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McALLEN, Texas — Adults fighting kids for clean water, despondent toddlers, and a child with swollen feet denied a medical exam: These first-hand accounts from immigrant families at detention centers included in a motion filed by advocates Friday night are offering a glimpse of conditions at Texas facilities.

Families shared their testimonies with immigrant advocates filing a lawsuit to prevent the Trump administration from terminating the Flores settlement agreement, a 1990s-era policy that requires immigrant children detained in federal custody be held in safe and sanitary conditions.

The agreement could challenge President Trump’s family detention provisions in his massive tax and spending bill, which also seeks to make the detention time indefinite and comes as the administration ramps up arrests of immigrants nationwide.

“At a time when Congress is considering funding the indefinite detention of children and families, defending the Flores Settlement is more urgent than ever,” Mishan Wroe, a senior immigration attorney at the National Center for Youth Law, said in a statement Friday.

Advocates with the center, as well as the Center for Human Rights and Constitutional Law, RAICES and Children’s Rights contacted or visited children and their families held in two Texas family detention centers in Dilley and Karnes, which reopened this year.

The conditions of the family detention facilities were undisclosed until immigration attorneys filed an opposing motion Friday night before a California federal court.

The oversight of the detention facilities was possible because of the settlement, and the visits help ensure standards of compliance and transparency, said Sergio Perez, the executive director of the Center for Human Rights and Constitutional Law. Without the settlement, those overseeing the facilities would lose access to them and could not document what is happening inside.

Out of 90 families who spoke to RAICES, an immigration legal support group, since March, 40 expressed medical concerns, according to the court documents. Several testimonies expressed concern over water quantity and quality.

Emailed messages seeking comment were sent to the office of U.S. Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi and to CoreCivic and Geo Group, the private prison companies that operate the detention facilities in Dilley and Karnes, respectively. There was no response from Bondi’s office or the operators of the facilities as of midday Saturday.

One mother was told she would have to use tap water for formula for her 9-month-old, who had diarrhea for three days after. A 16-year-old girl described people scrambling over one another for water.

“We don’t get enough water. They put out a little case of water, and everyone has to run for it,” said the declaration from the girl held with her mother and two younger siblings at the Karnes County Immigration Processing Center. “An adult here even pushed my little sister out of the way to get to the water first.”

Faisal Al-Juburi, chief external affairs officer for RAICES, said Friday in a statement that the conditions “only serve to reinforce the vital need for transparent and enforceable standards and accountability measures,” citing an “unconscionable obstruction of medical care for those with acute, chronic, and terminal illnesses.”

One family with a young boy with cancer said he missed his doctor’s appointment after the family was arrested after they attended an immigration court hearing. He is now experiencing relapse symptoms, according to the motion. Another family said their 9-month-old lost more than 8 pounds while in detention for a month.

Children spoke openly about their trauma during visits with legal monitors, including a 12-year-old boy with a blood condition. He reported that his feet became too inflamed to walk, and even though he saw a doctor, he was denied further testing. Now, he stays mostly off his feet. “It hurts when I walk,” he said in a court declaration.

Arrests have left psychological trauma. A mother of a 3-year-old boy who saw agents go inside his babysitter’s home with guns started acting differently after detention. She said he now throws himself on the ground, bruises himself and refuses to eat most days.

Growing concerns as ICE ramps up operations

Many of the families in detention were already living in the U.S., reflecting the recent shift from immigration arrests at the border to internal operations.

Stephen Miller, White House deputy chief of staff and main architect of Trump’s immigration policies, said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers would target at least 3,000 arrests a day, up from about 650 a day during the first few months of Trump’s second term.

Leecia Welch, the deputy legal director at Children’s Rights, said that as bad as facility conditions are, they will only get worse as more immigrants are brought in.

“As of early June, the census at Dilley was around 300, and only two of its five areas were open,” Welch said of her visits. “With a capacity of around 2,400, it’s hard to imagine what it would be like with 2,000 more people.”

Pediatricians such as Dr. Marsha Griffin with the American Academy of Pediatrics Council said they are concerned and are advocating across the country to allow pediatric monitors with child welfare experts inside the facilities.

Challenge to Flores agreement

The Flores agreement is poised to become more relevant if Trump’s tax and spending legislation, known as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, passes with the current language allowing the indefinite detention of immigrant families, which is not allowed under the Flores agreement.

Trump’s legislation approved by the House also proposes setting aside $45 billion in funding, a threefold spending increase, over the next four years to expand ICE detention of adults and families. The Senate is now considering the bill.

Under these increased efforts to add more detention space, Geo Group, the corporation operating the detention facility in Karnes, will soon be reopening an infamous prison — which housed gangsters Al Capone and Machine Gun Kelly — for migrant detention in Leavenworth, Kan.

Immigration advocates argue that if the settlement were terminated, the government would need to create regulations that conform to the agreement’s terms.

“Plaintiffs did not settle for policy making — they settled for rulemaking,” the motion read.

The federal government will have a chance to submit a reply brief. A court hearing is scheduled for mid-July.

Gonzalez writes for the Associated Press.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A U.S. Supreme Court decision upholding Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for minors is leaving transgender children and their parents uncertain and anxious about the future.

The court on Wednesday handed President Trump’s administration and Republican-led states a significant victory by effectively protecting them from at least some of the legal challenges against many efforts to repeal safeguards for transgender people.

The case stems from a Tennessee law banning puberty blockers and hormone treatments for transgender minors. Opponents of gender-affirming care say people who transition when they’re young could later regret it.

Families of transgender children argue the ban amounts to unlawful sex discrimination and violates the constitutional rights of vulnerable Americans.

Student says ruling creates an unwelcome world

Eli Givens, who is transgender and testified against Tennessee’s gender-affirming care bill in 2023, said it’s devastating that lawmakers “who have called us degenerates, have told us that we’re living in fiction” are celebrating the court’s ruling.

The nonbinary college student from Spring Hill received mastectomy surgery in 2022 at age 17. They said the legislation inspired their advocacy, and they attended the Supreme Court arguments in the case last December, on their 20th birthday.

“We’re not making a world that trans youth are welcomed or allowed to be a part of,” Givens said. “And so, it’s just a really scary kind of future we might have.”

Jennifer Solomon, who supports parents and families at the LGBTQ+ rights group Equality Florida, called the ruling a decision “that one day will embarrass the courts.”

“This is a decision that every parent should be concerned about,” she said. “When politicians are able to make a decision that overrides your ability to medically make decisions for your children, every family should worry.”

Conservative activists take credit

Chloe Cole, a conservative activist known for speaking about her gender-transition reversal, posted on social media after the court’s decision that “every child in America is now safer.”

Cole was cited as an example by Tennessee Republicans as one of the reasons the law was needed.

Matt Walsh, an activist who was one of the early backers of Tennessee’s law, applauded the high court. Three years ago, Walsh shared videos on social media of a doctor saying gender-affirming procedures are “huge moneymakers” for hospitals and a staffer saying anyone with a religious objection should quit.

“This is a truly historic victory and I’m grateful to be a part of it, along with so many others who have fought relentlessly for years,” Walsh posted on social media.

Fears of what’s next after Supreme Court decision

Rosie Emrich is worried the court decision will embolden legislators in New Hampshire, where legislation banning hormone treatments and puberty blockers for children is expected to reach the governor’s desk.

Lawmakers are weighing whether to block the treatments from minors already receiving them, like Emrich’s 9-year-old child.

“It’s definitely disappointing, and I’m trying to figure out how I’m going to talk to my kid about it,” Emrich said.

Emrich said she and her husband have considered moving from New Hampshire and are waiting to see what will happen.

“The hard part is, like, I’ve grown up here, my husband has grown up here, we very much want to raise our family here,” she said. “And we don’t want to leave if we don t have to.”

A move across the country and other hurdles

Erica Barker and her family moved from Jackson, Mississippi, to North Las Vegas, Nevada, a little over two years ago so one of her children could start receiving gender-affirming care.

Barker’s transgender daughter, then 12, had been in therapy for three years, and the family agreed it was time for medical treatments.

Mississippi passed a ban on gender-affirming care for minors the next year, which Barker said she saw coming.

Barker said the move was complicated, involving a new job for her husband and two mortgages when their Mississippi home was slow to sell, but it also brought access to care for her daughter, now 14.

“Our hearts are hurting for folks who are not having the same experience,” Barker said.

In another state with a ban on gender-affirming care for minors, Oklahoma resident Erika Dubose said finding care for her 17-year-old nonbinary child, Sydney Gebhardt, involves a four-hour drive to Kansas and getting prescriptions filled in Oregon and mailed to their home.

“I just wish the younger folks wouldn’t have to go through this,” Gebhardt said. “These folks deserve to be focusing on their academics and hanging out with their friends and making memories with their families and planning out a safe and happy future.”

Mother says gender-affirming care saves lives

Sarah Moskanos, who lives near Milwaukee, said her 14-year-old transgender daughter went through nearly a decade of counseling before she started medical gender-affirming care but has been sure since the age of 4 that she identified as a girl.

“I would say that there is decades of research on this very thing,” she said. “And we know what works and we know what will save trans kids’ lives is gender-affirming care.”

Wisconsin doesn’t have a gender-affirming care ban, but Moskanos said getting her daughter that care has not been easy. She now worries about what the future holds.

“We are but one election cycle away from disaster for my kid,” she said.

Vowing not to disappear

Mo Jenkins, a 26-year-old transgender Texas native and legislative staffer at the state Capitol, said she began taking hormone therapy at 16 years old and has been on and off treatment since then.

“My transition was out of survival,” Jenkins said.

Texas outlawed gender-affirming care for minors two years ago, and in May, the Legislature passed a bill tightly defining a man and a woman by their sex characteristics.

“I’m not surprised at the ruling. I am disheartened,” Jenkins said. “Trans people are not going to disappear.”

Mattise, Mulvihill and Seewer write for the Associated Press. Mulvihill reported from Cherry Hill, N.J., and Seewer reported from Toledo, Ohio. AP journalists Susan Haigh in Hartford, Conn.; Kenya Hunter in Atlanta; Laura Bargfeld in Chicago; Nadia Lathan in Austin, Texas; and Daniel Kozin in Pinecrest, Fla., contributed to this report.

Sue Radford was left heartbroken after her family friend had died after a battle with cancer at the age of 17

22 Kids and Counting’s Sue Radford was overcome with emotion as she remembered the much-loved family friend Sophie Walker, who tragically died.

The Channel 5 celebrity previously reached out to her followers, encouraging them to contribute donations following the heart-wrenching loss.

Initially misdiagnosed as a stomach bug in 2017, it turned out to be Wilms’ tumour, a rare form of cancer. On June 17, the bereaved family shared a touching tribute on Instagram to remember Sophie, who died last July, reports Lancs Live.

An image captured a year ago, showing Sophie seated on a bed, was posted with the emotional caption: “Today marks a year since Sophie rapidly started to decline.”

The post hauntingly read: “The next few weeks are going to be super hard as we relive what went wrong and what we should’ve done differently.”

The family posted: “It’s absolutely heartbreaking seeing her face in so much pain sitting in this chair, her back was in agony from the rapidly growing tumours, and we were absolutely desperate and terrified at the same time.”

In their message, they shared the devastating news from Germany: “We had a private blood test in Germany and the results weren’t good at all, we knew we were coming to the end of the road and wanted to try and reverse it. Which just wasn’t possible,” and concluded with a poignant reference to Sophie as “Our beautiful girl Sophie.”

The post featured an image along with details of Sophie’s attempts to ameliorate her suffering through various treatments.

Family friend Sue Radford joined the conversation, expressing her support: “You and Jamie are the most amazing parents who fought tirelessly for Sophie,” she wrote.

“This picture breaks my heart. We miss Sophie so much life is just so unfair,” Sue continued, adding a sorrowful emoji. “It breaks my heart.”

The touching post prompted a wave of heartfelt comments from fans offering their love and support to the grieving family.

“Sending your family so much love. I watched your journey, your love and devotion was endless, I’m so sorry nothing could save her” one user empathised.

“You did EVERYTHING you could for her. You do not own an ounce of blame,” another person reassured. “There is nothing you could have done differently. Cancer is a beast,” a third individual acknowledged.

“It breaks my heart she was such a strong warrior and did not deserve this. She is often thought of as are you all sending hugs at this very difficult time,” a fourth shared.

EVERY parent knows the constant battle of trying to keep a child’s clothes clean.

A budget-friendly M&S buy can help to tackle stains and leave all your laundry looking spotless.

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Cleaning enthusiasts heaped on the praise for a handy item that is sure to become an essential in your caddy.

The buy was shared in a Facebook group dedicated to Mrs Hinch Cleaning Tips.

Sharing a picture of fabric cleaning wipes, one impressed poster wrote: “These!!!! Currently £1.25 a pack in M&S. They are a life saver!”

The M&S customer went on to detail her experience with the Stain Removing Wipes.

“I’ve used on several tops which have had the dreaded spaghetti bolognase sauce on,” the Facebook user revealed.

She summed up the results by saying she would “highly recommend” the item to other parents.

Other cleaning fans added their thoughts on the wipes in the comments section.

“And they smell lush,” wrote one impressed person.

“I’ve seen loads of good reviews about them,” agreed another Facebook user.

“These wipes are a life changer for holidays, used them for a couple of years, best stain wipes ever,” said a third cleaning fan.

“I wouldn’t be without these, they are amazing!” commented another buyer.

Another homeowner pointed out that the wipes are “great on carpets and car seats too”.

Fabulous has tried and tested some of the top stain remover hacks out there so you don’t have to.

The M&S wipes tackled everything from tomato sauce to stubborn oil stains.

Instead of reaching for baby wipes to clean up your little one’s mess, upgrade to these budget buys.

However, for larger or older stains that have alreadt set in, you will likely need something a bit more heavy duty.

So if you’re investing in these cleaning wipes, be sure to act quickly if you spot a stain.

And be warned, tougher stains such as grass may require a little more elbox grease.

Or check out the five other highly-rated stain removing products on the market.

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A TEACHER’S secret OnlyFans account was exposed by kids “excitedly” sharing the X-rated snaps around school.

Kirsty Buchan, also known as Jessica Jackrabbit x, was a staff member at Bannerman High School, in Glasgow, when she joined the adult platform.

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A disciplinary hearing was told the mum-of-one’s profile was discovered by pupils in 2022 and reported to headteacher Seonaidh Black.

Pictures of Ms Buchan, 34, “posing in lingerie” were handed over by shocked students.

In her bio she admitted to being a “good teacher gone bad… really bad”.

The profile was also easily accessible, requiring no payment or sign up.

Ms Black told the hearing: “I was approached by some S5 and S6 boys, who were very excited.

“They were saying things like, ‘Have you heard the news’. I said something like ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about’ as I did not want to engage them in this kind of conversation.

“I was then told something like, ‘If you haven’t heard, when you do, you’re going to go ballistic. Look out for Jessica Jackrabbit’.

“As I came back into the building, at least two staff stopped to ask me if I knew about Kirsty. It was obvious at this point that everyone knew what was going on.”

Ms Buchan, who had originally been a pupil at the school before teaching there, did not attend the hearing.

In her absence, the headteacher described the OnlyFans model as a “teacher who wanted to do a good job”.

However there had been several occasions when she “was not always clear on boundaries”.

She told the panel she was referring to “having poor judgement” when it came to being open about sharing her social media with pupils.

One concerned mother had even contacted Ms Black and reported how her son left messages for Ms Buchan on her OnlyFans profile.

The 34-year-old quit her job shortly after her adult content platform was discovered.

She claimed to rake in £60,000 in just one month through her X-rated page.

Ms Buchan argued she signed up because she needed some extra cash after her wages decreased.

Ms Black added how “there’s still talk” about the ordeal now.

Hannah Oakley, who investigated the case for GTCS, told the hearing Ms Buchan did not “ensure that her profile picture and bio” was not accessible to those under 18.

The panel found all allegations to be proven and she was today struck off from the profession by the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS).

Panel member Mr Burton said she was unfit to teach and there was a “significant blurring of boundaries between her private life and her professional life”.

He added how she “used her profession in her bio as a selling tool”.

Mr Burton said Ms Buchan’s actions were “fundamentally incompatible with being a registered teacher”.

This comes as an NHS nurse is being investigated for taking explicit snaps for an adult website while at work.

Sarah Whittall, 24, has also made sex tapes and sells her used underwear on OnlyFans.

The healthcare assistant can be seen showing off her bra and knickers under her uniform.

Her NHS hospital ID lanyard is also on display in the pictures.

Elsewhere, a civil servant has been filmed moonlighting on a porn site while giving advice over the phone to pensions claimants.

She was seen working from home helping callers at the same time as flashing to her followers live on XHamster.

Meanwhile, a nursery teacher was sacked after a pupil’s mum caught her husband subscribing to her OF account.

Elena Maraga, 29, became the centre of a scandal last month when the explicit account was discovered.

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SHE’S on a roll. There’s no doubt about it.

After a brief flirtation with being a member of the Royal Family, Meghan Markle/Sussex/Mountbatten- Windsor/Spencer is flying solo.

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The reports that Meghan is now seeking to trademark future ventures in the hospitality sector for her As Ever brand suggest she is now fully invested in life as an influencer and entrepreneur.

And there’s nothing wrong with that.

But it has absolutely nothing to do with being royal.

Marrying Prince Harry fired her into global fame and now she wants to capitalise on it.

Somebody has to fund their Californian lifestyle, and Harry claims he has been financially cut off by his family.

After almost obsessive secrecy about their children and their home life, Meghan is now bombarding her growing band of social media fans with updates of what she, Harry and the kids have been up to.

To add some mystery, the children’s faces are obscured.

It’s a telling contrast to the pictures we see of William and Catherine’s young brood as they grow up.

Everything Meghan posts — from twerking videos on the labour ward to a family trip to Disney — multiplies the clicks and the potential revenue.

She’s turning out to be a shrewd operator — which perhaps she always was.

Again, I have no problem with that.

But to try to cling to the vestiges of her blink-of-an-eye time as a working royal is disingenuous.

So, Meghan, how about dropping the Duchess nonsense and the HRH which you are no longer entitled to use?

Be independent and successful.

Make your As Ever brand bigger than ever on your own.

You are an independent woman with a husband who adores you.

Just because he’s a prince doesn’t mean you have to hang on to the idea of being a princess.

You tried being part of the Royal Family and hated it.

Time to move on, which, I think, is what this is all about.

A MUM has shared how she ditched the UK for sunny Thailand with her kids and husband.

Lauren took to social media and shared why she left England and has no regrets in uprooting her family to South East Asia.

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The mum-of-two revealed that she and her family decided the cost of living and their busy schedule was too much.

Instead of putting up with it, they sold their house and bought a one-way ticket to Thailand for a new life.

She said: “We didn’t leave because we hated the UK.

“We left because life started to feel like one long checklist we didn’t remember choosing. Wake up. Rush. Work. Nursery. School. Bills. Repeat.

“We wanted more presence, more connection, more sunsets and slow mornings.

“So we sold almost everything, booked a one-way ticket, and figured it out as we went.

“It’s not perfect, but it’s ours, and we’ve never felt more free.”

Lauren often shared her new life in Thailand on social media and recently shared one of their favourite breakfasts while they stayed in Koh Samui.

She headed to one of her favourite food vendors and ordered fried chicken and sticky rice before getting some Thai milk tea.

The mum even said that she thought the iced tea was better than English Breakfast tea.

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The mum added: “Hands down they are better than an English breakfast tea. They’re sweet, they’re icy. They do give you that little tea fix.”

She said the next step to the perfect breakfast was to locate the nearest beach.

“The beach closest to our house here is Chong Mon. And if you are coming to Koh Samui, even just on holiday, I really recommend this area,” Lauren said.

“It’s kind of like a mix between touristy but not too touristy.

“The beach here is so good for kids because the water is really shallow.”

Finally, she and her family sat down on the beach to enjoy their breakfast with a stunning view.

The clip went viral on her TikTok account @lifealongsidelauren with 120k views.

People were quick to take to the comments in awe of Lauren’s new life.

One person wrote: “Living the dream, I would swap my builders’ tea in England for yours any day of the week.”

Another commented: “I have been following for a while just wanted to say that because of you and your TikTok my future with my kids will look the same!”

“I haven’t seen your posts for ages, glad you’re still enjoying your new life,” penned a third.

Meanwhile a fourth said: “Brekkie on the beach..elite!”

“Love watching your adventures! We are coming to to Thailand in August and can’t wait,” claimed a fifth.

Someone else added: “Such an inspiration.”

To look inside Julie Celestial’s kindergarten classroom in Long Beach is to peer into the future of reading in California.

During a recent lesson, 25 kindergartners gazed at the whiteboard, trying to sound out the word “bee.” They’re learning the long “e” sound, blending words such as “Pete” and “cheek” — words that they’ll soon be able to read in this lesson’s accompanying book.

Celestial was teaching something new for Long Beach Unified: phonics.

“It’s pretty cool to watch,” she said. “I’m really anticipating that there’s going to be a lot less reluctant readers and struggling readers now that the district has made this shift.”

Engage with our community-funded journalism as we delve into child care, transitional kindergarten, health and other issues affecting children from birth through age 5.

These phonics-based lessons are on the fast track to become law in California under a sweeping bill moving through the Legislature that will mandate how schools teach reading, a rare action in a state that generally emphasizes local school district control over dictating instruction.

Julie Celestial teaches her kindergarten class a literacy lesson at Mark Twain Elementary School in Long Beach.

The bill is the capstone to decades of debate and controversy in California on how best to teach reading amid stubbornly low test scores. Gov. Gavin Newsom has pledged his support, setting aside $200 million to fund teacher training on the new approach in the May revise of his 2025-26 budget proposal.

“It’s a big deal for kids, and it’s a big step forward — a very big one,” said Marshall Tuck, chief executive of EdVoice, an education advocacy nonprofit that has championed the change.

California has long struggled with reading scores below the national average. In 2024, only 29% of California’s fourth-graders scored “proficient” or better in reading on the National Assessment of Educational Progress, or NAEP.

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Literacy instruction has been controversial in California for decades, but state legislators may have finally decided on a compromise.

The proposed law, which would take effect in phases beginning in 2026, would require districts to adopt instructional materials based on the “science of reading,” a systemic approach to literacy instruction supported by decades of research about the way young children learn to read, from about transitional kindergarten through third grade.

The science of reading consists of five pillars: phonemic awareness (the sounds that letters make), phonics, reading fluency, vocabulary and comprehension.

“It’s finite. There’s only 26 letters and 44 sounds,” said Leslie Zoroya, who leads an initiative at the Los Angeles County Office of Education that helps districts transition to a science-of-reading approach. “Phonics isn’t forever.”

After a failed effort last year, the bill gained the support this year of the influential California teachers unions and at least one advocacy group for English-language learners. In a compromise, school districts would have more flexibility to select which instructional materials are best for their students and the option to decline teacher training paid for by the state.

Kindergarten student Annika Esser works on a literacy lesson at Mark Twain Elementary School in Long Beach.

For decades, most school districts in California have been devoted to a different approach called “whole language” or “balanced literacy,” built on the belief that children naturally learn to read without being taught how to sound out words. Teachers focus on surrounding children with books intended to foster a love of reading and encourage them to look for clues that help them guess unknown words — such as predicting the next word based on the context of the story, or looking at the pictures — rather than sounding them out.

“The majority of students require a more intentional, explicit and systematic approach,” Zoroya said. “Thousands of kids across California in 10th grade are struggling in content-area classes because they missed phonics.”

Kindergarten student Tyler Madrid raises his hand to answer a question during a literacy lesson at Mark Twain Elementary School in Long Beach.

An extended reading war in California

California embraced the whole language approach to literacy, which took hold in the 1970s and 1980s, said Susan Neuman, a New York University professor who served as assistant secretary of elementary and secondary education under former President George W. Bush. The state became a national leader in what was considered a progressive and holistic approach to teaching literacy, with a focus on discovering the joy of reading, rather than learning specific skills, she said.

Bush then incorporated a phonics-heavy approach in an initiative that was part of his 2002 launch of No Child Left Behind, which increased the federal role in holding schools accountable for academic progress and required standardized testing. States, including California, received grants to teach a science-of-reading approach in high-poverty schools.

But many teachers in the state disliked the more regimented approach, and when the funding ended, districts largely transitioned back to the whole language approach. In the years since, science of reading continues to draw opposition from teachers unions and advocates for dual-language learners.

Many California teachers are passionate about the methods they already use and have chafed at a state-mandated approach to literacy education. Some don’t like what they describe as “drill and kill” phonics lessons that teach letter sounds and decoding.

Advocates for multiple-language learners, meanwhile, vociferously opposed adopting the most structured approach, worried that children who were still learning to speak English would not receive adequate support in language development and comprehension.

A 2022 study of 300 school districts in California found that less than 2% of districts were using curricula viewed as following the science of reading.

But the research has become clear: Looking at the pictures or context of a story to guess a word — as is encouraged in whole language or balanced literacy instruction, leads to struggles with reading. Children best learn to read by starting with foundational skills such as sounding out and decoding words.

“Anything that takes your eyes off the text when a kid is trying to figure out a word activates the wrong side of the brain,” Zoroya said.

Los Angeles County renews focus on phonics

In the last few years, several larger districts in California have started to embrace more structured phonics learning, including Los Angeles Unified, Long Beach Unified and Oakland Unified.

Recently, these districts have started to see improvement in their reading test scores.

Julie Celestial teaches her kindergarten class a literacy lesson at Mark Twain Elementary School in Long Beach.

At Long Beach Unified, for example, the district’s in-house assessment shows significant gains among kindergarten students. In 2023-24, 78% of them met reading standards, up 13 percentage points from the previous school year. Proficiency rates across first and second grade were above 70%, and transitional kindergarten was at 48%. The district’s goal is to hit 85% proficiency across grades by the end of each school year.

In 2019, LAUSD introduced a pilot science-of-reading based curriculum, and adopted it across all schools for the 2023-24 academic year. After the first year, LAUSD reading scores improved in every grade level and across every demographic, chief academic officer Frances Baez said.

From the 2022-23 to the 2023-24 school years, LAUSD’s English Language Arts scores improved by 1.9 percentage points — five times more than the state as a whole, which improved by 0.3, she said.

‘Science of Reading’ makes waves in Lancaster

Teresa Cole, a kindergarten instructor in the Lancaster School District, has been teaching for 25 years. So when Lancaster asked her to try out a new way of teaching her students to read three years ago, she wasn’t thrilled.

“I was hesitant and apprehensive to try it,” she said, but decided to throw herself into a new method that promised results.

Artwork and literacy lessons hang from the ceiling inside Julie Celestial’s kindergarten class at Mark Twain Elementary School in Long Beach.

Teaching kindergarten is a challenge, she said, because children come in at vastly different stages. Many are just learning to hold a pencil; others can already read. She was seeing many children under “balanced literacy” lessons slip through the cracks — especially those with limited vocabularies. When she asked them to read words they didn’t know, “it almost felt like they were guessing.”

But as she began to teach a phonics lesson each morning and have them read decodable books — which have children practice the new sound they’ve learned — she noticed that her students were putting together the information much faster and starting to sound out words. “The results were immediate,” she said. “We were blown away.”

She was so impressed with the new curriculum that she started training other teachers in the district to use it as well.

Looking back at her old method of teaching reading, “I feel bad. I feel like maybe I wasn’t the best teacher back then,” Cole said. Part of the change, she said, was learning about the science behind how children learn to read. “I would never say to guess [a word] anymore,” she said.

This kind of buy-in and enthusiasm from teachers has been key to making the new curriculum work, said Krista Thomsen, Lancaster’s director of Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment Department. In schools where the teachers are implementing the program well, scores have started to rise. “But it’s a steep learning curve,” she said, especially for teachers who have long taught a balanced literacy approach.

“We are stumbling through this process trying to get it right and making sure that every one of our kids has equitable access to learning how to read,”Thomsen said. “But we have every faith and every intention, and the plan is in place to get it where it should be going.”

A compromise may bring more phonics to the classroom

Kindergarten student Lauren Van De Kreeke answers a question from teacher Julie Celestial as they work on a literacy lesson at Mark Twain Elementary School in Long Beach.

A bill introduced by Assemblymember Blanca E. Rubio (D-Baldwin Park) last year requiring a science-of-reading approach in California public schools did not even get a first hearing. This year, Rubio introduced another version — Assembly Bill 1121 — that would have required teachers to be trained in a science-of-reading approach.

Opponents included the California Teachers Assn. and English-language learner advocates, who said in a joint letter that the bill would put a “disproportionate emphasis on phonics,” and would not focus on the skills needed by students learning English as a second language.

The groups also voiced concern that the bill would cut teachers out of the curriculum-selection process and that mandated training “undermines educators’ professional expertise and autonomy to respond to the specific learning needs of their students.”

Martha Hernandez, executive director of Californians Together, said the group opposed both bills because they were too narrow in their focus on skills such as phonics. “They’re essential. But English learners need more, right?” she said. “They don’t understand the language that they’re learning to read.”

Rubio said she was shocked by the pushback. “I was thinking it was a no-brainer. It’s about kids. This is evidence-based.” Rubio, a longtime teacher, was born in Mexico, and was herself an English-language learner in California public schools.

In 2024, just 19% of Latino students and 7% of Black students scored at or above “proficient” on the fourth-grade NAEP reading test.

But with the support of Democratic Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas (D-Hollister), the groups reached a compromise that not all teachers would be required to participate in the teacher training.

Hernandez said she was pleased that the compromise included more of an emphasis on oral language development and comprehension, which is vital for multi-language learners to succeed.

AB1454 requires the State Board of Education to come up with a new list of recommended materials that all follow science of reading principles. If a district chooses materials not on the list, they have to vouch that it also complies. The state will provide funds for professional development, though districts can choose whether to accept it.

This article is part of The Times’ early childhood education initiative, focusing on the learning and development of California children from birth to age 5. For more information about the initiative and its philanthropic funders, go to latimes.com/earlyed.

A group of politicians in France are pushing for a ban on adults-only holidays in the country, arguing that the exclusion of children from such spaces is discrimination

Parents and campaigners are calling for an end to adults-only holidays, branding the exclusion of children “violence”.

For many, the idea of a break away from the hubbub of a child-packed home where they can relax around the pool, a cocktail in hand and a book in the other, without the sound of infant wails shattering the silence, seems like a good time.

For members of the growing pro-children-on-holiday movement in France, banning anyone of any age from accessing a certain hotel or resort is completely wrong.

Laurence Rossignol, a socialist senator, is to table a private member’s bill in the French senate that would make it illegal to ban children from such establishments, the Times reported. Sarah El Haïry, the French high commissioner for childhood, has said that government lawyers are looking into whether it would be possible to take legal action against places that exclude families.

READ MORE: Ryanair introduces new route to ‘beautiful’ European city that’s perfect for Christmas

“A child shouts, laughs and moves … we are institutionalising the idea that silence is a luxury and the absence of children is a luxury,” she told the French international radio station RFI. Ms El Haïry criticised the “no kids trend”, claiming it amounted to “violence against children”.

Senator Rossignol added: “Children are not a nuisance. We cannot accept that some people decide they no longer want to tolerate a particular section of the population, in this case children. We cannot allow our society to be organised around our intolerance of others, where people organise themselves to keep their distance from anyone who does not fit into their idea of their neighbours.”

Travel Companies Union roughly estimates that three per cent of holiday venues in France are adult-only facilities.

The topic of how children fit into society is a live one in France. The French Federation of Nurseries has made repeated calls to lawmakers to ensure children’s right “to make noise”.

This has been coupled with rising concerns about how much screen time children have, while the High Council for Family, Children and Age has warned that a lack of space for kids to play outdoors could have “harmful consequences for their physical and mental health”.

Not everyone is happy with the idea of an adults-only holiday ban. Sara Lewis told the Guardian that she thinks a ban would be a “totally unreasonable deprivation of people’s liberty”. “It amounts to forcing people to accept others’ kids, of which there’s more than enough of already,” the retired copyeditor from Brussels said.

Emilie, a stay-at-home mother, agreed with the politicians that such holidays treated children as “pariahs”, but questioned whether the ban would get to the root cause. In her opinion, it is wrong to create spaces where adults can live parallel lives free from children.

“I think it’s more about the French relationship with children. There is a popular saying in France about children: Les enfants doivent être vus, et non entendus, which means children should be seen, not heard,” Emilie said.

A 53-year-old mum-of-six took a leap of faith, leaving behind her life and family in the UK to enjoy sun and cocktails in Ayia Napa. She speaks out to explain why she did it after revealing she has been trolled over her bold decision

Most of us have daydreamed about what life would be like if we just chose to live for ourselves – leaving behind all the things that hold us back. Imagine swapping the grey skies and endless routines for a place with scorching sun, cocktails, and parties. For most, it stays just a thought. But for one mum of six, it became reality.

Amanda Moss, 53, took the leap to leave her 25-year marriage, her children, and a £120k salary behind in the UK – to work from the beach in Ayia Napa. Since May 2020, she’s been living her “life with truth,” having settled in Cyprus.

But it wasn’t a snap decision. Amanda knew deep down her former routine wasn’t the life she was meant to live. “I was miserable. I thought ‘is this my life?’” she said. “I was 48 and thought ‘f*ck this.’”

Now, Amanda runs her own magazine and PR business, making around £50k a year – less than half what she earned before, but with a far better work-life balance. “I was working from 5am as soon as I woke up,” she said. “A minimum of 12 hours a day. Now I probably work five hours a day but I have a much healthier work life balance.”

“I earn around £50k and I could earn more, but I just want to live my life.” Years of visiting Cyprus planted the seed. In 2008, she bought a holiday home there, a place where she’d often bring her kids while they were growing up. What started as a getaway eventually became her new permanent home.

“Every time I’d come back to Liverpool I’d be crying,” Amanda said. “My two eldest, Floyd and Honey, said ‘why don’t you move? You’re happiest there.’”

When Covid hit, her business collapsed and suddenly it was now or never. Amanda had been sleeping in a bedroom on her own since her youngest was born – and that child is now 11.

“I didn’t think I was living up to my full potential for the last 30 to 40 years and I’m making up for it,” she said. Her three daughters moved with her initially but returned to the UK after Amanda decided the education system there was better.

While Cyprus might not be the perfect fit for her kids, it’s exactly where Amanda needed to be. She’s flourished working five hours on the beach, but still finds time to let her hair down and go clubbing multiple times a week.

“I go clubbing three to four times a week. My daughter, Honey, 23, wants me to go to the club with her and she’s like ‘that’s my mum.’”

Since moving, Amanda has also lost four stone, changing her diet and finally eating for herself rather than “comfort” – which she was doing for years. “I got to a size 18 and 15st and I thought ‘this isn’t me,’” she said. “I hated being fat.” Taking control, she started going to the gym, made new friends, and started believing in herself.

Now she spends around £400 a month on Botox, nails, lashes, and her gym membership. “Everything I do for my aesthetics and beauty regime is for me,” she said. “I’m investing in myself. I feel good. It’s the whole self-love thing, because I’ve felt all my life I’m fat and ugly.”

The glamourous mum admits she is ” a little bit vain” but she believes she has now earnt it. She now experiments with cosmetic treatments such as botox.

Amanda starts her days at the gym, which is more for her mental health than anything else. She now uses her social media to speak about her life and her honest, open approach has earned her plenty of attention, and with the extra eyes on her life it has gained some love but also some hate.

“I’ve been trolled,” Amanda admitted. “People have said I’m irresponsible. My kids are supportive. I think I’ve taught my kids to live their life as they wish and not be told society’s expectations of what they should do. I just want them to experience life in all its glory.”

And while some people question her drastic life change, many people actually commend her – even looking up to her.

“People always say to me ‘you’re so inspirational to me, I wish I could do what you do.’ And I say you can, just book it. I haven’t done anything extraordinary, I just booked a flight.” she said

Looking ahead, Amanda is embracing life with more bold leaps and ambitions and even hopes to find a romantic spark in her now home country. “Life is a gift to take control of. My next thing I want to do is fall in love with a rich handsome guy – I’m sick of working.”

“I’m living my truth, and I think people envy that. I sound really up my own arse but I’m not.”

Amanda’s six children Saxon, 24, Honey, 23, Floyd, 21, Albany, 19, plus a 16-year-old and an 11-year-old daughter all remain in the UK but often fly out during school holidays to see her. And for anyone dreaming about changing their life and ready to make the change. Amanda has simple advice: “How many people have the balls to get on a plane and say ‘I don’t want this life anymore?’”

You can follow Amanda’s journey on Instagram and TikTok @amandalifestylepr.

She’s also set to release her new book next month -‘You’re going to die so do it anyway – live life louder after 50’ where she will be sharing her journey and inspiring others to take control of their own happiness, no matter their age.

Twisted creators on YouTube are taking advantage of Peppa Pig’s popularity, leaving children at risk of viewing inappropriate content. The platform removed two worrying examples after being contacted by The Mirror

With its wholesome storylines documenting everyday family life, Peppa Pig is a children’s TV staple. And there was much excitement recently when fans were treated to the arrival of a new member of the family – a baby girl piglet named Evie.

But while the show itself is universally trusted by parents, watching it on YouTube can be a different matter. As a hugely popular cartoon for kids, Peppa Pig has been a target for twisted YouTube creators over the years. This week, a search by The Mirror found a clip called ‘MLG Peppa Pig (PARODY)’ within seconds, which showed the character holding a machine gun. Made eight years ago, it has been watched 18 million times. A second disturbing creation called ‘Peppa does Drugs’ showed the pig snorting cocaine.

In response to our investigation, a YouTube spokesperson told us “We’ve removed both videos from YouTube and terminated a channel for violating our child safety policies, which we rigorously enforce. Neither of the videos shared by The Mirror have ever appeared in the YouTube Kids app, our recommended experience for younger viewers.

READ MORE: ‘I named my baby Evie before the Peppa Pig announcement – now I’m scared she will be oinked at’

“Our teams remain vigilant, and will continue to take further actions as needed.” While YouTube maintains its main platform is not for children, research suggests 80 per cent of 3 to 17 year olds in the UK regularly watch it nonetheless, mainly on their phones and devices.

The tech giant says it prohibits content targeting young minors and families, which contains inappropriate themes, with videos flagged and reviewed using a combination of human reviewers and AI. YouTube places age restrictions and warnings on graphic content that doesn’t violate guidelines but is inappropriate for users under 18 years of age.

Professor Sonia Livingstone, a social psychologist at the London School of Economics and expert on child online safety, told the BBC back in 2017: “It’s perfectly legitimate for a parent to believe that something called Peppa Pig is going to be Peppa Pig.

“And I think many of them have come to trust YouTube… as a way of entertaining your child for ten minutes while the parent makes a phone call. I think if it wants to be a trusted brand then parents should know that protection is in place.”

The so-called ‘Dark Peppa’ videos first surfaced in 2017, when an investigation by BBC Trending unearthed hundreds of YouTube videos that appeared to be episodes of Peppa Pig and Thomas the Tank Engine, but were actually parodies with inappropriate themes.

One video appeared to be an episode of Peppa Pig featuring a dentist with a huge syringe. Peppa’s teeth got pulled out, and distressed crying could be heard on the soundtrack in the fake clip. Parent and journalist Laura June stumbled across the episode when she was looking for something for her three-year-old daughter to watch on YouTube.

“This is not like a video of an animated Peppa Pig getting high with Snoop Dogg (that is also available) made for adults to laugh at,” she said. “These videos are for kids, intentionally injected into the stream via confusing tags, for them to watch instead of legit episodes of beloved shows.”

While some of the videos use the characters in more innocent ways, others appear to be deliberately designed to trick children into watching disturbing content. One channel called “Toys and Funny Kids Surprise Eggs” had a landing page with a picture of a toddler alongside official-looking pictures of Peppa Pig, Thomas the Tank Engine, the Cookie Monster, Mickey and Minnie Mouse and Elsa from Frozen.

However, many of the videos on the channel at the time had titles like “BABY HULK BITES BABY ELSA”, “NAKED HULK LOSES HIS PANTS” and “SPIDERBABY CUTS ELSA’S DRESS”. Some of the darker ones also depict violence and frightening situations.

YouTube said that users can flag any problematic content by clicking on the “… More” button underneath a video and clicking “Report”.

The BBC report led to the channels highlighted in the investigation being removed – including the one containing the video of fake Peppa visiting the dentist. The company also suggested that parents use the YouTube Kids app, which has a much higher bar for content allowed on the platform.

Parents are able to block specific content, set the age level of videos and report videos. YouTube also blocks search queries that are vulnerable to returning mature results.

The Mirror contacted Hasbro, the makers of the Peppa Pig, for comment.

The U.S. Justice Department has launched an investigation into whether California, its interscholastic sports federation and the Jurupa Unified School District are violating the civil rights of cisgender girls by allowing transgender students to compete in school sports, federal officials announced Wednesday.

The Justice Department is also throwing its support behind a pending lawsuit alleging similar violations of girls’ rights in the Riverside Unified School District, said U.S. Atty. Bill Essayli, who oversees much of the Los Angeles region, and Assistant Atty. Gen. Harmeet Dhillon, who heads the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

Transgender track athletes have come under intense scrutiny in recent months in both Jurupa Valley and Riverside, with anti-LGBTQ+ activists attacking them on social media and screaming opposition to their competing at school meets.

Essayli and Dhillon, both Californians appointed under President Trump, have long fought against transgender rights in the state. Their announcements came one day after Trump threatened to withhold federal funding from California for allowing transgender youth to participate in sports.

The legal actions are just the latest attempts by the Trump administration to scale back transgender rights nationwide, including by bringing the fight to California — which has the nation’s largest queer population and some of its most robust LGBTQ+ legal protections — and targeting individual student athletes in the state.

Both Trump in his threats Tuesday and Essayli and Dhillon in their announcement of the investigation Wednesday appeared to reference the recent success of a 16-year-old transgender track athlete at Jurupa Valley High School named AB Hernandez. Trump wrongly suggested that Hernandez had won “everything” at a recent meet — which Hernandez didn’t do.

In a comment to The Times on Wednesday, Hernandez’s mother, Nereyda Hernandez, said it was heartbreaking to see her child being attacked “simply for being who they are,” and despite following all California laws and policies for competing.

“My child is a transgender student-athlete, a hardworking, disciplined, and passionate young person who just wants to play sports, continue to build friendships, and grow into their fullest potential like any other child,” her mother said.

The mother of another transgender high school track athlete in Riverside County who is the subject of the pending lawsuit the Justice Department is now backing declined to comment Wednesday.

The Justice Department said it had sent letters of legal notice to California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta, state Supt. of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, the California Interscholastic Federation and Jurupa Unified.

The U.S. Department of Education had previously announced in February that it was investigating the CIF for allowing transgender athletes to compete. Dhillon said the two federal departments would coordinate their investigations.

Bonta has defended state laws protecting transgender youth, students and athletes, and advised school systems and other institutions in the state, such as hospitals, to adhere to state LGBTQ+ laws — even in the face of various Trump executive orders aimed at curtailing the rights of and healthcare for transgender youth. On Wednesday, his office said it remained “committed to defending and upholding California laws.”

Scott Roark, a spokesman for the California Department of Education, said his agency could not comment. Jacquie Paul, a spokesperson for Jurupa Unified, said the school system had yet to receive the letter Wednesday, and “without further information” could not comment. A spokesperson for the Riverside Unified School District also declined to comment, citing the pending litigation.

The CIF, in a statement, said it “values all of our student-athletes and we will continue to uphold our mission of providing students with the opportunity to belong, connect, and compete while complying with California law and Education Code.”

However, the sports federation also changed its rules for the upcoming 2025 CIF State Track and Field Championships, saying a cisgender girl who is bumped from qualifying for event finals by a transgender athlete would still be allowed to compete and would also be awarded the medal for whichever place they would have claimed were the transgender athlete not competing.

The changes brought renewed criticism from advocates on both sides of the political issue, including Chino Valley Unified school board President Sonja Shaw. Shaw is a Trump supporter running for state schools superintendent who has challenged pro-LGBTQ+ laws statewide and supports the latest investigation. She said that, in making the changes, CIF was “admitting” that girls “are being pushed out of their own sports.”

Dhillon said her office’s “pattern or practice” investigation will consider whether California’s laws and the CIF policies violate Title IX, a 1972 federal civil rights law prohibiting sex discrimination in educational programs and activities that receive federal funding.

Title IX has been used in the past to win rights for transgender people, but the Trump administration has taken a strikingly different view of the law — and cited it as a reason transgender rights must be rolled back.

Dhillon said the law “exists to protect women and girls in education,” that it is “perverse to allow males to compete against girls, invade their private spaces, and take their trophies,” and that her division would “aggressively defend women’s hard-fought rights to equal educational opportunities.”

Essayli said in a statement that his office would “work tirelessly to protect girls’ sports and stop anyone — public officials included — from violating women’s civil rights.”

LGBTQ+ advocates, civic institutions in California and many Democratic lawmakers in the state have denounced the framing of transgender inclusion in sports as diminishing the rights of women and girls and accused Trump and other Republicans of attacking transgender people — about 1% of the U.S. population — simply because they make for an easy and vulnerable political target.

Kristi Hirst, co-founder of the public education advocacy group Our Schools USA, said the Justice Department’s actions amounted to “bullying minors and using taxpayer resources to do so,” and that a “better use of public dollars would be for the Justice Department to affirm that all kids possess civil rights, and protect the very students being targeted today.”

The “pattern or practice” investigation is the second such investigation that Dhillon’s office has launched in the L.A. region in as many months. It’s also investigating Los Angeles County over its process for issuing gun permits.

Essayli’s separate decision to back the Riverside lawsuit adds another wrinkle to an already complicated case.

The group Save Girls’ Sports is suing over the inclusion of a transgender athlete in a girls’ track meet in October, a decision they allege unfairly bumped a cisgender girl from competition, and over a decision by high school officials to block students from wearing shirts that read, “IT’S COMMON SENSE. XX [does not equal] XY,” a reference to the different chromosome pairings of biological females and males.

Julianne Fleischer, an attorney with Advocates for Faith & Freedom who is representing Save Girls’ Sports, said Wednesday that Essayli’s decision to weigh in on behalf of the group was welcome.

“This case has always been about common sense, fairness, and the plain meaning of the law,” Fleischer said in a statement. “Girls’ sports were never meant to be a social experiment. They exist so that girls can win, lead and thrive on a level playing field.”

It was unclear how the case would be affected by Essayli’s interest.

The state and school district are asking for the lawsuit to be dismissed. A hearing is scheduled next month.

Essayli, formerly a state Assembly member from Riverside County, made his name in politics in part by attacking what he has called the “woke” policies of California’s liberal majority in Sacramento. Shortly before he was appointed as U.S. attorney last month, other California lawmakers blocked a bill he introduced that would have banned transgender athletes from female sports.

Hernandez, the mother of the targeted Jurupa Valley athlete, said Trump and other officials were bullying children by “weaponizing misinformation and fear instead of embracing truth, compassion and respect,” and asked Trump to reconsider.

“I respectfully request you to open your heart and mind to learn about the LGBTQ+ community,” she said, “not from the voices of fear or division, but from the people living these lives with courage, love and dignity.”

AUSTIN, Texas — Texas this year has been the center of the nation’s largest measles outbreak in more than two decades, as a mostly eradicated disease has sickened more than 700 in the state, sent dozens to hospitals and led to the death of two children who were unvaccinated.

But even as the outbreak slows, a bill approved by state lawmakers and sent to Republican Gov. Greg Abbott would make it significantly easier for parents to enroll their children in school without standard vaccinations for diseases such as measles, whooping cough, polio and hepatitis A and B.

Supporters say the bill streamlines an already legal exemption process that allows families to avoid vaccines for reasons of conscience, religious beliefs or medical reasons. It would let them download the required forms from a website instead of contacting state health officials and waiting for one to come in the mail.

The bill does not change which vaccines are required. However, critics say easing the exemption process opens a door to further outbreaks with potentially deadly results.

“If this bill becomes law, Texas is likely to see more illness, more death and higher health care costs for families and business,” Rekha Lakshmanan, chief strategy officer for Texas-based nonprofit Immunization Project, told state senators before the bill won final approval.

“The outbreak (in Texas) is not a coincidence. It is the canary in the coal mine screaming at the top of its lungs,” she said.

The exemption bill — as well as other bills passed by the Texas House on lawsuits against vaccine makers and removing immunization restrictions on organ transplants — are a snapshot of efforts across dozens of conservative states to question vaccines or roll back requirements.

At the national level, this wave has been buoyed by still-lingering pushback from the COVID-19 pandemic and the Trump administration’s embrace of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who was one of the nation’s leading anti-vaccine advocates before being appointed secretary of the U.S. Health and Human Services Department.

The most recent federal data shows U.S. kindergarten vaccination rates have dipped since the pandemic — 92.7% in the 2023-24 school year compared to 95% before COVID-19 — and the proportion of children with exemptions rose to an all-time high. And last week, the “Make America Healthy Again” federal report on the nation’s health and wellness questioned the necessity of vaccine mandates for schoolkids.

The national Association of Immunization Managers, an organization of state and local immunization officials, has been tracking nearly 600 vaccine-related bills across the country in 2025, and the majority would not be considered pro-vaccine, said Brent Ewig, the group’s the group’s chief policy officer.

“We saw a spike in vaccine-related bills during the pandemic. The last few years it had been tapering off. With recent actions at the federal level, there has been a spike again,” Ewig said.

The Texas measles outbreak and vaccine requirements

Measles has been considered eliminated from the United States since 2000. The Texas outbreak started in late January in West Texas’ Mennonite communities that have been resistant to vaccines and distrustful of government intervention, and the highly contagious virus quickly jumped to other places with low vaccination rates.

Like many states, Texas requires children to obtain vaccines to protect against 11 diseases to attend public and private schools and child care centers. The state’s vaccination rates for the 2023-24 school year ranged between 93.78% for chicken pox to 95.78% for hepatitis B.

But parents can obtain exemptions for religious or personal reasons, or if a doctor determines it would not be safe because of a medical condition.

Exemption rates in Texas have been rising for nearly two decades, with a dramatic spike over the last five years. According to the Texas Department of Health Services, the agency received exemption requests for nearly 153,000 students in the 2023-2024 fiscal year, up from 136,000 the previous year and nearly double the 77,000 requested in 2019.

Texas’ vaccine rollback

The bill on vaccine exemption paperwork would make it easier for parents to obtain the needed form by letting them download it to a computer or smartphone. The current system where parents ask state health officials to mail a paper copy to their home can sometimes take weeks. The form would still need to be notarized before it is turned in to a school and a student is enrolled.

Advocates say the changes would help parents thread the bureaucratic process and get their children enrolled in school quicker.

“This bill is not about whether vaccines are good or bad, it’s about government efficiency and keeping kids in schools,” said Jackie Schlegal, founder of Texans for Medical Freedom, which advocates for “vaccine freedom of choice.”

Critics argue that simplifying the exemption form process makes it too easy for unvaccinated kids to enroll in a school, endangering the health of other kids and families.

“For years Texas has struck a delicate balance of parents’ right and public health and safety,” Lakshmanan said. “This bill is more than just a form … We can support parents without putting other families at risk.”

Still waiting for a Senate vote is a bill that would allow vaccine makers who advertise in Texas to be sued if their vaccine causes a person to be injured. That bill has been opposed by the Texas Association of Manufacturers.

The author of that bill is first-term state Rep. Shelley Luther, who was briefly jailed in 2020 for opening her Dallas salon in violation of governor’s emergency order during the pandemic. Abbott quickly weakened his enforcement of coronavirus safeguards and a court ordered her released.

Vertuno writes for the Associated Press.

WANT to give your fussy kids vitamins to make up for them refusing fruit and veg? You’re not alone.

About 16 per cent of youngsters take supplements.

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But a new report shows some gummies contain more sugar than kids’ favourite Haribo sweets.

Today I look at ways to get vitamins into your children without dosing them up on sugar too . . . 

Gummies

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BASSETTS makes various kids’ vitamins.

Its Soft & Chewy Multivitamin gummies in summer berries flavour are for ages 12 to 18 – perfect for those that may not be eating their five a day.

They contain nutrients to support teenagers’ health, including vitamins C and D to aid the immune system, and B2 and B12 to help reduce tiredness and fatigue.

Although these don’t contain sugar they do have sweeteners – maltitol, sorbitol and sucralose – which are said to be safe for children.

These aren’t for vegetarians as they contain gelatine which comes from cows but they taste great with a berry flavour.

Summer Berries gummies, 30 for £7. bassettsvitamins.co.uk

Powder

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JUNIOR REVIVE is a supplement that contains 12 vitamins and six minerals.

It has four fruit and vegetable powders, beta glucans (a fibre that can stimulate the immune system), live friendly bacteria (for gut health) and choline (a nutrient similar to B vitamins).

All these support a child’s immunity, energy and mental performance.

This is designed for children over four and up to 12 and comes in little sachets.

You simply add one sachet to 100ml of water or into a smoothie, yoghurt or juice. I love the fact this is unflavoured and is a great all-rounder.

Because it has no flavour there are no sweeteners either. I love this.

From £14.92 for a box of 20 or 75p a sachet. reviveactive.com

Spray

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ORAL sprays feature tiny droplets that absorb quickly into your mouth and then directly into the bloodstream, bypassing the digestive system.

BetterYou Multivitamin kids’ oral spray has 14 essential vitamins and is free from sugar, gluten artificial colours and additives. It contains the full spectrum of B vitamins, including folic acid, combined with vitamin A, vitamin C, K1 and vitamin D.

Suitable for youngsters aged over one year.

Despite having no sugar this “chocolate and marshmallow” flavour (which my kid loved) is very, very sweet.

This is due to the sweetener xylitol which is generally considered safe for children when used in moderation and comes from plant fibres.

The 25ml bottle contains a 32-day supply and you need to have four sprays a day.

Starts at £8.46. betteryou.com

WHEN you are a parent it can be expensive buying clothes for your ever-growing kids.

Thankfully shoppers have been raving about spotting George at Asda currently has a bumper sale on with numerous items down to just £1.50.

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One mum took to the Facebook group Extreme Couponing and Bargains UK and showed how she filled her basket on the George app with discount clothes.

She wrote: “Lots of clothes reduced on the George app.”

Including in her shopping haul were some gamer-themed boys pjs for £1.50, which were for aged seven to eight.

The woman also bought a five-pack of cotton socks for £2 and some Pokemon-themed socks for £2.50.

Other shoppers commented saying they had also stocked up for their kids’ summer wardrobes.

One mum got a £1.50 girls T-shirt, a two-pack of long-sleeve tops for £3 and some £4 swim shorts.

She also got a £2 tennis-themed pink sweatshirt, and a £2 mint green sweatshirt which said ‘Happy Moments.’

Meanwhile, a third Asda fan wrote: “Just got grandkids some bits too.”

One bargain hunter also pointed out that you can save on delivery by getting it sent to an Asda store, which waivers the usual £4 shipping fee.

George store launch

We recently shared how Asda has launched its first-ever stand-alone George store, and it could be rolled out across the UK if it’s a hit.

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The debut site opened on Saturday, May 10 in Leeds, taking over the old Asda Living at Crown Point Retail Park.

The slick new store is packed with head-turning fashion, stylish homeware, must-have toys and baby bits – plus a fresh café to fuel your spree.

There are 30 Asda Living stores across the UK, and bosses will decide later this year whether to roll out more George stores after another trial run.

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Fashionistas can bag the Spring/Summer 2025 collection fronted by supermodel Yasmin Le Bon, plus new celeb collabs – including a chic kidswear range by Erica Davies and a sunshine-filled drop from Billie Faiers.

And it’s not just the clothes getting a makeover – the whole experience is sleeker, quicker and easier, with speedy self-checkouts, faster queues and slick Click & Collect.

Shoppers will also be able to pop into the brand-new Kitchen café, where staffers are dishing up hot meals, cold bites and stone-baked pizzas.

Liz Evans, Asda’s Chief Commercial Officer for George and Retail, said: “Our Asda Living stores have been a huge success – but as shopping habits change, we want to make it even easier for customers to enjoy quality, style and value with George at the heart of it.”

The George label launched in 1989 when fashion guru George Davies teamed up with Asda to make the UK’s first-ever supermarket clothing brand.

By 2004, it was the nation’s biggest clothing retailer, and Asda launched its first Living store to expand into homeware.

Today, George is still going strong in 560 stores and pulling in 260 million visits a year to George.com.

A BRITISH tourist has been arrested in Namibia over an alleged series of sex attacks on San tribal children at a cultural “living museum” in the remote north-east of the country.

Douglas Robert Brooks, 65, was detained on Sunday at the Ju’/Hoansi Living Museum near Grashoek after allegedly offering sweets to local children in exchange for naked photos and inappropriate touching.

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He now faces 38 charges, including rape, indecent assault, human trafficking and child exploitation, under
Namibia’s Child Care & Protection Act of 2015 and international protocols.

Brooks also faces charges of crimen injuria, which means a deliberate attack on a person’s dignity through the use of vulgar or racially offensive words or gestures.

The pensioner allegedly persuaded 33 minors to strip and allow him to touch their private parts, with the promise of sweets he had brought to the camp.

He appeared at Grootfontein Magistrates Court on Monday afternoon, where prosecutor Erastus Christian laid out the charges. No plea was taken.

Namibian police Inspector Maureen Mbeha said Brooks is accused of groping the breasts and backsides of 16 teenage girls, 14 teenage boys and three younger children.

Police say the alarm was raised by concerned parents, leading to his arrest just a day after arriving at the remote museum for his third annual visit.

It’s believed that his detention has since prompted further allegations.

Brooks entered Namibia on May 15 and drove six hours from the capital Windhoek to the camp, which is part of a network of seven
“living museums” set up by the Living Culture Foundation Namibia (LCFN), a German-Namibian organisation.

The museums are designed to preserve San traditions and culture by allowing visitors to observe and take part in daily activities such as bow-and-arrow hunting, fire dances, and traditional craft-making.

While some adult women remain topless in keeping with cultural norms, management said teenage girls are always fully clothed in leather antelope-skin dresses.

Tourists are explicitly warned not to give sweets to children due to the lack of dental care, and instead encouraged to donate to local groups who distribute gifts fairly.

The Namibian Ministry of Environment and Tourism has condemned his alleged actions stating they were “deeply disrespectful” to the people of the San.

A spokesman said: “The allegations are a serious violation of our law regarding the protection of minors and it is unacceptable for tourists to exploit them.

“We applaud the Namibia police for their swift actions in attending to this matter and are confident that the law and justice will take place in due course”.

Brooks has been remanded in custody by Magistrate Abraham Abraham and is due to reappear in court on June 19.

It is not yet clear if he will be transferred to a main prison.

The San – or bushmen as they were known in colonial times and a description some find outdated – are the oldest surviving civilisations in Southern Africa.

Their small stature and semi-nomadic lifestyle saw them persecuted and hunted and forced into poverty when their traditional hunting grounds were taken.

Some 2000 of the 30,000 San in Namibia remain faithful to their traditional roots, hunting and farming for survival, and do not entertain the modern way of living.

The San are thought to have diverged from other nomadic hunting groups some 200,000 years ago and spread out across Southern Africa surviving in the wild.

They are known for their “click language” and supreme hunting and tracking skills and knowledge of nature and do not believe in possessions but sharing.

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A viral TikTok has reignited the long-standing debate of airplane decorum while flying with kids. Now, cabin crew have shared their top secret tips for keeping little ones calm on flights.

Airplane decorum, especially while travelling with kids, has long been a point of contention.

Recently, the subject came to the forefront on social media after a TikTok video prominently featuring an exasperated traveller and the antics of a young child behind her who couldn’t stop kicking her seat garnered over 240k views.

The divisive clip reignited the long-standing debate among viewers as audiences were split over who should address the issue. While one user suggested confrontation was key: “You gotta be confrontational and tell them to stop, unfortunately”, another proposed seeking cabin crew assistance: “Just call the flight attendant”.

Yet another user offered advice suggesting the direct involvement of the parent: “Just tell the mother to get them to stop”.

Luckily, a cabin crew manager has now weighed in. Travel experts at Netflights conferred with Cabin Crew Manager, Francesca, and received insights into the preferred course of action by crew members, parents, and fellow passengers in such circumstances.

Delving deeper into aviation secrets that can be employed for maintaining mid-flight serenity, Francesca shared some insider tips with the travel company.

Cabin crew secrets for child management

Engaging activities as distractions: Francesca shares: “If the children are aged between three to four and are walking around, then we will get them to help with rubbish to distract them.”

Incentivising positive behaviour: The cabin crew manager reveals another trick of the trade when it comes to flying with kids: “If kids are playing up, we will say that if they behave well, we can give them treats from the bar; however, this is at the cabin manager’s discretion, so it shouldn’t be expected.”

Keeping one’s cool: Francesca stresses the importance of remaining calm and shares: “We have to remain calm, considerate and approachable. We always put ourselves in the shoes of our customers.”

Tips for parents

Supply numerous distractions: Sharing the gold-standard of in-flight tactics that can be deployed on kids, Francesca advises: “Parents should bring colouring books onto the flight, as bringing things that stimulate their minds will help the situation, and minimise children from getting agitated when flying”.

Stash nutritious nibbles: It’s important for parents travelling with kids to ensure their children are well-fed and snacking on healthy options. Francesca says: “Make sure your kids have eaten beforehand or have healthy snacks when flying. Snacks help to keep little ones settled and can be a nice treat to lift their mood.”

Strategise slumber: The flight attendant shares another top tip: “Making sure to plan naps for your children is a useful tip, so children don’t become tired and irritable. Planning your child’s sleep in advance can ensure you are organised and feel prepared for long travel days.”

Seat switcharoo

As a cabin crew manager, Francesca is all too aware of some passengers’ demand for a seat switch, but asserts that shouldn’t be the default expectation. She explained: “Some passengers complain that they don’t want to be seated near children, however, we remind them that families are also paying customers. If there are available seats, then we can move them there, however, passengers shouldn’t presume they will be able to move, as the aircraft can often be full, with no spare seats available.”

PARENTS know all too well that keeping kids entertained over the summer holidays can be pricey.

The cost of childcare alone can cost around £1,039 for the six weeks of the break, and that is not to mention days out and other activities.

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And many activity camps for children can be costly too, but that does not mean your child has to miss out.

There are loads of free classes available for families across countless areas in the UK.

Below we round up the best classes for kids this summer that cost nothing at all.

FREE FOOTBALL COACHING

McDonald’s runs free football classes for children aged 5 to 11 years old.

The programme lasts for 10 weeks and usually runs for an hour.

The event is hosted at local stadiums across the UK.

The sessions, which are open to all abilities, are running from March to July.

They are delivered by FA-qualified coaches at more than 1,600 locations nationwide.

You can find out more by visiting www.mcdonalds.com/gb/en-gb/football/fun-football-centres.

FREE COURSES FOR TEENAGERS

Islington Council runs a number of free courses for teenagers and young adults through its Summerversity scheme.

In the past, classes have included archery, football camp and photography lessons.

You can book a maximum of eight courses to keep your teenager entertained over the holidays.

You can sign up by visiting www.summerversity.co.uk/

Of course you will need to live in the London borough to get access to the scheme.

But if you don’t it may be worth ringing up your local council to see if it runs a similar event.

FREE BOXING CAMP

Sporting Aid in Waltham is running a free boxing camp for those aged 10-16.

The event is run every Saturday at 12:00pm at the Waltham Cross Playing Fields Car Park.

No prior experience is required so it may be a great way for your little one to be introduced to the sport.

You can sign up for the event by visiting www.eventbrite.co.uk.

FREE SUMMER CAMP

Music charity Vache Baroque runs a completely free summer camp for children in St Giles.

The event runs from  Monday 18 – Friday August 22 and includes a hot meal. It is for children aged 9–14.

Children will participate in a number of activities including singing, arts and crafts and circus skills

They can also take part in an optional performance with professional orchestra in its summer circus-opera on Sunday September 7.

You can find out more by visiting, vachebaroque.com.