The Parent Portal Weekly

Outdoor play has halved in a generation and break times are shrinking. The instinct to keep children safe is understandable - but the research says removing risk from play might be making them more anxious, not less.

Parents worry when their child isn't popular. But an 18-year study found that the number of friends barely matters. What matters is whether they have even one good one.

When your child says 'I'm bored,' the urge to fix it is instant. But the research says that empty, unstructured time might be doing more for their brain than any after-school club.

If homework is causing nightly battles in your house, the research has something uncomfortable to say: for young children, it probably isn't worth it.

That morning battle over the alarm clock isn't laziness. Teenage brains are wired to sleep later - and the science says we're ignoring it.

Your four-year-old swears they didn't eat the chocolate. There's chocolate on their face. Before you react, there's something you should know about what's actually happening inside their head.