Kids and cellphones...how young?

[Lucas156]

Most pay phones are out of service nowadays aren't they?

 

[Papabeargsh]

We put get our kids cell phones in sixth or seventh grade based on the maturity level. It's the only way to make sure they have a way to call us. Good luck finding a pay phone.

 

[RedneckReject]

Really? I see pay phones all over the place. Maybe it's just the area I'm in

(no purple intended...I really did think they were everywhere. they are around here)

 

[Sylvain]

Most pay phones are out of service nowadays aren't they?

I dont have a cellphone and can always find a pay phone if I need to call someone.
If you have a cellphone you're probably never looking for them so you dont see them but they are there.

 

[MCgrease08]

Stop by a local Best Buy where they have phones from all major carriers so you can go one place to compare features, costs etc. They will be able to guide you toward the type of phone that does what you're looking for.

I don't see anything wrong with a 10 yr old having a phone for emergencies. I agree with others about strictly controlling things like texting and internet access if you end up with a phone with those capabilities. Just remember you can't control everything, as their friends likely have access to these type of things. They will be exposed to it when you're not around.

There are a lot of old schoolers here saying kids don't need phones, but it's just the way the future is heading. My daughter isn't even two yet, but I'd bet she'll have a phone or a tablet before she's 10. She's already figured how to unlock my smart phone, disable airplane mode and get on the internet. I want her to be technologically savvy as she gets older, it can only help her in the future when she starts getting into school and eventually looking for a job.

 

[Trigger Time]

Ok here's what I plan on doing when my child gets old enough to stay at home alone. I'm not trying to tell anyone else how to raise their kid and if you don't like the way i raise one too damn bad.

I will give my daughter a phone with limited access maybe around 10. we (my wife and I) no longer use a home phone. All of our tv and Internet is through uverse and we both have cell phones. So, if our daughter stays home alone (when that age arrives) she would have no way to call us or we her, and we (wife and I) both need our phones and aren't gonna leave her ours. And I don't want to buy a landline, so I will have a cell phone for her to use while at home. My child will NEVER be anywhere that I don't approve of or don't know about and if I call the phone it better be answered and i will track it to know where she is (where's my iPhone is the app and its VERY precise). There will be NO texting and if she wants to talk to other girls it will be within earshot of her mother and I. That doesn't mean I'm gonna listen it just means i could at any time as she better not talk about something she would not want us to hear.
i will give my kid freedom as long as we her parents are actively involved in that freedom. So it's observed freedom.
my child has no right to privacy when it involves an activity that allows contact with the outside world. It is my sacred responsibility to take are of my child and to teach her and protect her and to mold her into a productive member of society. Once she's an adult she can have all the freedom she wants.

so, cell phone? Yes. But it's not gonna be used outside of the house to talk to anyone except us. And if I check the usage and see it has been then there's gonna be consequences!
no we can't control 100% everything our children do and they need to learn to be somewhat independent As far as they can be trusted with it, but one thing I have taught my child and will continue to do is: if you break our rules you might not get caught at first but when we do find out then It had better be worth the price your gonna pay for doing it.
kinda like speeding as an adult. If its worth the money you pay as a fine then go for it. But of its not fiscally proactive then you won't do it most likely. At least i won't. Not worth the money.

 

[Lammchop93]

I got my cell phone when I was in 7th grade. (13 years old), due to medical conditions and for my safety. Never really used it to txt or talk until freshman year of high school.

 

[Sfrandolph]

Safety? Buy him/her a gun. Or I guess they could throw the phone at the perp & then run. Do your job a parent. DEMAND to know where they are going & then get off your butt & check them out to see where they really are. If they're not where they said then they're grounded for a month.

Amen

 

[CathyInBlue]

13's too young.

 

[HoughMade]

I got my cell phone when I was in 7th grade. (13 years old), due to medical conditions and for my safety. Never really used it to txt or talk until freshman year of high school.

When I was in 7th grade, cell phones looked like this...and that was cutting edge....no texting:

I didn't have one

 

[Que]

13's too young.

What is the appropriate age to have a cell phone?

 

[hornadylnl]

What is the appropriate age to have a cell phone?

I didn't have a cell phone until I was 21 so at least 21. My duaghter is lucky my parents bought me tooth brushes or she wouldn't have one either.

 

[CathyInBlue]

14-16, maybe. 17+ okay.

 

[Que]

14-16, maybe. 17+ okay.

Any particular reason why a 14-year old would need a phone and not a 10-year old?

 

[Hotdoger]

Chip him and you are good to go!

 

[andski3]

My daughter is almost 10, but we got her a cell at 8. Just added it to our family share plan. Locked it down, so No text, internet or calls except for me, my wife, and my mother in law. She still has the same phone today. Its never been lost or broken.

 

[Sylvain]

My daughter is almost 10, but we got her a cell at 8. Just added it to our family share plan. Locked it down, so No text, internet or calls except for me, my wife, and my mother in law. She still has the same phone today. Its never been lost or broken.

How many times she had to use her phone at that age?

 

[Trigger Time]

My daughter is almost 10, but we got her a cell at 8. Just added it to our family share plan. Locked it down, so No text, internet or calls except for me, my wife, and my mother in law. She still has the same phone today. Its never been lost or broken.

That's cool that you can do that (lock stuff out). I might get my kid one at 8.
Whats the legal age you can leave you kid home alone? I probably wouldn't do it anyways and no matter the legal age, if my child wasnt responsible enough by my standards then it wouldn't happen anyways. Just currious.

 

[Jaredjosh]

Sorry I didn't read all the post in this thread, but the argument is similar to some I have heard before, it goes something like this. "It's better to have a gun and not need it than not to have a gun and need it."

Not that I would give a 10yr old a gun and send him on his way but you get the jist.

 

[Degtyaryov]

I got my first when I was 16, halfway through highschool. That was the norm then.