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Hey all. My son is going into middle school next year and my wife and I are contemplating on whether or not to get him a cell phone. We would most likely just add him to our plan and get an older iPhone. We have been putting it off as long as possible since he has never really needed one. However, now with him going into middle school he is going to be involved in more school activities (sports/clubs), likes to go over to friends houses, and will be getting home from school before my wife and I get home. Our biggest concern is him being home by himself (even thought it will only be about a half hour). We will definitely have restrictions, especially on social media, but want to easily be in contact with him. We also want him to be able to stay in contact with all of his friends over the summer since pretty much every other kid in his class already has a phone. Any input would be great. Thanks!
In my opinion we probably don’t fully understand the impact of a society full of people immersed in the digital/connected world from birth basically. Almost makes me think parents might be better off homesteading or something, unplugged out in some small rural town somewhere. As sort of a first generation person raised digitally I think it sorta does something to your mind.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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One Christmas we got all three of them cell phones. It was back in the days of the flip-phone, smart phones had not yet been invented. It was completely different then, because their phones were for communicating with us and a few friends that had them, no social media.
Their ages were 16, 13, and 11.
By the time Facebook came out in 2004, they were 24, 21, and 19, with jobs and able to upgrade to whatever they wanted.
Yes, kids today have far too much dependence on screens. Our grandkids have limited screen time and still spend a lot of time playing without media outdoors.
I think middle school is the perfect time to give a child a cell phone. It allows them to have some independence. I know I appreciated not having to sit outside a sports practice waiting for a coach to finally call it quits. Games and practices became their responsibility to keep track of, not mine.
And, believe it or not, not every kid becomes addicted to electronics.
I think middle school is the perfect time to give a child a cell phone. It allows them to have some independence. I know I appreciated not having to sit outside a sports practice waiting for a coach to finally call it quits. Games and practices became their responsibility to keep track of, not mine.
And, believe it or not, not every kid becomes addicted to electronics.
This. We got our son a cell phone when he started middle school. It made life much simpler. Picking him up at the skating rink, football practice and all of the other activities kids that age participate in was much easier with a cell phone.
I think middle school is the perfect time to give a child a cell phone. It allows them to have some independence. I know I appreciated not having to sit outside a sports practice waiting for a coach to finally call it quits. Games and practices became their responsibility to keep track of, not mine.
And, believe it or not, not every kid becomes addicted to electronics.
It seems like the overwhelming majority of teens (and adults) I know do strike me as being addicted to some degree. The digital space is crafted to make people addicted...especially those most impressionable. Try spontaneously telling the average 15 yr old — “no electronics (laptop/tablet/smartphone, etc) for 3 months”. Apoplectic may be the appropriate term.
Got my oldest her first (and up this point, only) cell phone for Christmas when she was in the Middle of 5th grade. Even that year alone, there were 2-3 occasions where one of us needed to get a hold of each other unexpectedly, so I was glad she had it.
I don't know if waiting a couple more years to get it for her would have made any difference in her spending more time on it than she should. There are plenty of adults that spend more time on their phone than some kids do.
My bigger concern for her was whether or not she could be responsible enough to use and care for the phone.
We got our oldest son a cell phone when he entered high school. We put it off as long as possible because we knew he would not be able to handle the temptation. We were right. He's on it constantly and we feel that it is an addiction.
Our youngest son is in middle school and will not get one until he gets into high school also. We feel that he will be able to handle it better than our older son, but the precedence has been set and he understands that.
By middle school is the norm, today. If you’re worried about it inappropriate apps, being glued to the screen for 12 hour per day, etc, make use of the parental controls on the phone. So far, mine haven’t found their way around them, but by 15 I removed their screen time limits anyway; all they need my consent for is downloading apps and making purchases.
By middle school is the norm, today. If you’re worried about it inappropriate apps, being glued to the screen for 12 hour per day, etc, make use of the parental controls on the phone. So far, mine haven’t found their way around them, but by 15 I removed their screen time limits anyway; all they need my consent for is downloading apps and making purchases.
The “norm” — this is where I feel like ALL of society has entered the digital age with a HUGE addiction problem. And everyone regardless of socioeconomic status is enabling each other by abiding by the “norm”.
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