I’m sure it’s a dilemma for most parents, grandparents or caregivers – when to give a child a cell phone? For some families the need might be due to necessity. For others they feel the pressure from their children who want to phones just like their peers.
When it the right time to give a child a cell phone?
There is an interesting article on Care.com that addresses this issue that I thought you might be interested in. The article is called When Should You Give Your Child a Cell Phone?
In addition to that article I also wrote an article that addresses the issues parents face when deciding on whether or not to provide their child with a cell phone. If you are interested in my article you can find it here – How to Decide When to Give Your Kids a Phone.
I would love it if you would check out my article. 🙂 Feel free to share and/or comment on the article too if you wish. I would especially love to hear from other parents on how they came to the decision to give their child a cell phone and what age was your child when they received their phone. You can comment on my article post or on this post.
Kimberly
*I was not compensated for this post. I am merely sharing a link to an article that I wrote for my readers.
Sandy VanHoey says
You had great ideas and I would have gotten one immediately if I didn’t see the bus and not knowing where my kids were. Seems these days, there are so many times that emergencies do come up and a a parent, you want to know what is going on or that your child can reach you in such a case. Love your rules about no phone until homework, etc. is done. I know my grandson will play on his momma’s phone but she put a lock on because he was quick at 5 years of age to learn how to get him any apps he wanted.
Joy says
Great article..I think a cell phone with some clear guidelines is a good idea at the right age 🙂
Vickie Couturier says
my daughter was 16 when she got her cell phone,,she was driving an I thought she needed it in case of trouble,,ive seen too many little kids that have one an I dont agree,,just my opinion,,maybe if it was one that was only for emergencies or just for mom an dad,,but no other usage,,that I would be okay with,,thats a expense that im not willing to do without something so they can have a phone to talk to their friends on,,ive seen ppl go band rupt an the kids still had phones
ANN*H says
Im old fashined and think kids should not have cell phones just to use to talk with friends etc. unless they are paying for it. Maybe when they are pre-teen to teen years a phone just for emergencies is okay -but many parents can not afford even for that. we did with out them when we were kids
jamie braun says
i have a 12 year old daughter, and we have a pre-paid emergency phone that only dials 3 numbers for her.
Jane J. says
I like the idea of a prepaid phone with limited access for use in emergencies.
Robin Wilson says
Sometimes I wonder how we older folks made it out alive before the days of cell phones. Somehow we managed. My son didn’t get one when he was younger, but it is up to the parent.