When we manage expectations we can hopefully make room for what matters most: Presence, warmth, and connection

If we want a society that bands together, we need to teach children to help others so that when they grow up they will know they are not alone, and that no one else should be either, writes Dr Colman Noctor

Grief doesn’t pause for Christmas. If anything, the contrast between the festive atmosphere and a young person’s internal reality can make this time of year especially distressing

Dyspraxia is a persistent difficulty with motor co-ordination and it interferes with daily life and cannot be explained by another neurological condition

"A 2024 review found that girls receive better classroom grades, despite achieving comparable standardised scores, mainly because teachers value non-cognitive skills — such as organisation, neatness, and cooperation — that girls are socialised to develop."

I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve heard parents say, “She’s just not a maths person”. We don’t say, “He’s not a reading person”, yet it’s somehow acceptable to suggest a child’s brain just doesn’t “do numbers”.

Children spend so much of their lives under the authority of adults (teachers, parents, and caregivers) that they enjoy discovering or inventing phrases that give them a sense of independence. 

For younger children, free, unstructured play, often sparked by boredom, creates an environment where they set their own rules, explore, experiment, sometimes fail, and hopefully try again.

"For a student with dyslexia or dyspraxia, time can be crucial. They may understand the material and have the correct answer in their mind, but struggle to transfer it onto paper before the timer runs out."

"A phone offers a parent peace of mind in an uncertain world. However, that argument needs to be balanced against social pressure, safetyism, and an increasing body of research suggesting that early smartphone ownership poses risks to children’s mental health."