEB

Kathryn Berkett: Who's dropping the ball with new entrants?

A new report this week found nearly 90% of Auckland primary school say there's an increasing number of new entrants starting school without bare basic skills like being toilet trained and talking properly. These are 5 year olds who are otherwise capable, but some stage of their early childhood seems to have been neglected - they can't even identify the letters of their name or hold a pencil. As harsh as it may be, the blame does have to land somewhere. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

38 min
31 JAN

Dougal Sutherland: Some kids need a hands-off learning approach

Schools have started back up and we all, obviously, want our children to do well. Parents will be doing drop off and pick up, making sure the homework is done and forms are signed, keeping an eye on grades and reports. But how involved should parents really be in their children's education? LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

41 min
24 JAN

Sara Chatwin: When should you let your kids get a smartphone

One of the hottest topics of the modern era is kids and smartphones. As we've seen more of the what the internet can do (for better or worse) they seem like an essential part of life. Wallet, Keys, Phone, that's what you always keep on you. A first phone is typically only for texting mum and dad, so why do you need a device that has the capability for so much more? Child Psychologist Sara Chatwin joins Tim Beveridge to give her advice on when to let kids get their own devices and how to manage them. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

41 min
17 JAN

Nathan Wallis: Dealing with disappointing NCEA grades

NCEA results are officially out. Most kids would have genuinely worked as hard as they could to get the grades they hoped for - even the kids who act like they don't really care. And for many it won't have turned out as hey had planned - whether that meant not quite meeting the dizzying heights of their ambition or an actual fail grade. But it's unavoidable - at some stage through their school career - and life for that matter, most of us have to deal with the disappointment of failure. They need to learn how to deal with that disappointment - but it will of course still be there, so how are parents supposed to help their children through it? LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

37 min
20/12/2025

Sara Chatwin: Raise your kids to be grateful for their Christmas gifts

We've all seen the videos - we may have even seen it in our own living rooms on Christmas morning... A child, even teenager, opens a gift their loved one has especially picked out for them, and they proceed to complain about how it's not the one they wanted. The wrong colour bicycle, wrong model phone, it could be anything. So how do we teach our children to be grateful for anything they're given this Christmas? LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

37 min

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If it takes a village to raise a child, it must take a whole country to raise a family! Newstalk ZB’s Parent Squad helps to do just that. Joined by expert guests The Weekend Collective team delves into the complexities of Kiwi family life.