Playing outside or reading a book are things of the past for today's digital savvy teens

According to new research from children’s charity Barnado’s, the number of teenagers who play outside, read books or get enough sleep has dropped dramatically on previous decades.

Less than half of 13 to 15 year-olds, 48 per cent, play outside, compared to 87 per cent of 45 to 54-year-olds, when they were that age. Just half of today’s teens say they get enough sleep, compared to 66 per cent of adults when they were younger; and barely half, 54 per cent say they read books - compared to 79 per cent of adults when they were teenagers.

The poll, commissioned to see what challenges and opportunities teenagers face from the rapidly evolving technological world, also found the internet helps three-quarters of today’s young teenagers to do their schoolwork, compared with 44 per cent of 25-34 year olds when they were the same age.

And a quarter of youngsters aged 13-15 said they had communicated with a stranger on social media.

Philippa Thompson, a senior lecturer in Early Childhood Studies at Sheffield Hallam University, said while it was clear the life of a teenager had changed - we should not be quick to “demonise” technology.”

“The experiences we gain from playing outside are really important,” she said. “But when you are 13, 14 or 15, your social world becomes more important, and for teenagers today, the way they communicate is by social media, they don’t need to outside or playing in the park. There are benefits to technology, and it could be that they are using to arrange to meet up, rather than assuming they are just stuck in their bedrooms.”

She said the pressure to achieve at school was also forcing teenagers to ditch extra curricular activities, such as playing outside, sport or reading books, in favour of completing ever-growing piles of homework.

For Nicola Lee, owner of the Children’s Bookshop in Lindley, Huddersfield, teenagers have “almost disappeared” from the shop since she started working there 12 years ago.

“We used to have a big stock for teenagers but now we’re down to a couple of shelves,” she said. “They no longer seem to read for pleasure. School seems to have a lot to do with it. They are reading the part of the book they need to finish an essay and not finishing it.

“And they are not seeing their parents enjoy reading at home. If you grow up thinking reading isn’t valuable, you won’t read in future. It’s really quite sad.”

At National Trust properties across Yorkshire, younger children have been encouraged to get outdoors, engage with nature and get their hands dirty by ticking off a list of activities - 50 things for children to do before they turn 11 and three-quarters. It also runs Junior Ranger Days where, for example, teenagers can learn woodland management at Hardcastle Crags at Hebden Bridge, or beach cleans on the Yorkshire coast.

Jo Foster, visitor experience officer for the National Trust in Yorkshire, said fostering a love of the outdoors from a young age mean that “enjoyment will stay with them through their teen years and into adulthood”.

She said: “The beauty of this campaign is that it gets the whole family taking part, challenging each other and having a go – we always see older brothers and sisters take part.”

THE survey showed how the growth of digital is “changing our children’s behaviour”, Barnado’s chief executive Javed Khan said.

The growing influence of social media and digital devices on relationships was made clear, with almost as many young teenagers or their friends saying they had dumped a boyfriend or girlfriend by text message or on WhatsApp (a quarter) as have done so in person (30 per cent). Almost seven in ten of girls aged 13-15 take selfies, while 80 per cent of teenage boys play online games.

Mr Khan added: “To help children thrive in this brave new world, we need to equip them with the skills and knowledge to navigate this digital landscape.”