Schools in England should be phone-free all day, education secretary says

Bridget Phillipson says pupils should not use mobiles at any point, as Ofsted prepares to inspect compliance

The Guardian
The Guardian view on toddlers and screens: more reasons to be fearful of big tech

Editorial: Growing concerns about the impact of smartphones on the youngest children must be addressed

The Guardian
One in four children in England start school without being toilet trained, say teachers

Survey finds rising numbers of reception pupils struggling with basic life skills such as eating independently

The Guardian
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗶𝗴𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗗𝗲𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 is officially available. This book makes one argument: classroom technology is harming learning, and we have no biological reason to believe this will change.… | Jared Cooney Horvath, PhD, MEd | 63 comments

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗶𝗴𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗗𝗲𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 is officially available. This book makes one argument: classroom technology is harming learning, and we have no biological reason to believe this will change. More importantly, it outlines what parents, teachers, and schools can do to push back. Endorsed by incredible researchers and thinkers Jonathan Haidt, Hugh Grant, Anna Lembke, Peps Mccrea, Nicki Petrossi, Daniel Willingham, Larry Cuban, Emily Cherkin, and Paul A. Kirschner. With an afterword by Sophie Winkleman. Link here: https://lnkd.in/gy3tTTdt Thank you to everyone who helped push, refine, question, and support this work along the way. | 63 comments on LinkedIn

Digesting Food Studies (the CFS podcast)—Episode 111: Lunch Box Identities

What is “Canadian food” and how does its interpretation affect our identity and sense of belonging—especially in primary and secondary schools?

https://rss.com/podcasts/digesting-food-studies/2350341/

This episode unpacks the packed lunch, in particular those that the kids of first-generation immigrants bring to school. Two articles from Canadian Food Studies are covered, both co-written by Yukari Seko, “Unboxing the bento box” (Vol. 8, No. 3) and “Feeding children while Asian” (Vol. 12, No. 2). And in response, PhD student Shay Quinn offers up several perspectives on meaning-making, involving research participants in research, and arts-informed methodologies.

#DigestingFoodStudies
#SchoolLunch
#Lunchboxes
#SchoolFood
#FoodPrograms
#StudentSuccess
#PrimarySchools
#SecondarySchools
#SchoolBoards
#Hunger
#MentalHealth
#CulturalIdentity
#Families
#TheSixMillionDollarMan
#SteveAustin
#CareBears
#SchoolCafeterias
#FoodPodcast

photo: David Szanto

Digesting Food Studies (the CFS podcast)—Episode 106: School Food Programs

https://rss.com/podcasts/digesting-food-studies/2210715/

With the creation of Canada’s National School Food Program, myriad questions, challenges, and opportunities arise. Student success, cultural identity, food provisioning, and economics are all at play. As Rachel Engler-Stringer tells us in this episode, ongoing research and reflection will be needed.

First, Alexia Moyer’s Amuse Bouche segment reveals a number of lessons—some more useful than others—from Saskatchewan’s early 1900s school food planning. And in the After Taste, Penelope Stam responds to the focus article, “The case for a Canadian national school food program” (https://doi.org/10.15353/cfs-rcea.v5i3.260) from Vol. 5 No. 3 of Canadian Food Studies.

#DigestingFoodStudies
#SchoolFood
#FoodPrograms
#StudentSuccess
#PrimarySchools
#SecondarySchools
#SchoolBoards
#Hunger
#MentalHealth
#CulturalIdentity
#FoodSovereignty
#FoodSecurity
#FoodCulture
#SchoolCafeterias
#LunchLadies
#FoodPodcast

photo: Alexia Moyer

Brenda the buzzard terrorises children at Havering primary school

Pupils told to play indoors because of attacks by bird of prey, which follow strikes by hawk near Luton

The Guardian
Kirsten Menger-Anderson (@kma500@sfba.social)

"Tens of thousands of American children studying in Pentagon schools serving US military families have had all access to library books suspended for a week while officials conduct a 'compliance review' under Donald Trump’s crackdown on DEI and gender equality... The Guardian has obtained a list of books that have been caught up in the blanket evaluation. They include No Truth Without Ruth, a picture book for four-to-eight-year-olds about the late Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the second woman to sit on the US supreme court." https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/13/pentagon-schools-closed-libraries-trump #books #writing #writersofmastodon #WritingCommunity #bookstodon @bookstodon@a.gup.pe @bookstodon@fedigroups.social

SFBA.social
‘He’s having fun!’: why children should be encouraged to play with mud

Experts say that as play spaces become more sanitised, children are deprived of a chance to connect with nature

The Guardian