A video of interviews with students from Banks Avenue School about their experiences during the 4 September 2010 earthquake.
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "The author Diana Noonan and illustrator Gavin Bishop of the children's book Quaky Cat read to a year 3 class at Avondale Primary School. The two collaborated on the book which is about the Canterbury earthquake".
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "The author Diana Noonan and illustrator Gavin Bishop of the children's book Quaky Cat read to a year 3 class at Avondale Primary School. The two collaborated on the book which is about the Canterbury earthquake".
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "The author Diana Noonan and illustrator Gavin Bishop of the children's book Quaky Cat read to a year 3 class at Avondale Primary School. The two collaborated on the book which is about the Canterbury earthquake".
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "The author Diana Noonan and illustrator Gavin Bishop of the children's book Quaky Cat read to a year 3 class at Avondale Primary School. The two collaborated on the book which is about the Canterbury earthquake".
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "The author Diana Noonan and illustrator Gavin Bishop of the children's book Quaky Cat read to a year 3 class at Avondale Primary School. The two collaborated on the book which is about the Canterbury 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, "Teddy time: A Whanganui man has sent dozens of teddy bears to Rangiora to be distributed to children affected by the Canterbury earthquake. Ted Cheriton sent the teddies to National MP Kate Wilkinson's office to be distributed. Ms Wilkinson said it was a fantastic gesture. 'I am sure they will be welcome in Kaiapoi and beach settlements where damage from the earthquake has severely affected many families', she said. 'Hopefully these teddies will bring a smile to some young children and cheer them up in what has been a very trying and traumatic time'".
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.
‘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 →
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 →
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".
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".
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)".
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.
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".
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.
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.
Father and daughter Peter and Cait O'Connor set up the Teaspoon of Light theatre company in Christchurch after the earthquakes, working with young children in the most quake-affected schools. Lynn Freeman speaks with Peter and Cait ahead of a trip to Mexico for similar work.
This paper explores the responses by a group of children to an art project that was undertaken by a small school in New Zealand after the September 2010 and February 2011 Christchurch earthquakes. Undertaken over a period of two years, the project aimed to find a suitable form of memorialising this significant event in a way that was appropriate and meaningful to the community. Alongside images that related directly to the event of the earthquakes, the art form of a mosaic was chosen, and consisted of images and symbols that clearly drew on the hopes and dreams of a school community who were refusing to be defined by the disaster. The paper 'writes' the mosaic by placing fragments of speech spoken by the children involved in relation to ideas about memory, affect, and the 'sublime', through the work of Jean-Francois Lyotard. The paper explores the mosaic as constituted by the literal and metaphorical 'broken pieces' of the city of Christchurch in ways that confer pedagogic value inscribed through the creation of a public art space by children. AM - Accepted Manuscript
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "New Brighton Community Preschool manager Paula Robinson checks out a box of toys and a special hand-made book for 'the children who know what it's like to be in a big earthquake'. It was sent from youngsters at Wintec early education centre in Waikato".
To those silent sentinels, the guardians of the night, who insured our peaceful homes and sheltered our children from fright. We give our thanks and praise for the sacrifice they bore, and pledge always to remember their gift of service in war. Gerard A. Geiger March 23, 1996
A video clip of young children interacting with a large-scale, temporary installation titled Orbis. The installation is on Lichfield Street. 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.
One of New Zealand's most celebrated authors, Kate De Goldi's short fiction, novels and picture books engage children, teenagers and adults alike. Novel The 10pm Question was published to critical acclaim, quickly becoming an iconic piece of New Zealand literature. Her latest, Eddy, Eddy is being met with similar excitement.
Canterbury schools to stay closed until Monday, Earthquake family tries to comfort traumatised children, Christchurch welfare centres start filling up, Independent Australian MPs back Labor, Universities raise fees to maximum, MPs in Parliament pay tribute to people of Canterbury, Prime Minister speaks from Christchurch, and Julia Gillard speaks about the newly formed government.
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "Chris Lin and his wife Caleen Xue at the door of their cool store safe where they slept for three weeks after the 4 September earthquake to guard what was left of their stock, while their teenage children rented a single room in a house up the road for their safety".