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Primary education

Join our Primary Education forum to discuss starting school and helping your child get the most out of it.

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Original poster

About to turn 10, going into Y6. Mobile phone for birthday?

20 replies

RaisinBoys · 15/08/2013 19:08

Thoughts anyone.

OP posts:

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nostress · 15/08/2013 19:27

Who is he going to call? Got my son one in y7 when he went to secondary school. He hardley used it til y9 when girls happened. Also be careful about smartphones and ability to access the internet in private.

Weegiemum · 15/08/2013 19:28

Dd2 is 9 1/2, just gone into p6 (y5) and got a mobile for going ack to school.

Last in her class, apparently!

nostress · 15/08/2013 19:28

Hardly *

Original poster

RaisinBoys · 15/08/2013 19:32

Smartphone? He'd be lucky!

Thanks for replies.

OP posts:

BellaVita · 15/08/2013 19:32

If YOU want him to have a phone, get him one. I think there will be a huge divide in responses on here. Do what is best for HIM and YOU.

Mine have always had them

ChasingSquirrels · 15/08/2013 19:33

Ds going into yr6 in Sep.
The only child in his year group who I know has a mobile got it for his 5th birthday. There might be some others who have them, but if they do then ds isn't aware of it.
He doesn't want one, and doesn't see who he would call - but he does have an iPod for games / music and uses that to message friends.

It depends on lots of factors, including the specific environment of the child. But I can't see my ds needing one until y7, and then it will be v basic for calls / texts only.
My DP's daughter has had various, reasonably high end models, from around 10.

Madamecastafiore · 15/08/2013 19:37

DS has one of the kids phones that was trialled on here. He has used it a handful of times to call home when he cycled round to friends houses (we live in small quiet village) but none of his friends have one so pointless him having one. He is 9.

Dd got one when she started secondary school as she had a bus ride and had to use public transport a couple of times a week.

spanieleyes · 15/08/2013 20:12

Most of my Year 6's get a phone for their birthday during the year so that they all have one by the time they go onto secondary school ( rural school, all go by bus-which doesn't always turn up!) They don't bring them into primary school at all but seem to be attached once they get home ( either that or Skype!) They text rather than talk though!

chicaguapa · 15/08/2013 20:16

DD got one for her 11th birthday and was one of the last in her class. She has a Huawei G300 with Vodafone which has a Guardian app so you can restrict internet use, approve contacts added etc. She uses it for games really, again the downloads need a password from me first.

She's on PAYG and uses Whatsapp to send text messages so £10 lasts her ages.

PastSellByDate · 15/08/2013 20:59

I haven't gone down this road yet.

2 reasons:

1st - school does not allow mobile phones for pupils at all (not at school, not on trips (even residentials) & definitely not at things like school discos.

2nd - I kind of thought it best to hold fire until going up to Year 7. The kind of thing to mark this right of passage.

By the way there's a nice discussion on the secondary discussion group about which mobile to buy Y7 & why here: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/secondary/a1816572-Which-mobile-for-new-y7-boy

I know that some of DD1's friends (DD1 about to start Y6) 'have mobiles' but when I've talked with the parents it's always turned out that they've been given a hand-me-down phone either from the parents or older siblings. When I've asked them if they got a mobile for PFB in Y6 they've all said 'No, I've only got it for DC2-4 because DC1 or DH have got a new phone'.

HTH

Original poster

RaisinBoys · 16/08/2013 12:07

Thanks all for your responses. My usual stance is "...I don't care if X has one, X is not my concern, you are", but wanted to get some feedback to be fair to my hard-done-by, downtrodden DS!

All really helpful, thanks.

Thanks PastSellByDate for the link - much appreciated.

OP posts:

Ra88 · 16/08/2013 12:12

just no !

insanityscratching · 16/08/2013 13:04

Dd is ten and a half going into y6 she doesn't have a mobile and I have no intention of getting her one just yet anyway. The majority of her friends don't have phones, those that do are generally those who walk to and from school unaccompanied but seeing as dd lives two villages away from the school that won't happen here. Dd1 had one when she started secondary school so I imagine dd will too. trouble is 10 years ago they were pretty basic so other than text or call there was nothing much else to do with them. Not sure I want dd to have something that gives her access to the web and the ability to put her photo online unchecked tbh.

BabiesAreLikeBuses · 17/08/2013 00:21

Around 50 of our ks2 pupils have one atschool (they are kept by office staff during day). Most commonly this happens because the kids are walking home alone (or parents upgraded their own phone and gave the old one to the child). As said above monitoring important - cyber bullying is on the up and i'd restrict social media/ internet access until they're old enough to do it responsibly. Or until they turn 18 - whichever comes sooner!!

lily9478 · 21/08/2013 08:49

Both of my daughters got mobile phones when they started Year 7 as they take public transport to school on a daily basis so if there's a problem they can contact me. If you think your son needs a mobile phone, give him a mobile phone. It is entirely up to you.

RustyBear · 21/08/2013 09:08

I work at a junior school office first thing in the morning, and one of the jobs is taking in the children's mobiles - they aren't allowed to keep them on them or in their bags during the day so they bring them to the office and pick them up after school - quite a few walk home on their own or with a friend and their parents like them to be able to keep in contact.

Most of the phones belong to Year 6, though one boy who just left has had one since Year 4. We usually start the year with one or two but more get them through the year so by July last year about 20 out of the 57 year 6 children had them. Mostly they seemed to be older models - iPhone 4 or older, or similar aged other types- which had been passed down from a parent or old sibling, though a few got new ones for Christmas/birthday.

Strix · 21/08/2013 09:32

I am having a similar dilemma. DD1 (oldest child) is 10, going into year 6, and due to DS moving to different school at end of last term she is riding the bus to/from school on her own. So, whilst I had no plans to give her a phone at the start of year 6, I am now seriously considering it. But, if she weren't riding the bus to/from school on her own a phone would definitely not be on the cards.

(however, DH has not yet been persuaded)

lljkk · 21/08/2013 18:04

I think Dd got her 1st own phone when 10yo. She goes out loads without us so easier than her always borrowing one of our old ones. She was under strict instructions not to take it to school. Very not smart phone and now she's nearly 12 she wants to upgrade to a touchscreen phone (still not a smart phone, one of her friends had an iphone at 8yo).

The majority of her friends did have own phones by 8-10yo. Very ordinary families (not chav, not posh). Kids play out loads around here, mind.

drippytap · 21/08/2013 20:21

We gave our DD one age 9 during the summer hols between yr 4 and 5 as it was about this time she was allowed to play at the local park a few streets away. A year on it has been invaluable as she's been off out playing all through the hols. I doubt I'd have been happy about her going off without a phone.
Doesn't take it to school though.

Butkin · 22/08/2013 20:40

DD (10 going into Yr6) has had a phone for about 18 months and I gave her my old Blackberry earlier this Summer as she likes texting on it. She'd like an Iphone and will probably inherit one in about a year.

She's not allowed to take it into school or on trips and would never think to ask to do that. She uses it when she's away from us at various horse shows or out with friend's families. She texts us to let us know how things are going. She'd only use about 15 pounds a year...

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