Cellphones for kids

Hello PumpkinsThepie, I don't find it wrong to have kids a cellphone provided they use it properly. There are examples these are misused for calling,people do waste lot of time on it that should not happen. If we use it properly it will be a good for kids as you could always be in touch of your kid. But you kid should be smart enough to keep it i have seen many instances where kid is robbed and cello phone is first thing to snatched.

I don't think its approite for young children to have cell phones. Its concerning because you teach them at a young age to depend on technology. Some parents might argue that its good for emergencies, but kids are either at school, with friends or school sponsered activities. Its not like they won't access to a phone to call someone if they need. And, if they're out more then they're home at a young age I'd question the parents parenting style. Now when your teenager starts learning to drive then that's a different story. When they no longer have to depend on an adult to cart them around, then having a cell phone would be well worth it. Because they would be responsible for being on the road and getting from point a to B. In that case, having a phone on-hand is important. Though parents should still have some form of control such as making their teen use applications such as "Drive Smart" a free application that detects when a vichile is traveiing a certin speed and forwards calls to ear pices or voicemail.

I think kids should be able to have phones by at least the age of 12. I don't think they should be on mom and dads phone plan, unless it is a family plan with free everything included, because kids will run up the phone bill. Or perhaps a Boost mobil, which is not a contract plan, it is $52 a month and you go to the store to load the minutes on the phone.

I see it as okay as long as they are not given something too expensive and fancy. That would actually make them rather attractive to thieves and kidnappers. It is just that what kids carry reveal a lot about what their parents make in income. Also what is the use of spoiling them with anything fancy? You give a kid something too high tech and they start to think that after a few years they should get something more advanced. But apparently, giving them a prepaid phone seems to be the best. It can help them keep in touch with parents. But I wish some less expensive phones contain chips. At the moment, iPhone has it. This chip basically tracks a person's whereabout. So having it on a kid's phone will help parents save him from danger like kidnapping.

Hi Pumpkin, If the kid is responsible enough, then, there's no reason to do so. It may help you keep track of his whereabouts whenever he is out or respond to his call in times of emergency. Keeping in touch is not really a bad idea. When I think of those times when I have to run five kilometers to get to a phone, I wax thankful for the mobility of a cellular phone where I can contact my loved ones all over, anytime, anywhere.

My son has a cellphone when he was 7yo. but i gave him the purely text and call type of unit. I give him a cellphone because we don't have a landline at home. It is where i can communicate with him after school. But he cannot allowed to bring it to school. I don't think there is a problem on giving our children a mobile phone. Let us just educate them the purpose and reason for them to responsible.

We were all able to live our lives without cellphones when we were still young and studying (primary and secondary schools) so what's different these days? Do they go out a lot or do they still go to school then straight home? I think giving kids cellphones just makes them more attractive to bad people (thieves, kidnappers, etc.) because you can actually estimate from a kids' phone how much the parents could spend for him/her. I don't believe that kids should be given phones, I think those who are old enough like 13 or somewhere in high school when they are teenagers could be given an option to have one, but not compulsory. My brother is in his senior year and he just got his phone when he was a junior. He doesn't use it often and it's just there in his bag because the school doesn't really allow them to use phones during classes. The only time they can use their phones is when it's already time to go home or during lunch break. Therefore, I think parents shouldn't be too keen on tracing their kids whereabouts, they should just trust them. Remember that these kids are easily hooked, would you rather have your kid do texting all the time instead of studying? fur sure if you're going to give them a phone to school you wouldn't take it from them when they're home, right? Just think about it. Have a great MyLot experience today!

I think it depends on the kid really and whether or not you can afford it. My daughter actually really needed either a cell or a track phone when she was young because she did a lot of sports and would have to call me for a ride. Her brother works at US Cellular so we were able to get her one really cheap. I also got myself a tra phone so that if she could not reach me at home, she could text me on my trac phone. I think if you have some rules to go along with it then it should be ok for a kid to have one. I always made my daughter shut her phone off and give it to me at bed time because I caught her on it in the middle of the night. Actually that is quite common for kids who have computers or phones in their rooms. I would get on Myspace and it was amazing how many kids were up well after midnight on a school night.

That depends on how old the kid is. I guess young adults should own a cellphones for emergency cases. It's up to parents and loved ones how to guide their kids about the advantages and disadvantages of having mobile phones. We can also checked their phones every now and then esp those phones that has camera and videos features.

Regarding Cell phone i think the age limit of 13 as decided by you is not quite fair. I think the age 16 and 17 is quite possible to have cellphones. Because having cell phones in the earlier age becomes threat for the childrens, many childrens who are prone to earlier exposure of cell phones cannot concentrate on their studies, and they are addicted to habits. Thus there should be proper age limit to give cell phones to kids, According to me 15, 16 age is quite mature to have cell phones. At this age they are quite mature and can make use of the cell quite often. So concluding on the topic i think a little elder age is quite fair enough to give cell phones to kids.

I am okay with teens to have a cellphone, and it seems that is a trend already. I think parents should give them limited minutes, and the text message should be unlimited if you don't want to pay the big bill until the end of the month. Those teens sometimes won't even understand how hard to earn such money to pay a phone bill.

CEllphones are no longer considered a luxury. It has become a necessity. If parents are scared that children might play with their phones there are phones with just a text and call function. My son is only 7 years old and he has a cellphone. He's not really using it to text but he only use it to answer our call. I have specifically told him never to answer a call not coming from his father or me. I think that's a very important instruction. We also gave him a very cheap one because we don't want him to be the target of robbers. My son doesn't go to some places without a nanny and without our permission. He only goes to school and their school is very strict with their safety. NO child is allowed to go out if there's no guardian to pick them up yet. So basically, i have no problems with children having a cellphone as this has become a necessary part of life in communicating.

Yeah really i agree that one should give kids cell phones.. I prefer 12 is a perfect age to handle the mobile phones.. But the main disadvantage is cell phone is a famous media which destroys the people's life either physically & mentally.. Youngsters use their mobile too much in their life.. It'll give some physical health related problems, Some children are getting friends in opposite gender and keep on chatting with them through phone.. But we should think about advantages only mainly.. So i agree with your view :)

Responsibility summaries it all, if the child is responsible enough to carry such a gadget like a cellphone, why not? Entrusting a essential thing like that should be accompanied with proper instructions and rules. I think you'll learn by observation if the child can really fit to have a cellphone. Age 13 is quite fine for a kid to have phones. My younger brother had his first phone when he was 8 years old. It was a great test for him but he didn't abuse the trust given to him by my parents. Through the phone, he can communicate to us if there's something he wants us to know. Time will come that younger generations will have their own phones a probable reason behind that is because of the fast-paced technology.I think, they will need it in the long run.

I think it depends on the child. Cell phone plans are so expensive that I can't afford to pay for my child to have one, especially if they are using it alot and going over their minutes or text allowance. I would say no earlier then 13 and then they better be pretty mature and responsible with it. I'm sure by that age my child will be wanting to go with her friends, so I maybe would get her a tracfone for emergencies. I don't want her to be the only one of her friends that doesn't have one though.

Hi pumpkinThePIE, Welcome to MyLot! Kids should have their own cellphones. Cellphones are useful tools and applications for kids like making their own schedule for a week, month or year on it, use it as their Alarm clock in waking up every morning, you as parent can use it as a tracking device because of GPS on it, and most importantly is a means of communication, Billions of people are connected to each other with cellphones. Kids have no exceptions. In case of emergencies, They can be able to contact either you nor your kids anytime and anywhere. If you are worried about losing their cellphones there is still a solution. First, Talk to your kids that they should take care of it like their allowances. Second, look for a necklace that can attach cellphones to your kids. Lasly, Always remind your kids about their cellphones. Also you can always check their cellphones so you may know what are the contact persons your kids have as well as their SMS text messages and Call logs history. In short, Cellphones is GOOD for EVERYONE! MAY GOD BLESS

your right, there's nothing wrong in using cellphone at the age of 13 or below, as long as you know how right? anyway cellphone are use for communication for the first place, it is use if there might be an accident in the house and only kids are at home.

I think children should not be exposed to cellphone at a very young age. There are instances however that you need to give them cellphone..for example, if it is needed to communicate with your kids because you're working outside your country or maybe you are always out and you don't have time to talk with your kids personally.