Teens Are Falling Out Of Love With Reading. Teachers Share What They Think’s Behind It

Posted on 25/04/2026 by Boris Clair

We all know kids and teens are reading less – and an increasing number are enjoying it less, too.

The stats speak for themselves. When The National Literacy Trust polled almost 115,000 kids in early 2025, it found just one in three (32.7%) kids aged eight to 18 years old said they enjoyed reading in their free time.

This marked a 36% decrease in reading enjoyment levels since 2005.

Among teens, particularly boys, reading enjoyment drops even more. One in five (18.8% of) boys aged 14 to 16 report enjoying reading, compared to 37.7% of girls.

It’s not just a UK issue, either. In a US-based survey of Gen Z students by Walton Family Foundation and Gallup, 35% admitted they disliked reading, with 43% saying they rarely or never did it for fun.

What’s impacting their love of reading?

In a TikTok video, a teacher known as Ms C, admitted one of her students had revealed they’d never finished a book before.

Discussing why older kids are reading less, she said there are “many reasons” like “increased pressure inside and outside of school, a desire to spend more time socialising, and, of course, the phones”.

But an even more “obvious” reason, she said, is that “adults have lowered the bar for how much you should read as a teenager” to the point where “the bar cannot be found”.

She explained: “There are many educators who have the mindset that you shouldn’t teach whole books because kids just won’t read them.”

“In the past I’ve taught at schools where teaching novels is actually discouraged,” she claimed.

I asked teachers and school librarians in the UK for their two cents on why kids are falling way out of love with reading by the time they reach their teens.

Sol Elliott, librarian at Overton Grange School, suggested more time spent online, especially on social media, plays a key part: “The technology that brings a lot of young people towards reading also keeps far more people away from it.

“The dopamine hit of social media use is hard to compete with, especially when we are working with people whose brains are developing quickly.”

Sarah Parsons, director of education at the Ted Wragg Multi Academy Trust, said: “Sadly, we see in our schools that teens find it hard to maintain the reading habits that they may have developed during primary school.

“Increasing demands on their time both within and beyond the classroom, combined with the growing influence of technology, have all contributed to a decline in regular reading among our teenagers.”

Research suggests there was a 52% increase in children’s screen time between 2020 and 2022. Kids aged eight to 14 years old who use the internet spend an average of 2 hours 59 minutes a day online across smartphones, tablets and computers, typically on YouTube, Snapchat, Google (search), Facebook and WhatsApp.

Nat Parnell, CEO of the Westcountry Schools Trust, also suggested social media plays a major role in teens reading less: “The risk is that the short bursts of gratification teenagers get from social media and texting are far more immediately satisfying than reading, which requires much greater effort before enjoyment is reached. It is not really a fair competition.”

The benefits of reading for pleasure

Besides being a nice way to switch off and unwind, there are several benefits to kids reading for pleasure. It helps introduce children to a range of experiences and viewpoints, which can help build empathy. It can also boost confidence and spark creativity.

Reading enjoyment has also been reported as more important for children’s educational success than their family’s socio-economic status, and it’s linked to higher scores in reading assessments.

Schools are trying to address the reading crisis – but it’s not easy. Parnell said their schools ensure all students have structured reading opportunities. “We also banned mobile phones in school some time ago,” she noted.

Parsons said their are a few strategies they’re deploying to try and boost reading: providing dedicated time each week for independent reading, for example, as well as exposing kids to texts that stimulate meaningful discussion and debate.

For Elliott, it’s been a case of tailoring the school library collection to the pupils’ tastes “in the hope that they will pick up a healthy reading habit as they grow up”.

“A lot of these choices are informed by internet trends and TikTok friendly genres (Fantasy, Romance, Manga etc.),” said the librarian.

“I genuinely fear for the health of our society if a meaningful cohort of young people are not reading regularly and interacting with serious literature,” Elliott added.

“I am optimistic, though, that when a school is sensitive to its young readers and pays attention to their interests that we can help them turn into regular readers.

“All reading is good reading, and I can only hope that stocking my library with magazines, comics and manga, will lead a good amount of them to a Zadie Smith novel, or a play by Arthur Miller.”

Ways to get kids reading at home

If you’re hoping to spark a love of reading in your teen, here’s what might help:

Buy books related to a favourite film, TV series, or which matches their interests or hobbies.
Let them choose what they read.
Be a reading role model – make sure they see you reading for enjoyment, too.
Set screen-free time before bed and encourage activities such as reading, colouring or journalling to wind down.
Help them find their own spaces to talk about books, suggests Scottish Book Trust – try Goodreads or #BookTok on TikTok.
Encourage different reading formats – e-books, comics and e-magazines still count!
Take them to library,school and book shop-hosted events focused on reading.
Check out our picks of the books to gently steer teens towards reading once more.

Good luck!

What Does Larp Mean? The Gen Z Gaming-Inspired Term Explained

Posted on 24/04/2026 by Boris Clair

If there’s not a day that goes by where you aren’t scratching your head over something your teen’s said, you’ve come to the right place.

Today we’re talking about the Gen Z term ‘larp’, which tweens and teens might call each other, or mention in comments online. The clue is absolutely not in the name. So, what on earth does it mean?

“People are calling each other larps which Google says is ‘live action role play’ but that sentence literally makes no sense, so what are they saying?” asked one Redditor who was equally baffled by it.

What is a larp or larper?

The Redditor is correct that larp comes from the gaming term ‘live action role-playing’, which is where people physically act out characters. For example, wearing costumes and acting out scenes from their favourite computer games.

But over time, the term has also evolved to mean someone pretending to be something they’re not. You can be a larper or larping, too.

One Redditor explained: “LARPing usually involves some form of acting.

“So if you’re calling someone a larper you’re saying they are acting a part, calling them fake basically, that they are pretending to be something they aren’t, and/or their behaviour is performative.”

In short, it’s become an insult and a way to call someone out. As another Redditor noted, larper has become “a common insult online used to imply the person is making shit up”.

What else are kids saying?

Call your Uber

Some teachers report kids are saying “call your Uber” or “call yo Uber” in class. Uber is a popular ride-hailing company so it’s kind of like saying, “call yourself a taxi”. In short: you need to leave.

Mid

When Gen Alpha uses it, “mid” means mediocre or of disappointing quality. If you’re described as “mid” by a teenager then they’re basically saying you are… average.

According to Merriam-Webster, “mid” serves to express that something falls short of expectations, or isn’t impressive.

The dictionary notes that this slang term is thought to have come from a shortening of the term mid-grade, “a designation in cannabis culture of medium quality”.

City boy

“City boy, city boy” is the call of Gen Alpha currently, with TikTok creator and teacher Philip Lindsay noting kids in his class have been saying it.

“It’s a meme from an old video clip that they’re just repeating,” explained the teacher, who is based in the US. The memes actually first did the rounds in 2022 and appear to be popular again.

From a Gen Alpha perspective, Mr Lindsay suggested the phrase doesn’t really mean anything and kids are just shouting it out at all opportunities – a bit like six-seven.

Unc

This is short for “uncle”. And, per Merriam-Webster’s dictionary, it’s “often used humorously to indicate old age” and may imply “someone is old, getting old, or acting older than their age”.

Unc status may also be awarded to someone who “exhibit[s] behaviours that are considered outdated or out of touch”.

Delete Photos Of Your Kids Online Before They Become ‘Landmines’, Warns Author

Posted on 22/04/2026 by Boris Clair

A parenting author and columnist has urged other parents to delete all the photos they’ve shared of their kids online – warning that these pictures are like “landmines” waiting to go off as children grow up.

Plenty of parents share photos, videos and details of their children’s lives online – usually on social media or in private groups – a phenomenon known as ‘sharenting’.

But this increasingly comes at a cost. Other children and teens can easily find these photos online and then turn them into cruel memes, deepfake videos (some of which can be pornographic) or share them around school to cause embarrassment.

Lorraine Candy, a journalist and author of ‘Mum, What’s Wrong with You?’: 101 Things Only Mothers of Teenage Girls Know, shared: “I think we need to go back and delete all the pictures we have ever shared – even in private Facebook groups or on private WhatsApp channels – of our children when they were younger.”

Explaining the reasoning for this statement, she said when kids reach their tween and teen years, those photos on social media are “landmines” for them and it can be “really upsetting” that other people can see them and they might get shared around.

“Imagine your worst teenage bully at school, imagine your worst friendship group where you feel very insecure and vulnerable, imagine them having access to pictures of you in a bath when you were a baby, to posts about you having a poo,” she said in an Instagram reel.

The author continued: “I know you can say it’s in a private group, it won’t get shared. [But] It does get screenshot, it does get shared. Other children have access to their parents’ private groups.”

Candy, who has four children, noted it’s “really important to a developing mind, as a teenager, that they don’t have these little bombs going off in the background emotionally as they’re developing their identity and their autonomy and their privacy”.

Plenty of people resonated with the post. “I mentor teenagers and would always recommend that parents do this. Online photos can cause all sorts of issues further down the line,” said one commenter.

“I’ve thought about this a lot over the years. I’ll have the conversation with my 12-year-old son this weekend and see how he feels about it. It’ll be so difficult to erase them because my Instagram is like a memory book of his childhood!” added another parent.

One mum recalled how she received a “barrage of requests” from her daughter’s friends to connect with her on Instagram (back when her daughter was 13).

“When I asked my daughter she said they were only sending these requests to access pics of her when she was younger – for jokes, basically. It was a real moment of enlightenment for me,” she added.

It’s not just bullying and deepfake creation that can be an issue as a result of sharenting. Images – whether real or fake – can also be used to intimidate or blackmail teenagers, as well as to commit identity theft and fraud.

‘Body Doubling’ Could Be The Secret To Helping Kids With ADHD Focus Better

Posted on 21/04/2026 by Boris Clair

Body doubling – where a person with ADHD works nearby or alongside another person to keep them focused on the task at hand – isn’t a new technique, but ADHD experts are increasingly recommending it as a strategy to help support task completion.

While plenty of adults already use it to plough through their daily workload, parents are also trying it to support their kids with homework or revision – especially the more boring stuff that’s hard to make a start on.

I first came across the concept when psychotherapist Jessica VanderWier, of Nurtured First Parenting, shared some of the parenting strategies she would try in her own home if she had a child with ADHD.

In addition to being structured with how much (and what type of) screen time kids encounter, and offering lots of opportunities for movement, she noted that she would also try “body doubling” when kids feel stuck and unable to start a task.

“Body doubling is when you are present and doing something in the same space that your child needs to get a task done. Example: they’re doing homework and you’re beside them folding laundry,” she explained on Instagram.

“Your presence acts as an anchor and helps decrease procrastination and increase motivation to get something done.”

Why body doubling works

Dr Chris Abbott, chief medical officer at Care ADHD, tells HuffPost UK that while there’s been limited research into body doubling, many clinicians and families report that it can meaningfully help children with ADHD with focus and task completion.

“It’s best understood as a low-risk, practical strategy rather than a standalone treatment, and tends to work particularly well for tasks that are hard to start or sustain,” he adds.

The strategy builds on psychological principles such as accountability and social facilitation.

“Children often find it easier to stay on task when someone else is present. It also helps ‘externalise’ focus, reducing the burden on executive functions like task initiation and self-regulation, which are commonly affected by ADHD,” says Dr Abbott.

Dr Kripalani, lead psychiatrist at The ADHD Centre, says body doubling is
“an incredibly effective tool”.

“Since the ADHD brain often struggles to ‘self-start’ or maintain focus on tasks that aren’t naturally stimulating, having another person present serves as a gentle physical anchor,” he explains.

Teaching kids this tool from a young age can be “transformative” because it prevents a child from internalising a “failure identity”, adds Dr Kripalani.

“Instead of feeling isolated in their struggle, the child experiences a daunting task as a shared journey, which lowers the emotional barrier to entry and helps them find their focus.”

It can also help buffer against rejection sensitivity dysphoria (RSD), which can cause extremely intense negative feelings and severe emotional pain, and is often associated with ADHD.

“Many children experience a form of paralysis born from the fear of being criticised or doing something wrong,” says the psychiatrist.

“A supportive, non-judgmental body double provides a safety net that lowers cortisol levels and keeps the prefrontal cortex ‘online’ for learning.”

Other expert-backed tips for revision and focus

Break revision into short, timed blocks of 10-25 minutes with regular breaks.
Offer ‘micro rewards’ – rather than waiting for a big reward at the end of the week, give a child a small dopamine hit, like five minutes of a favourite activity for every 20 minutes of work, to keep the momentum going.
Use body doubling, in person or via video, for harder or less engaging subjects.
Be specific about goals – you could say ‘complete five questions’ rather than ‘revise maths’.
Alternate subjects or task types to maintain interest and avoid fatigue.
Build in movement breaks (physical activity) to help reset attention.
Noise-cancelling headphones and fidget tools can help channel restlessness.
Reduce distractions e.g. have a clear workspace and limit devices unless they’re needed for studying.
Use active techniques such as practice questions, flashcards and teaching someone else rather than passive reading. Gamifying the more tedious aspects of study with ‘beat the clock’ challenges or colourful mind maps can help the info “stick”.
Create a consistent routine, but keep it flexible enough to avoid overwhelm.
Prioritise sleep, nutrition, and downtime – these have a direct impact on attention and memory.
Praise their efforts – by saying, “I love how you stayed at your desk even when that question was tricky,” rather than just “you’re smart,” we build resilience against rejection sensitivity by valuing effort over perfection.

I Lost My Daughter To Cancer. 4 Well-Meaning Words Left Me Feeling More Alone In My Grief

Posted on 18/04/2026 by Boris Clair

When we hear about the death of a child or young adult, we are unsettled, unmoored. Such deaths are out of the natural order. And if it could happen to your child, it could happen to mine. Life is never safe once you have children.

When my daughter died of cancer at age 40, some people remained silent, distancing themselves, as if the death of a child might be bad luck, contagious. Other well-intentioned people hesitated, retreated, reaching for a safe landing.

“There are no words.”

“Your loss is unimaginable.”

“I can’t imagine what you are going through.”

Why is it so easy to find words for joyous occasions – births, graduations, weddings – yet we lose language when seeking words to console and comfort the bereaved? Death humbles us, revealing the empty spaces in language.

I understand. I do. My daughter’s death left me without words. It is incomprehensible to lose a child. Grief isn’t one emotion; it is a tsunami of sadness, anger, shock, pain, helplessness and deep yearning. Perhaps reaching for the shorthand, “There are no words,” is an easier way to say: There will never be words large enough to express this sadness.

After Alex died, I fell into many empty spaces in language, especially the space where I had no name for myself, a parent who has lost her child. Names exist for a child who has lost a parent (orphan), or for a woman who loses her partner (widow), but what do we call an orphaned parent?

Recently, though, I stumbled upon vilomah – a Sanskrit word that means “against the natural order.” The word vilomah embraces the primal injustice of outliving one’s child, inverting the generational order, an upside-down world. Parents expect to predecease their children, not bury them. To be a vilomah is to become an unwanted messenger from a distant point of human existence.

Bereaved parents – vilomahs – aren’t surprised when we learn the word bereavement has its roots in Old English, meaning to deprive, rob, take away. The future tense has been rearranged: Our children have been deprived of their hopes and dreams – their future – and we, their parents, are robbed of our future with them.

The author (right) with her daughter Alex at a family party.

But placeholders such as “there are no words” close off conversations when they most need to begin, forcing a parent who has lost so much to find words to comfort the speaker. Bereaved parents need their friends and families to be safekeepers, using specific words to describe our beautiful children, reminding us that our children live on in their memories.

I needed words of comfort to bring her back – stories about her light and love, her acts of kindness and courage. I needed to hear people say her name – Alex – and surround me with words of love.

Here’s what I want to say to everyone: be brave. There are no perfect words to comfort the bereaved, no comfortable words for something so uncomfortable. You can’t fix my loss, but you can hold in your hearts everything about Alex that made her specific and human – her love for birthdays and balloons, pandas and popsicles, dresses with pockets, Japanese art and fashion design, running marathons and then ultramarathons, making everything look so easy.

You can reminisce joyfully about photos of Alex at the finish line of her 100-mile runs, beaming with a thumbs-up, or about the ways in which she celebrated life’s small pleasures and brought family along for the celebration. Her beautiful curls and welcoming smile that felt like a hug, or the big-hearted gifts she gave – she was a spectacular gift-giver.

Or her love for s’mores and ice cream cake, sushi and dumplings, for growing dahlias and daisies, for the multitudes she contained. These loving, specific words capture the light Alex carried, the vividness with which she lived her life.

When someone says, “There are no words,” I hear “That’s all there is to say,” and when they say, “Your loss is unimaginable,” I hear “I will not try to imagine your loss.” These expressions allow speakers to retreat, staying emotionally adjacent to the bereaved parent’s loss, leaving us isolated, sealed off, deprived of moments of true connection.

When friends and family tell an Alex story or ask for one, they open the uncomfortable spaces in language and let my daughter live on in words.

Bereaved parents live with the geography of our grief, becoming familiar with its peaks and valleys, its edges. Our grief doesn’t disappear; its tail is long. No worries if you didn’t bring the casserole or cannoli; there is plenty of time to offer comfort to a bereaved parent and honour a child’s memory.

I am grateful to the many friends who continue to lift up Alex’s name and carry grief with me – like the neighbour who cooked Alex’s favourite dumplings each month for an entire year, leaving them on our front porch with a simple one-word note reading “love”. For the friends who plant dahlias to honour Alex, or wear dresses with pockets remembering her, and the friends who are listening presences, lingering in the backyard to talk about Alex.

And I am always grateful to the wonderful friends and family who put April 2, Alex’s birthday, and July 15, the day she died, on their calendars, knowing these are both rough days for me and important days to honour Alex’s memory.

A Jewish proverb reminds us of why we need to try to fill the empty spaces in language: “One dies twice – the first time when a body stops breathing; the second time when a name is no longer spoken.”

To a bereaved parent, silence feels like forgetting. Whenever someone speaks the name of my beloved child and asks about her, her life story is kept alive.

If you know a bereaved parent, reach out with loving words and gestures, show up and help carry their grief – and do it again. And again. Become safekeepers of memory – tell a story; ask for a story. Help a bereaved parent find the spaces where their beloved child continues to live.

There are always words.

Do you have a compelling personal story you’d like to see published on HuffPost? Find out what we’re looking for here and send us a pitch at pitch@huffpost.com.

Help and support:

Mind, open Monday to Friday, 9am-6pm on 0300 123 3393.
Samaritans offers a listening service which is open 24 hours a day, on 116 123 (UK and ROI – this number is FREE to call and will not appear on your phone bill).
CALM (the Campaign Against Living Miserably) offer a helpline open 5pm-midnight, 365 days a year, on 0800 58 58 58, and a webchat service.
The Mix is a free support service for people under 25. Call 0808 808 4994 or email help@themix.org.uk
Rethink Mental Illness offers practical help through its advice line which can be reached on 0808 801 0525 (Monday to Friday 10am-4pm). More info can be found on rethink.org.

When’s It OK For Kids To Play Out Alone? An Expert Shares 4 Questions To Answer

Posted on 16/04/2026 by Boris Clair

Gaining independence is a crucial part of growing up – but at what point are kids ready to go it alone and play outside without you watching their every move?

In contrast to those who won’t let their kids go anywhere alone, there are a number of parents who are taking a more laidback approach and parenting “like it’s the 90s”, giving their kids the freedom to play out unsupervised.

I can see the appeal. We lived in a quiet cul-de-sac growing up and I was allowed to play out with our neighbours’ kids – we knew we had to stay in the street, or in one another’s homes. As we got older, we were allowed to venture a bit further afield. It gave my parents a break, and it made me feel like I was capable and trusted.

Nowadays I live on a relatively quiet street on the outskirts of a major city. There’s not much traffic, we’re near a park, but I’m not sure at what point I’d feel comfortable letting my kids go it alone (admittedly they’re both way too young, but it’s something I’ll have to consider in the years to come!).

Gail Sayles, a Childline practitioner, suggests there isn’t really an age when kids are ready for that next level of independence. Instead, it depends on the child and the situation.

“What matters most is whether your child feels ready, and whether you feel confident letting them take that step. If either of you isn’t quite there yet, that’s a sign they may need a bit more time,” she tells HuffPost UK.

What are the signs they’re ready?

Obviously, babies, toddlers and very young children should never be left alone because they can’t keep themselves safe.

The law doesn’t specify an age when parents can leave a child on their own, but it’s an offence to leave a child alone if it places them at risk.

Sayles notes parents are in the “best position” to judge whether their child is ready to head outdoors on their own, “because you know how they usually behave when you’re not with them”.

It can help to ask yourself a few practical questions to help make this decision:

Can they remember important information like their name and address?
Do they stick to agreed timings?
Do they behave responsibly when you’re not with them?
Would they know what to do if plans changed unexpectedly?

The expert advises parents to talk through different scenarios with their child – for example, what they’d do if they hurt themselves or felt uncomfortable. “These conversations can be reassuring for both of you and help build confidence,” she says.

And if you’re unsure whether they’re ready for this next step, you can always start small. Let them play in a nearby area, go out for a short period of time, or spend time with certain friends you trust – this can be a good way to see how they manage, adds Sayles, while still keeping things safe.

What to tell your child before they venture out alone

If you’ve decided your child is ready to go it alone, there are a few important things to address first.

They should be able to share their full name and address and have access to phone numbers for at least two trusted adults.

They should also know what to do in an emergency, including where they could go for help – for example, a shop, library or approaching a police officer or shop staff.

It’s also crucial they feel confident crossing roads safely and know that they should never go anywhere with anyone, even someone they know, without checking with a parent or carer first.

My child’s not ready. What do I tell them?

If you don’t feel your child is ready to venture out alone, Action For Children suggests explaining which skills you’d want them to have first, and then making a plan together to help them learn those skills – that way, they won’t feel like you’re simply shutting them down.

Yes, Kids Are More Likely To Get Sick In The Next Fortnight

Posted on 15/04/2026 by Boris Clair

As I write this I can feel another illness taking hold: the headache, the stuffy nose, the scratchy throat. It can only mean one thing: the kids are back at school!

While plenty of people will be relieved to get back to normality after two weeks of juggling work and childcare, a survey of 1,000 parents by Olbas found over half (55%) dread their kids going back to school due to the increased chance of getting ill.

There’s no getting around it, they will (probably) get sick in the coming fortnight.

Dr Roger Henderson, an NHS GP and spokesperson for Olbas, says: “When children return to school after Easter holidays or extended breaks, it’s normal to see a sudden rise in sniffles, coughs, and stomach upsets.

“This isn’t because schools are unhealthy places, but rather because children are suddenly exposed to lots of germs they haven’t encountered in a while – almost like a refresher course for their immune systems!”

Younger children, especially those in primary school, may be hit hardest because their bodies are still learning how to handle common viruses.

“Parents should expect a wave of minor illnesses and be prepared with tissues, comfort foods, and perhaps a flexible routine to allow for extra rest,” says the doctor.

“The good news is that these minor illnesses help children build up stronger immune systems over time. While it can feel overwhelming at first, most of the common viral illnesses pass quickly, and children normally bounce back with their usual energy.”

Here, Dr Henderson shares some tips and tricks to overhaul your morning routine to at least give everyone a fighting chance amid the post-holiday bug surge.

1. Create a 10-15 minute buffer zone

The GP is a firm believer in creating a 10-15 minute ‘buffer zone’ on those mornings when the kids are waking up sniffly.

“The key here is preparation – putting out clothes, packing bags, and prepping lunches the night before gives you a head start, leaving more time for slower wake-ups when children aren’t feeling 100%,” he says.

“Building in a ‘buffer zone’ of 10-15 extra minutes can ease stress and reduce the chance of forgotten items or unexpected delays affecting you.”

2. Start the day with a warm shower or saline spray

If your kids are particularly congested first thing, a warm shower or saline nasal spray can help clear clogged sinuses and “make them feel fresher” for the day ahead.

3. Keep breakfast simple

When kids are feeling below par, something simple and nourishing to set them up for the day can work wonders. Dr Henderson suggests porridge, scrambled eggs, or smoothies are “easy options that don’t require much fuss”.

4. Take a calmer approach to rushed mornings

Easier said than done when you’ve got to be at work for 9am, but if kids aren’t feeling great, they’re going to require a bit more patience in the mornings. The GP says a “calm reassuring tone sets the pace here”.

When to keep your child off school

While kids can go to school with coughs and colds, there are instances where you shouldn’t send your child to school. Here’s what NHS Choices advises:

If they have a fever, keep them off until the fever goes away.
If they have a high temperature, keep them off school until it goes away.
If they have diarrhoea or vomiting they should stay away from school until they have not been sick or had diarrhoea for at least 48 hours.
If they have chickenpox, keep them off school until all the spots have crusted over – usually about five days after the spots first appeared.
If they have symptoms of Covid-19 including a high temperature, and they don’t feel well enough to go to school or do normal activities, keep them off.
If your child has an ear infection and a high temperature or severe earache, keep them off school until they’re feeling better or the high temperature goes away.
If your child has impetigo, they’ll need treatment from a GP – usually antibiotics. Keep them off school until all the sores have crusted over and healed, or for 48 hours after they start antibiotic treatment.
If your child has scarlet fever, they’ll need treatment with antibiotics from a GP. Otherwise they’ll be infectious for two to three weeks. Children can go back to school 24 hours after starting antibiotics, providing they feel well enough.

You’ll Definitely Want To Ask Your Kid This Question When They Next Say ‘I’m Bored’

Posted on 12/04/2026 by Boris Clair

If there’s one statement parents have probably heard a lot these past two weeks, it’s “I’m bored” – usually with the added request of “will you play with me?” tagged onto the end.

But often we’re working, or trying to catch up on an admin list that’s as long as our arm (and the rest), or doing chores, so it’s not always possible to down tools and get stuck in.

While turning the TV on or handing over an iPad can feel like a simple fix (hey, we’ve all been there), experts are increasingly nudging parents to try and reduce kids’ screen time where possible.

So, if your children say they’re bored, how’s best to respond?

**Get them thinking about what they want to learn**

Yes, there’s the age-old classic of: “Great, grab the vacuum!”

But children’s author Ty Allan Jackson suggests you could say something along the lines of: “Wow. That’s awesome. What a great opportunity for you to be creative.”

And then he suggests you ask them a simple question: “What is something you wish you knew how to do?”

In a reel on Instagram, the TedX Presenter said: “That question will get them thinking and give you directions on how to entertain them, or better yet, on how they can entertain themselves.”

Of course, there’s every possibility they’ll respond with a shrug or an “I don’t know.”

But some parents have found it successful. One user, known as @mom.outofoffice, said she tried the ‘Wow method’ with her daughter and, admittedly, the first time she asked the question her daughter “just stared” at her.

“But then she said she wanted to learn how to use the coffee machine. We tried it together, and soon she was making it by herself,” said the parent. “Before I knew it… she had turned our kitchen into a full-on coffee shop. And wow… it became one of her favourite ways to play.”

Boredom is good for kids (yes, really)

Neuroscientist Alicia Walf, a researcher in the Department of Cognitive Science at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, told Forbes boredom is critical for brain health, noting it can improve social connections and foster creativity, too.

According to psychiatrist and author Dr Carl Marci, letting your kids figure out how to keep boredom at bay could be far more beneficial than stepping in for them.

When his children tell him he’s bored, he’ll urge them to go and figure out how to deal with it – but without technology or something connected to the internet.

“They get mad at me,” Dr Marci previously told HuffPost UK, “but after a few minutes, they start to creatively solve their problems or distract themselves with social interaction or play.”

Bring on the summer holidays…

From Avoidance To Big Emotions: 5 Signs A Child’s Struggling With ADHD At School

Posted on 11/04/2026 by Boris Clair

A child psychiatrist has opened up about a pattern she sees routinely where a neurodivergent child will struggle at school, and the adults around them mistake their symptoms for poor behaviour or a bad attitude.

Dr Anya Ciobanca, consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist at The ADHD Centre, says children who appear disengaged, inconsistent or emotionally volatile at school may be experiencing something far more complex than just a bad attitude.

“Behaviour is never the whole story,” she says. “When we approach a child with curiosity rather than judgement, everything changes.”

Conditions such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can go undiagnosed for years because there are often misunderstandings over symptoms. For example, people might think kids who have it are just hyperactive, but there are also more subtle signs that can show up, like day-dreaming or emotional dysregulation.

Girls in particular are likely to remain undiagnosed until later life. Reviews suggest ADHD is identified more often in boys in childhood at a ratio of 3:1 (males to females), while the ratio appears to even out in adulthood at 1:1.

Experts previously told HuffPost UK this happens largely because there’s a gender divide in how ADHD symptoms are expressed (girls tend to demonstrate more inattentive symptoms), and social expectations on girls can lead to them keeping quiet, carrying on, and developing sophisticated masking strategies (sometimes at detriment to their mental health).

“There is a version of ADHD that looks, from the outside, like daydreaming or simply not caring,” says Dr Ciobanca. “But internally, that child may be working extraordinarily hard just to keep up. The effort of masking is immense, and it has a cost.”

In classrooms, children are often doing the best they can with a nervous system that’s working against them, but there are certain signs they might be fighting a hidden battle and need more support.

5 signs a child may be struggling with ADHD at school

Avoidance of school or specific lessons – this might look like persistent reluctance or distress around certain subjects or transitions.
Difficulty starting or completing work – this is often mistaken for laziness, says Dr Ciobanca, but rooted in overwhelm or difficulties with executive function.
Emotional outbursts or withdrawal – this can look like frustration, tears or shutting down, particularly after school (also known as after-school restraint collapse).
Chronic tiredness or physical complaints of headaches, which can be linked to anxiety or sensory overload.
Low self-esteem, negative self-talk, and appearing to cope at school (masking) while falling apart at home.

One child Dr Chiobanca worked with had been labelled by her school as inconsistent and difficult to motivate. But in reality, she was overwhelmed and had developed a profound sense of shame around her difficulties.

Girls with undiagnosed ADHD are “more likely to blame themselves, turning their anger and pain inward”, according to the Child Mind Institute, which noted they’re also more likely to experience depression, anxiety and eating disorders than those without ADHD.

“Once we understood the underlying picture – the interaction between her ADHD, her anxiety and her environment – we could make meaningful changes,” says the psychiatrist. “She no longer had to spend every day just fighting to survive it. That freed up an enormous amount of energy for actually learning.”

With one in 20 children thought to have ADHD, Dr Ciobanca wants to see earlier intervention, more flexible teaching, and emotional wellbeing placed at the centre of education rather than its margins.

“Too much support comes too late. We cannot expect children to learn well when they do not feel safe,” she adds.

Advice for parents

If you think your child might be neurodivergent (research suggests around 15-20% of people are), it’s worth exploring this subtly with your child. Dr Chiobanca advises parents to ask their children: “What’s the hardest part of your day?” as this can reveal more than questions about effort or behaviour.

It’s also worth speaking to your child’s school – specifically their class teacher or SENCO (a special educational needs coordinator) – if you notice a pattern of distress or avoidance. Months of avoidance or emotional dysregulation are a signal worth acting on, she notes.

The psychiatrist also urges parents to separate the behaviour from the child, as “struggling children often already feel like failures; they need to know you’re on their side”.

While NHS waiting times for diagnosis can stretch for months, it might also be worth considering a professional assessment. “ADHD and anxiety remain significantly underdiagnosed, particularly in girls,” says Dr Ciobanca.

Yet when children feel safe and understood, “they are far more able to learn and grow,” she adds. “That is the kind of education system worth working towards.”

‘Bank Account Cleared By A Threenager’: Don’t Make This Expensive Mistake When Handing Kids Your Phone

Posted on 09/04/2026 by Boris Clair

Parents have opened up about the dangers of leaving kids to their own devices on their devices, after a viral post showed how easily a child was able to spend their parents’ money while using their iPad.

In January, parenting influencers Cole and Abbie shared their son had been on a secret shopping spree on their iPad, paying for a load of Apple services. “I didn’t think it was possible without my Face ID but here we are. Massive lesson learnt,” wrote the influencers at the time.

They weren’t the only ones to fall victim to it, either.

In response to Cole and Abbie’s misfortune, one commenter said: “It’s a parental right of passage to have your bank account cleared by a threenager. Mine did it on Amazon through the Alexa buying fart sounds.”

Another said: “My son wanted a rabbit so, while playing games on my phone, went on to Amazon and brought a hutch for £150, didn’t realised till it turned up at my door… and his answer was ‘can I have my rabbit now?’.”

“Been there done that!” added another parent, noting their child had purchased 100 fidget toys and 100 lip balms. Eek.

With kids still off school, experts from Protect Your Bubble are urging parents to check one particular setting on their devices to stop their bank accounts from accidentally being emptied.

James Brown, director at Protect Your Bubble, said: “It’s easy to assume that payments need passwords or additional approval; however, many devices and accounts allow instant spending once a card is saved to the account.”

He continued: “From a child’s perspective, it doesn’t feel like spending real money; however, for parents, it can mean hundreds, or even thousands, disappearing before they notice.”

How to stop kids from spending all your money online

First of all, turn off one-touch payments on devices and require approval for every purchase. “This single change can stop accidental spending instantly, and it takes less than two minutes to set up,” Brown said.

Households using Apple devices with Family Sharing set up should also turn on Ask to Buy, which blocks all purchases until they are approved.

Games consoles are also an easy way to wrack up debt. Brown noted they are “often overlooked, despite being one of the biggest risks”.

“Saved card details on PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo accounts can lead to purchases stacking up quickly,” he noted.

The expert recommends removing saved payment cards from accounts and setting monthly spending limits in console settings. You can also enable PINs or passwords for purchases.

“Consoles are where costs could spiral fastest,” he ended. “Prevention is far easier than trying to recover the money afterwards, and this is one of the most important tech checks parents can make this winter.”

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