Amanda Ferrari hails from Trangie, on the Central Western Plains of NSW. She’s still starry-eyed over the fact that she managed to snag a farmer, and has been married to Ross for 22 years. They have three children, twins Amy and Annabel, who are completing their university studies in Sydney. Both girls attended Abbotsleigh, and…
Blog – Teens
Meeting the needs of contemporary boarders: Part 2
Continuing from our last blog post on the changing face of contemporary boarding, now we look specifically at the needs of boarders, and the expectations of their parents. In her research into the Australian boarding industry, Ascham School’s Head of Boarding Sue Newton has noted the needs of adolescents and their parents, along with parental…
The changing face of contemporary boarding: Part 1
The days of ice-cold showers in open area bathrooms, unidentifiable food, military-style dormitories with regulation bedspreads (hospital corners, please) and white sheets stiff as boards with starch, are long gone in Australian boarding schools. Along with banishing the austere living conditions of decades past, went the idea that boarding was just a place to live…
Handling exam stress
How do you get through to teens?
One of the mums on our Boarding Schools Expo team is having trouble communicating with her teenage son. She’s fallen into the trap of lecturing and, while she knows he wants to hear less of her voice, that’s not how she’s wired. When their son returned home from school camp recently, she took her husband’s…