Thursday 13 April

New children's magazine for kiwi kids

A new magazine is being prepared for kiwi kids, called Upstart. It will be welcomed by parents and educators, who for years have been calling for more New Zealand produced media for children.

Save the Children New Zealand and Tearaway Magazine today announced their joint involvement in Upstart, a magazine written for and by children aged 7 to 12 years.
This follows over two years of planning and market research.

Save the Children New Zealand are contributing seeding funding for the new magazine. Executive Director John Bowis says "Upstart will provide a valuable ‘missing link’ for young New Zealanders who are looking for both an outlet for their own stories, and new media that reflects their concerns and needs."

Upstart, like its older sibling, Tearaway Magazine, will be written by its readers and is also expected to be utilised widely by teachers. It will be sold direct to schools and parent-teacher groups, as well as retailers. There will also be a website to go with the magazine.

The content will cover all aspects of being a young Kiwi, including entertainment, challenging current topics, sport, science, and creativity. Underlying it all will be the encouragement to take a positive and activate interest in the world around them, while treating themselves and others with respect.

The first issue is due out in June.

Teacher and parent reaction

“I’ve been looking for something like this for ages and now I’ve found it. There’s nothing like this for kids in the bookshops, and there should be” - (Parent comment on Upstart)
Reaction to a pilot version of Upstart has been enthusiastic, with both teachers and parents saying they have been “looking for something like this for years”.

Compelling elements include the fact that it is a totally New Zealand publication 'in a sea of Australian imports', and children nationwide will have the chance to showcase their work in either the magazine, or on the website.

A significant project for Save the Children
In New Zealand Save the Children plays an important role in advocating for children. This magazine provides children with an opportunity to voice their concerns and share their thoughts with other children. The content will encourage and empower children while also providing information about their peers around the world.

SCNZ “inspiration” gets the project started
Founder and publisher of Tearaway, John Francis, says he is grateful to the “inspiration and insight” of Save the Children New Zealand, “without which this new magazine would not have been possible.”

“On first glance, it’s a strange fit, an international charity and a private organisation. But then if you look at the achievable outcomes, it’s a different story.
“Part of Save the Children’s mission states that they work for:

- A world which respects and values each child
- A world which listens to children and learns
- A world where all children have hope and opportunity

“The Tearaway mission uses very similar wording, expressing identical values. We know from the feedback we’ve had over our 19 years, that our senior magazine, Tearaway, has been a positive influence in the lives of many of its readers. And indeed, that it has helped many parents to understand their teenagers better.

“Both Save the Children and Tearaway Magazine are looking forward to the same outcome from Upstart. Indeed, Upstart is even more significant in some ways, because it will enable us to reach young kids at the age when they are both most vulnerable, but also most readily influenced in ways that are helpful to them personally, and to the people in their lives,” John Francis said.

ENDS

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