Some people say that childhood is the best time of your life. However, being a child has both advantages and disadvantages. 

    On the plus side, you have few responsibilities. For example, you don't have to go to work, pay bills, or do the shopping or housework. This means you have plenty of time to do whatever you wantwatch TV, play video games, go out with friends, play sports, or pursue other hobbies. In addition to this, public transport, cinema, and sports centres cost much less for children. All in all, being a child can be a fun time of life. 

    However, for every plus there is a minus. For one thing, you have to spend all day, every day, Monday to Friday, at school and this inevitably means that you have to do homework and take exams. What is more, although you have free time, you are rarely allowed to do whatever you want. You need your parents' permission before going out with friends, staying out late, or going to parties. It can sometimes seem that they want to stop you having any fun. Last of all, things may be cheaper for children, but that doesn't mean they are cheap. Children depend on getting pocket money and not all parents choose to, or are able to give generously. In reality some children can't afford to do much at all.

    To sum up, despite its lack of responsibility, I believe that childhood is definitely not the best time of life. On the one hand, children may have free time, but conversely they do not have the freedom to choose what to do with it. They can feel pressurized both by parents and the education system. However, the increased responsibility that comes with age creates its own pressures, too.  

(297words - Headway Intermediate- Band 6.5-7.0 IELTS)