best ages to get a cellphone? (party, smart, son, 9 year old)
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The best age to get a cell phone depends on if the parents decide it's a good idea, if the children are responsible, if it's in the budget, if it's needed. It's different for each family, so best to speak with the parents.
Other than one of those types that ONLY calls Mom or Dad, they can get their own when they can pay for their own. Kids to NOT need phones, for Pete's Sake!
I'd agree if pay phones weren't becoming obsolete.
My kids get one when they got to middle school. At that age they are walking home from school by themselves and I like the peace of mind knowing they can contact me if necessary.
My two olders also play sports. Their practice facilities/fields are typically 30-45 minutes away. I drop them off and my husband picks them up. I like to know they can get in contact with us if needed.
They don't have iphones or androids though. They can make calls and text on their phones and that's it. They have internet access at the house. I don't need them having free access to it on a phone.
The "right" time is when the parents or guardians deem it. Nobody needs permission or public approval to do what they feel is the proper choice in this instance.
No "right" time, whatever time is right for the family. I'll be getting my daughter one when she starts school (7) so she can call me if there's any problem on the walk to or from school.
We, and most of our kids' friends' parents, gave them cell phones when they began going to and coming home from school by themselves. That was generally in the 6th or 7th grade.
But the big thing is that we also used the position locators on the cell phones, which allows you to see on an online map where the kid is. (At least ATT has this, dunno about the other carriers.) That was also good for weekends when they got a bit older and began to go out with their friends, not their parents.
The only real problem is that here in NYC schools officially don't allow cell phones anywhere on school property. For school w/o metal detectors at the doors --the vast majority of middle schools-- it was fine to just keep them shut off and out of sight during the day. At those schools that did have them, kids would pay a dollar to neighborhood storekeeper to hold their phone until after school.
The best age to get a cell phone is the age their parents decide is the best age.
Our kids got cell phones in middle school.
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