Child claims to be psychic

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Emily Poynton is Australia's youngest psychic. At just eight years old, like her mother Jodianne, she believes she can talk to the dead.

She also communicates with 'guardian angels', a gift she believes she has been given to help humanity.

But Emily's sixth sense comes at a cost. She is unable to cope with regular schooling.

"Because of her magic, we put her into school but because she feels everything, you know if somebody is crying she is so sensitive at this age and she takes it on herself and we have kind of put her in school from time to time, but she comes home so tired from everybody's energies," Jodianne said.

Jodianne too claims to have the gift.

"I am a medium too. I started hearing what I call the voice of higher love about 10 years ago and it got stronger and stronger," she said.

"The more that I was able to give people the stronger it got."

The former psychiatric nurse has written a book based on her daughter's coming of spiritual age, after a vision came to her one night.

"I went 'wow, I am going to write a book' and the next day I sat down with one hundred sheets of paper and just started writing and 99 pages poured out over five days."

Like her idol John Edward, Emily feels compelled to pass on messages from 'guardian angels' but does she really understand what she claims to be doing, or is she simply a young girl with a wild imagination?

Professor of Psychology Krissy Wilson said people must never forget the power of human self deception.

"We can all talk to dead people, getting them to talk back is the trick," she said.

"I'm sceptical of anyone who claims to be psychic. All the years that I have been studying and investigating belief in the paranormal and ostensibly paranormal experiences, I have never yet come across anything that remotely convinces me that any of this is actually real.

"All psychics like to have a gimmick and this is the perfect gimmick, this is the Bindi Irwin of the paranormal."

Further information

Emily's website is www.myspiritgirl.com.au.

Jordianne's book is called Emily and the Magic Wish. RRP $24.95 www.emilyandthemagicwish.com.

Australian Skeptics
The Australian Skeptics is a group that investigates the paranormal and pseudo-science from a responsible scientific viewpoint.

Visit the Australian Skeptics here

The $1 million challenge
James Randi is a magician and sceptic, best known as a challenger of paranormal claims and pseudoscience.

The James Randi Educational Foundation offers a $1 million prize to anyone who can show proof of psychic powers or other paranormal claims.

So far nobody has walked away with the money.

Visit the James Randi Educational Foundation website here.