Lorraine Kelly: It’s appalling that kids can’t talk properly thanks to technology

I was lucky enough to start primary school being able to read and write.

My mum and dad taught me the basic skills and our tenement room and kitchen in Bridgeton was always stuffed with books and newspapers.

I also had brilliant teachers who made learning fun and who encouraged our imaginations and creativity.

In fact one of my teachers Miss Spiers popped into the studio last week to see me, and it was so good to catch up with her.

I know she’d be appalled at the latest findings that show some children start primary school without basic vocabulary skills.

A poll of more than 500 teachers across the UK for the charity Save The Children discovered that far too many four and five year olds are entering the classroom unable to communicate with one another.

It must make the job of teachers well nigh impossible.

It’s not about children from other countries, but has more to do with what’s going on in the home.

I think a whole generation has lost the art of conversation.

People spend so much time on their phones that they actually don’t know how to talk to a living person in front of their face.

Parents who basically can’t be bothered with their kids are happy to use computers or the TV as a babysitter.

When they go to school they don’t actually know how to mix with other kids or how to talk to them.

We need to go back to basics with these kids. The best thing you can do is to read them bedtime stories.

I loved doing that when Rosie was little. I could revisit all my favourite books, as well as buying new ones to share with her.

It shouldn’t fall to teachers to take over parental responsibilities.

We’ve already heard of terrible stories where pupils are coming to school aged four and five and even older, still wearing nappies.

It’s all about having parents who give a damn and who put their kids first.

We don’t want classrooms full of little isolated zombies who can’t communicate.