Phone free childhood

[PJ87]

Lots of parents or young kids on here so thought I'd ask what's people's views on this..

Parents are signing up to packs to not give their kids smart phones until their 14.. if they do need a phone a very basic no internet phone that's for calls and texts only

Protecting kids from social media and such

I mean kids today have access to tablets so it's not like their completely being withheld .. much easier to supervise a tablet

What's people's views? I'd love to be able to stick to it. My 7 year old is asking for a phone which she 100% won't be getting. Yet kids in her class have them which is utterly ridiculous to me anyways. She never is out of one of our sight lol why she need a phone

 

[venger]

When they were younger, She Who Must Be Obeyed gave her girls old Nokia phones so they they could be contactable or use them in an emergency.

 

[Imurg]

The Boy got his 1st phone when he started secondary school
He went on the bus so we decided he needed one in case he missed it.

 

[PJ87]

The Boy got his 1st phone when he started secondary school
He went on the bus so we decided he needed one in case he missed it.

Was it smart or dumb phone though? Seems a lot less trouble just having a phone than a smart one

 

[Imurg]

Was it smart or dumb phone though? Seems a lot less trouble just having a phone than a smart one

One of our cast-offs......so a Smartphone
We regulated his data and he only had so much credit at any one time

 

[Pin-seeker]

I think some parents could do with spending less time on their phones & more time with their children.

 

[Lord Tyrion]

I think ours were about 13-14 when they got a basic, cast off, smart phone. They were amongst the last of their friends to get one and we were conscious they were starting to miss out on chats, things being arranged etc. WhatsApp groups are key in the social set up of teenagers, and adults, now.

They had parental controls on them and we told them they could only have one if we could see it at any stage and view what was being looked at or said. The threat of that worked pretty well , and ultimately we never felt the need to actually carry through with it.

Pre high school, I would not be thinking about one at all, other than perhaps a dumb one. Harder once they reach high school.

 

[PJ87]

I think some parents could do with spending less time on their phones & more time with their children.

As opposed to old school parents who spent all the time down the pub?

 

[Mel Smooth]

How else are they going to get on England golf to check their handicap....


Think Jamie has had one since he was 12 - but he had an ipod at 10 - which would have given him access to social media etc while he had an internet connection

 

[Arthur Wedge]

Daughter will only be getting a non smart phone when she goes to middle school

There will be no need for her to have a smart phone until she is at least 13/14

 

[PJ87]

Daughter will only be getting a non smart phone when she goes to middle school

There will be no need for her to have a smart phone until she is at least 13/14

Seems very sensible. I don't see why kids can't be kids as long as possible

Appreciate @Lord Tyrion comment about WhatsApp groups being so key these days but there must be a way around that

 

[Sid Rixon IV]

Dont kids take their example from parents? I used to take my 3 toddler grandkids to softplay in the local Hub. There'd always be 6/8 Mums sat on the floor, in a group, faces in phones, not interacting with their toddlers.

 

[Arthur Wedge]

Things may well be different in 5/6 years when my daughter goes to the higher school but will be a judgment call

Thankfully my daughter whilst she enjoys watching Disney and Co prefers to be more active

 

[Reemul]

I have a 14 and 17 year old, both got phones when tehy went to secondary school, they also ahve pc's, PS5's, Samrt Tv's and so on. You just cannot get away from the stuff. A friend of ours would not let their kids have any of this at all until they were 16. The oldest is 17 now and he was ridiculed and given a lot of stick at school, the middle kid was odd and walks around on his own the youngest is ok.

What you do is alienate your kids from all the other kids nowdays, they don't fit in, they get laughed at, they get picked on. They become targets.

It's about managing their useage and ensuring they do live their lives on their phones. My eldest is not bothered by social media but the youngest is keen on it but he would still rather go out on his BMX or Mountain bike or play football or in fact any sport.

Being a parent is about managing your kids, not about wishing it was like it was 40 years ago. You need to embrace technology, understand it and make sure they understand the pitfalls and positives of using it, I mean my kids use interactive whiteboards at school as well as tablets and tech as whole plays a big part.

Banning your kids forom using or owning phones for a couple more years is going to achieve exactly nothing

 

[PJ87]

I have a 14 and 17 year old, both got phones when tehy went to secondary school, they also ahve pc's, PS5's, Samrt Tv's and so on. You just cannot get away from the stuff. A friend of ours would not let their kids have any of this at all until they were 16. The oldest is 17 now and he was ridiculed and given a lot of stick at school, the middle kid was odd and walks around on his own the youngest is ok.

What you do is alienate your kids from all the other kids nowdays, they don't fit in, they get laughed at, they get picked on. They become targets.

It's about managing their useage and ensuring they do live their lives on their phones. My eldest is not bothered by social media but the youngest is keen on it but he would still rather go out on his BMX or Mountain bike or play football or in fact any sport.

Being a parent is about managing your kids, not about wishing it was like it was 40 years ago. You need to embrace technology, understand it and make sure they understand the pitfalls and positives of using it, I mean my kids use interactive whiteboards at school as well as tablets and tech as whole plays a big part.

Banning your kids forom using or owning phones for a couple more years is going to achieve exactly nothing

Not a problem with any of that it's just the social media side

Can have a tablet without for example, use all the tech just not get the smart phone side of things until older

 

[Ye Olde Boomer]

Lots of parents or young kids on here so thought I'd ask what's people's views on this..

Parents are signing up to packs to not give their kids smart phones until their 14.. if they do need a phone a very basic no internet phone that's for calls and texts only

Protecting kids from social media and such

I mean kids today have access to tablets so it's not like their completely being withheld .. much easier to supervise a tablet

What's people's views? I'd love to be able to stick to it. My 7 year old is asking for a phone which she 100% won't be getting. Yet kids in her class have them which is utterly ridiculous to me anyways. She never is out of one of our sight lol why she need a phone

If mobile phones were around when my now middle-aged progeny were young kids, I'm almost certain I'd have given in and let them have them.
We didn't believe in helicopter parenting, and our kids weren't burdened with a lot of Draconian rules.

"Think hard before you do something stupid to hurt yourself or somebody else
and embarrass your family."

That was really the only hard and fast, non-negotiable rule that they had growing up.
They were never reeled in unless they screwed up with that one.
That's what worked for us, anyway.

A phone is just a phone.

 

[Reemul]

Not a problem with any of that it's just the social media side

Can have a tablet without for example, use all the tech just not get the smart phone side of things until older

But what do you restrict, no to facebook, Tik Tok and instagram and youtube but use Whatsapp and messaging. The reality is you cannot half ban easily. Just be a decent parent, something that many seem to not bother with any more because it's damn hard work

 

[PJ87]

But what do you restrict, no to facebook, Tik Tok and instagram and youtube but use Whatsapp and messaging. The reality is you cannot half ban easily. Just be a decent parent, something that many seem to not bother with any more because it's damn hard work

I'd say YouTube is fine , no social media (considering they aren't even allowed an account until 13 anyways they shouldn't have it)

 

[Fromtherough]

There isn’t a right answer. Our daughter has had an iPhone since she was 10. It’s on a family account which enables us to monitor activity/friends etc. There still needs to be an element of trust and having open conversations around the dangers and teaching good online behaviour.

My daughter is a very active and social now 12 year old. She does gymnastics 3 times a week and dance 2 times a week, as well as representing school in other sports. She has lots of friends who she sees. However, all of her friends also have smartphones. They are always communicating on them or via iPads. I would not want her to miss out on that, which is effectively how all kids communicate these days. Again, all about communicating and promoting positive behaviours.

There are some advantages too apart from staying in touch with their friends. Things like find my iPhone so you know their location, banking apps to teach responsibility and management of money etc etc.

 

[Mel Smooth]

Make a deal with them - play golf, you can have a phone.

We'd have a booming golf industry in 10 years time.

And I'd argue there's no better hobby/pastime than golf for teaching kids vital social skills.