Loneliness is pervading children's summer vacations, reports Shanghai Morning Post.

Many stay-at-home kids have turned to the phone to alleviate the problem by chatting with friends.

Local mother Zhou Jieyun said the family's phone bill had increased to an average of 300 yuan (US$36) per month this summer.

Parents are being encouraged to send bored and lonely youngsters to classes at Children's Palace, an educational institution offering extracurricular courses in the arts and other disciplines, to give them the opportunity to make more friends and communicate with their peers.b

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