Get the latest tech news

I gave my kids a summer like mine in the 1980s – every parent should try it

Modern kids, like Anniki Sommerville's 10 and five-year-old, expect to be entertained in the summer holidays. So what happens when you leave them to their own devices?

Initially, I’m surprised that the kids leap at the chance to be of service (expecting extra pocket money probably), and the five-year-old flings herself into the sweeping with gusto. We also fear we’ll be judged (and it happens – I’ve heard people make negative comments on parents who allow primary school kids out on their own). During hide and seek, the girls find a bit of used toilet paper behind a bush, and we have a long conversation about how important it is not to do a poo in public unless it’s a real emergency.

Get the Android app