Best age to give a phone to kids

[Gifgaf]

My soon to be 8 year old keeps asking us when she gets a phone and I have to explain numerous times she's too young right now and will think about it once she's independent enough.

What is the right age really ? How do you approach this question without making them wish to be older straight away ?

no smart phone before 11 was the article I read this week on bbc news….a bog standard Nokia type before is ok? Just for calls and texts

call and text only from 11 too 14.
14 on wards a phone of there choice with everything locked on it.
And barred from SM till 16.
I have no children just guessing.

I can tell you have no kids🤣🤣🤣

No screens until teens is our mantra.We will consider a non internet calls and text only phone when travel to/from school clubs alone or walking with friends becomes an issue.

Unfortunately we are in an era where SM is a big thing and my DD sees one thing on YouTube and wants that. She was just asking me about doing her nails before and now the phone. She's not a silly kid and is well aware of what dangerous there could be as we don't hide them to her but I just want my baby to stop trying to grow up so quickly 😩

From 13 ?

I think it depends on your family set up and your child's friend group to be honest.

My 9yo hasn't asked for one yet, and neither have any of her friends. But that might be because she's an only child, and her friends are all the eldest siblings, so they've nothing to compare it to.

As far as I'm concerned, at the moment, she won't be allowed one until at LEAST year 6, when she'll start walking to/from school by herself, or she starts having that extra freedom to go out with her friends. But I'm adamant no WhatsApp or social media without strict settings - it seems to be that which causses the issues rather than having a phone itself.

I would say that is about right.

Me & DH are a little OTT kind of parents but that's only because there are too many dangers out there for kids.

I don't think we will allow her to go alone until close to 15/16 tbh. At that age, they are still not mature enough to handle a lot of things and that's from my own experience.

I agree that social media presence will have to have some strict monitoring but again probably after 16.

She likes to play Roblox on our phone with her cousins and because her older cousins have a phone she sees it as a fun thing to have. However, everything is monitored.

I am just not ready for her to leave my nest so early on lol I don't trust anyone and simply want to protect her.

So how many teens do you currently have?

You won’t let her out til 15 or 16 🤣🤣🤣🤣 joke right??

your kid is gonna be one sad dude and is gonna rebel good style 🙄

Google Jonathan Haidt who is one of the leading advocates of resisting smart phones for children and young teenagers. His message is that children nowadays are given far to much freedom online, and far too little freedom in real life. Just re you not wanting your child to go out alone til mid-teens. Apparently it’s very good for their self-esteem as well as their resilience to be given small freedoms. You can start small and build up, but it’s worth considering. My child got a phone at 11, but lots of schools in our area are now banning smart phones but will allow a basic Nokia.

Roblox is the main thing we never let ours play due to the issues surrounding it.

Ours is 11 and has been walking to school since Y5 and will be walking to secondary school by herself. She doesn’t have a phone but we’re considering it now she starting Y7.

Are you saying your child won’t be allowed to walk to school by herself till 15/16?

Tell me you have no children without telling me you have no children!

In reality they make all their social arrangements with their phones.

This is why we’re only now considering a phone for secondary school. I don’t want her to miss out just because she doesn’t have one.

My 8 year old has a phone and a tablet. She loves watching tik tok, YouTube, playing roblox etc. Her school has homework that need various apps so she uses it for those too. A lot of her friends have Snapchat so she uses that to msg or call them, she will often be playing roblox with a friend and be on a Snapchat call with them at the same time. I have strict controls on both devices and on any apps where she can contact people or watch stuff - I also check both devices daily. She uses them very sensibly and I think it's great she can keep in contact with friends and family members. She often sends them birthday messages or rings my mum for a chat. I think in this era tech is going to play a huge part of their adult life so I wouldn't want to keep her in the dark ages. I really don't get parents who say no screen time until 14 etc as they are just isolating their kids

That's wise, I think. My DC got them Easter of year 6 so we could help them learn how to use them sensibly and make arrangements over the summer with friends.

Not before secondary age. Secondary transfer and independent travel is the perfect time.

Personally, even then, I don't let them have smartphones until 14 or 15. Letting KS3ers wander round with private, pocket-sized access to the internet is asking for trouble.

When my child started going to the corner shop by herself way when we got her a phone. Which was/is 10 and a half

Are you seriously saying you won't let your daughter go out alone until she is 15???? That poor child.

Please tell me you’re joking.

Not joking. It's no different to the rest of her friendship group and closely monitored. Waiting until teenage years for a phone will mean they miss out on all kinds of social norms for their generation. I got my first mobile when I was 13 and that was only because they were just becoming popular and that was over 20 years ago.

I have 2 teens. DD got hers when she started high school so around 12. DS had a Nokia brick in year 5&6 as need to walk home alone and meet his sister (he never answers his bloody phone), then also got a smart phone when he started high school.

I think any younger is to young, DS did complain that quite a few of his friends had smartphone and why did he only have a basic phone. My answer was always because your to young, you don't need the Internet in your pocket. He had access to it at home for anythinghe needed. He's only 13 now so it wasn't long ago, he only has WhatsApp no other social media either. Well he does use YouTube but mainly for watching videos about the computer games he plays.

DD probably had to much social media yet she didn't have much compared tonher friends and I often said no to apps, mainly as I work in a high school and we often get worned about which apps can cause issues. She has WhatsApp, discord, ticktock and Facebook but she is older.

Good thing it's my kid and not yours 🙂 (that's if you have any)

I think Nokia is a good start tbh