The week that was at a glance
Daddy cool
Forget about deadbeat Dads. Friends Provident, the insurers, reckon that the average father does about €19,000 worth of chores around the house every year. Included in that is €7,300 worth of gardening, about €2,700 on school runs, €2,200 on DIY, about €900 on sports coaching, and €5,785 on housework. Normally in this column we'd be inclined to be sceptical but, heck, it's Father's Day tomorrow. Go Dads!
Then again . . .
Boys are getting it too easy at home, a consultant told a teachers' union conference in London. If they got involved with the washing and ironing, they would be better prepared for school, said Dr Tony Sewell. He argued that their sisters learn patience and obedience while carrying out the household chores, which equip them to learn more quickly once they get to school.
The Numbers
100,000 The number of primary school pupils in classes of 30 or more
23 The number of days actress Darryl Hannah and other protestors spent up a walnut tree in a Los Angeles community garden threatened with destruction before being removed by police
62 The number of children who suffered broken bones and fractures last summer from jumping on trampolines
In Quotes
"I'm just so happy Irish is over i am never going to speak another word of irish ever again!!!"
Leaving Cert student writing on skool.ie website
We Now Know
Four cups of coffee a day can reduce the risk of alcoholic cirrhosis by 80 per cent
You can get a new house in Dublin for under €200,000 - according to the Minister for Housing Noel Ahern
Twenty minutes with a prostitute at the Bel Ami brothel in Berlin costs €50 for World Cup fans - less than the price of a match ticket