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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

do all of your 9 year olds have mobile phones?

84 replies

thighslapper · 07/06/2011 14:58

Conversation with a pal whos 9 year old is the only kid in his class without one......some of them have one of those iphone jobbies (are they not fortunes???)

I ask as ds told me that aged 7 he was the only kid to NOT have a nintendo ds....

NOW he tells me he is the only kid to NOT have a pet in his class..

Pal tells me she is thinking of getting her boy a mobile..

How do you not make them too different from their peers, BUT how the hell do you draw a sensible line in the sand and say ENOUGH???

OP posts:

JemimaMop · 07/06/2011 15:02

DS1 is almost 9 and does not have a mobile phone.

I don't see the need for one until he is 11 and travelling to secondary school in another town.

CogitoErgoSometimes · 07/06/2011 15:02

No. Didn't have one until age 11 and onset of secondary school. You can just say 'no'. The kid can tell all their mates that they are being brought up by cruel, horrible parents if they like. And the old stand by answer to 'everyone else... xyz' is 'if everyone else jumped off a cliff, would you?'...

swash · 07/06/2011 15:02

DSS got one at 11 too.

cantspel · 07/06/2011 15:02

mine had a cheap payg at around 9/10 as that was the age he started to go to the park or his friends on his own.
they had a DS from around 6 and we have always had a pet.

valiumredhead · 07/06/2011 15:05

Ds has one but only because he walks to and from school as we have middle school here, otherwise I think I'd hold off until 11ish. He also takes it if he goes out to play football as he can be out for quite a while sometimes he rings to ask if he can go back to a mate's house.

It's an old one of mine PAYG.

IShallWearMidnight · 07/06/2011 15:07

DD3 (age 9), like her sisters, will get one in the spring/summer term of Y6, just long enough for the novelty to wear off before secondary school. It'll be a cheap PAYG one though. No need before that for her imo. Although a lot of her classmates have phones/iPod Touch/etc.

fruitshootsandheaves · 07/06/2011 15:08

DS who will be 10 in August does not have one and shows no interest in having one. He's only just learnt to answer the landline!

valiumbandwitch · 07/06/2011 15:09

Mine doesn't. I have told her that she can have one the summer before she starts secondary school and I will nto be budging on that and she knows it. To be fair though, she has not asked more than........ twice.

Thingumy · 07/06/2011 15:09

ds is 9 this year,he has not got one.

AgentZigzag · 07/06/2011 15:09

We let our DD1 have an old one last year when she was 9.

Then got her one with Tesco vouchers for Christmas, not all singing/dancing, but she was well chuffed with it, and has actually looked after it

MillyR · 07/06/2011 15:10

DS is in year 8 and doesn't have one. He had one in year 7 and lost it. I am not replacing it (or not for a long time). DD is 10 and doesn't have one.

LindyHemming · 07/06/2011 15:13

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

MCos · 07/06/2011 15:16

DD1 is 9, and hardly any kids in her class have one. She has no interest in getting one yet. I'll probably get her one a few months before secondary school.

GrimmaTheNome · 07/06/2011 15:18

Kids don't need a mobile till they are travelling independently.

We got DD a basic Nokia PAYG when she started secondary. However, by halfterm she hinted that everyone else had touchscreen, camera etc - what seems to happen is that parents give their kids their old 'good' phones when they upgrade. So, DH who was itching to replace his nokia smartphone with an iPhone made it PAYG for her. (She keeps the old nokia in her bag as backup as it has way better battery life)

mrsravelstein · 07/06/2011 15:19

ds1 is year 5, he keeps asking for one (i know not why). they are not allowed to have them at his school and would be confiscated if found. i may get him one when he's 11 and starts 2ndary school, but it's likely he would lose it virtually immediately. or get it nicked.

BettySwollocksandaCrustyRack · 07/06/2011 15:19

DS is 8, almost 9 and he doesnt have one. Will prob get him on when he is 11 at secondary school and travelling on the bus but until then, no way - he doesnt need one!

Hulababy · 07/06/2011 15:21

DD is 9y and she does not have a mobile phone.

I only know of one of her 9y friends who does. Her grandma bought it for her and tops up the SIM card. Other than calling her grandma or cousin I have no idea who the girl cals and tbh after the first few weeks I haven't seen her with it for months.

DD won't be having a mobile for durig primary school. I will reconsider the matter when sh starts secondary school and is travelling to and from school without me.

needanothacuppa · 07/06/2011 15:23

My 10 yo son doesn't have a mobile phone and hes not getting one until high school, and even then it will be my old one (cruel mother that I am) . However I don't think others in his class have phones as the school doesn't let them have them, so he hasn't really pestered me for one that much.

Meanwhile join the cruel mothers club!!

What is the schools policy with mobile phones? maybe you should raise this issue with the school and get other parents who feel the same on your side to get the school to ban them or something.

I fully agree with the other posters about phones not until high school.

Its so difficult I know as they are very good at that age at putting so much pressure on you as they feel so under pressure themselves. I gave into the nintendo ds, and a WII (although I think we must have been the last family to get one of these amongst friends and parents I know - true!!) but his current craving is for a laptop - I have stood my ground and hes not getting his way on this one! Hes got something electronic that he makes use of and has to show he can look after it. I will use this to prove to him whether his is old enough to have anything else expensive!

The other thing to try is to get him to save up for what he wants, eg pocket money, birthday money etc, so he has to then understand the value of it And if he loses it, thats it, don't give in and replace it. Cruel mother at large again

I was shocked recently to find that some of ds's peers already have ipods and a couple have ipads. Some have everything going! Their bedrooms are full of xboxes, tellies you name it. Fortunately some of his best friends don't have lots of stuff which helps.

Kids will always pressure you for something - it was the same when we were young, just different things. I remember moaning to my parents that they were totally unreasonable to not have a telly!!! And everyone else DID have one!!

Hulababy · 07/06/2011 15:23

Oh - and aged 7y, DD did have a Nintendo DS. She did have a pet (hamster) but no pets now and no intention of getting one either. She;d like one though.

akaEmmaFrost · 07/06/2011 15:23

My ds age 8 has one. His Dad and I are not together so he should be able to ring him whenever he wants, it is just a Nokia PAYG one though. I would give him my old phone when I upgrade.

My ds and dd aged 4, both have a ds, old ones, each

valiumredhead · 07/06/2011 15:25

We only have a hamster and we will only ever have hamsters!

ddubsgirl · 07/06/2011 15:27

mine do but are old phones of ours,they use them to play songs and if out i can call them older 2 have contract phones that i & dh pay(cheapy deals)

schroeder · 07/06/2011 15:31

No dd (9) doesn't have one.

ds (12) got one for his birthday last year PAYG I wouldn't have just bought him one though; I don't think they ever really need them. He doesn't even use it very much-he just wanted to tell his mates he had one I think.

Mabelface · 07/06/2011 15:34

All kids say that "everyone else in my class has xxxxxx". I just used to say that I didn't care, as I wasn't their classmates' parents.

ddubsgirl · 07/06/2011 15:35

so much trouble round here kids have had to use them plus older 2 get bus to school and at times bus has broken down or running late they call to let me know or if 1 of them goes straight to friends house they ring.

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