The next time your kid wants to cover up his mistake, he may no longer claim that the dog ate up you car keys, rather it may be a slightly more hi-tech tale that could very well leave you speechless.

With kids turning increasingly technology-savvy, the good old excuses like 'The Dog ate it', are now being replaced by a more hi-tech one "the printer ate it".

A survey conducted by Annual RM SchoolGate found that the worst offenders, when it comes to having to give excuses were the boys, with 73% of teachers claiming that they made the most excuses.

Girls, however, outnumbered the boys in making the best excuses when their homework was missing.

According to Femalefirst, which quoted the survey, some of the best excuses listed were:

The tortoise ate it

My Pet snake was sleeping on it

It was impossible- My Dad couldn't even do it

My Dad has it- But there's a restraining order against him

We were at a falconry display, and a golden eagle called Herman swooped down and went off with my jeans jacket which had my homework in it.