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It's interesting that people who give their kids cellphones say it is for emergencies and calling home. But I see kids with cell phones on the phone constantly talking to their friends! It's like they have the phone glued to their ears. I think it's dangerous to give a 12 yr-old a phone. You don't know who they are giving their number out to!
Well, both situations exist. Of course you see kids chatting on them. But you can't see a kid NOT chatting on their phone, and yet know they have one.
My 5th and 3rd graders have one (shared) for safety. It is locked down, meaning they can only call or receive calls from the family members programmed in by me. Its also GPS enabled.
Honestly, its a bit of a luxury item, but I feel more comfortable having them walk 3/4 of a mile to school knowing they can call if there's trouble. Its also nice to bring when we go to a museum or a festival or something where we could get separated.
Our daughter got one at 14, we got tired of waiting in the school parking lot to pick her up from band practices and football games. The pay phones at the school didn't work, and half the time the doors were locked anyway. We just never knew when she'd be ready. She had to share our limited minutes though, so she wasn't able to chat endlessly on her phone.
Our son was 17 when we got him one. We felt more comfortable knowing he could call us if he needed us when out driving. My cell phone died once and I needed to make a call; I drove all over town unable to find a working pay phone. I never did find one, I had to go inside a store and ask to use their phone. No one seems to use pay phones anymore. Cell phones and teenagers may not be a necessity for some, but they have certainly been helpful for our family, plus provided an extra peace of mind knowing our kids can reach help if they need it.
But anyhow, what do you think about all these telephones?
Depends on age.
Also depends on situation.
The world is not like it was in 1980 so to compare it to your youth or youth of the past is comparing apples to oranges.
Our babysitter who is 15 1/2 has one & pays for it with her babysitting money & helping out at a catering business. Gives me definite peace of mind that she has one.
I've seen young children riding their bicycles & talking on their cell phones & find it very dangerous. I've seen young, young children walking down the street talking on the cell phone & not paying attention to anything around them. Again, very dangerous.
There are several phones right now that have very specific children features on them & all run in the area of $5.99 or $9.99/month. If my child was in elementary school & had to attend afterschool care, I wouldn't even think twice for him to have a cell phone.
As for middle school & high school...I think that parents have to be very careful in how they apply letting their child have one & how it is paid for, etc.
Most of us lived just fine young lives without the internet or cell phones. And many families still do.
But, if a family decides to purchase a phone for their child, and which they have every right to do, I truly hope they instill the proper ways to use it.
My two boys have one. When my older son started driving we were ALWAYS giving him one of ours. We decided to go ahead and buy his own.
When my dh got a new job in another state, my older boys went with him. We bought my middle son a phone because they were not going to have a land line. He would be leaving for school AFTER they left and would be arriving home without anyone at home. It truly was a safety issue.
It depends what you call expensive. We had a great family plan. Its ONLY 7.95 for ALL of us to have the text feature. My dh an I text probably more than our kids. Plus, with our plan it is FREE to call ANYONE that has the same carrier. Most people we know have the same carrier so kids do not run up the bill neither do we.
My 13 year old's phone is rarely used. He NEVER talks on it.
You have to do what is right for your family and in our case OUR KIDS do have the CELL phones and we STILL do not have a land line phone.
I always worry about those radio waves next to their young maturing brains, too. I have a cell phone but I almost never use it. In fact, it is sitting in my car right now. I really hate the damn thing, but I need it for traveling.
In general, I think cell phones are so rude. I really hate hearing them go off in stores or people's homes. I hate listening to people talk about nonsense nonstop on the phone. Giving kids cell phones just seems to teach them all these rotten rude habits.
Why can't people find time to get together for coffee or lunch anymore?
P.S. Don't mind me. I'm a little grumpy and overworked today.
I agree completely about the rude factor. There are times and places that cell phones can be useful, however I HATE hearing someone talk on one in a restaurant or in the middle of the grocery store. We were line waiting one day and I heard this "older" woman's entire life history. It isn't just young kids!
I will text in the middle of a store,but I refuse to talk on the phone in a store. It feels weird. Who wants to hear a conversation that should be private!
I agree completely about the rude factor. There are times and places that cell phones can be useful, however I HATE hearing someone talk on one in a restaurant or in the middle of the grocery store. We were line waiting one day and I heard this "older" woman's entire life history. It isn't just young kids!
I will text in the middle of a store,but I refuse to talk on the phone in a store. It feels weird. Who wants to hear a conversation that should be private!
I was a working teacher & thus had a part time job on the weekend at Starbucks to supplement my generous teaching income...I would not wait on customers who came to the counter & could not get off their cell phones to order a cup of coffee. This was more frequent than not. I use to say "Once you are done with your call I can take your order." Half the time they didn't even hear me or acknowledge & say "Joe's got the order in for the widgets. I'll have a tall mocha. He said that they should arrive next week".
If the conversation is so dire & important, a cup of coffee can be put on hold.
I think there is a big difference b/w an adult having a cell phone & a child having one. It's very simple to teach proper phone etiquette to a child & helpful is the parent uses it themselves.
My son is not allowed to aswer the home phone without the greeting we have taught him. It simple & easy & teaches manners.
The children who are abusing the phones have not been taught many times and to some extent, are children who will do what children do b/c they are just that.
Our family members who have teenagers & younger children & have decided to allow cell phones...they've all instilled some very strict rules & their children are more than willing to abide by them due to the consequence being no phone.
This thread has really hit on something I've been thinking about lately. My 7 yo asked us for an iphone (she sees mine) and my husband and I basically laughed at her and told her she was too young. Who is she going to call? She doesn't even talk to her friends on our house phone. She sees me and my husband with the phone and just wants to emulate us (unfortunately). However, we travel to gymnastics an hour from our home and she works out for four hours four days per week. Sometimes, things have happened at the gym when I've left to run errands or go get something to eat and I haven't received a phone call about it. Recently, I've been contemplating a phone for her for emergency situations but I still feel she's way too young.
My soon to be 14 yo and 12 yo used to share one (she has it, he didn't) but when she went to HS and he still is in MS, we felt he had to get one. Each one of them take turns walking the dog. They also have playdates in the neighborhood and all kinds of after school events, including Sunday evening religious education. DH and I have to play round-robin with the taxicab service so we drop them off (shopping/watching movie with friends, playing for an hour at the local arcade, etc.) and then wait for them to call us when they're done. DD works off her extra $19.99 a month for unlimited text msging by working for her dad (filing, shredding paper, stuffing and mailing envelopes, etc.). I wouldn't consider a cell phone for either one at under 10 years old though.
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