At What Age Should a Child Get a Cell Phone

Every child is different so, there shouldn't be a rule of thumb to take here. There are children that begin to develop responsibility and maturity at an earlier age, and there are other children that develop those at a later age. Parents are the ones who should determine if their child is ready to be responsible for having a phone or not.

When buying a phone to their child they should teach him/her how to use that device the right way. The child wasting a lot of time in front of their new phone would be a problem here if not taught how to manage their time. So it's a matter of how parenting is done and how a parent understands his child.

 

I think the exact age will differ with the culture and how the kids have been brought up but all in all it is important to recognize that phones for young children are essential tools for staying in touch and keeping that line of communication open between the parents and the children.

A point to consider for parents couple be buying a cell phone that dials only your contact number (and of course emergency numbers) if and when kids need to come home alone. Prepaid cell phones can also let you limit call times and features, and monitor overall usage.

 

We live in a day and age where technology is becoming more and more available. Children have become more reliant on it which I do not think is a bad thing. It exposes them to what we have. Their futures are most likely going to be centered around technology, so why should we hide it from them. I am not saying a seven year old should have an iPhone 7. That is completely unnecessary. After a child reaches middle school, they should be allowed to own a cheaper cell phone. Once they are old enough to have a job at age sixteen, they should be given the privilege of a better cell phone with the responsibilities of maintaining their grades. This allows a sense of progression from hard work while not completely separating the child from cell phone usage.
Cell phones are not bad. They actually let kids be more social on the go and at home than ever before. They are still a privilege, and they should be lightly monitored.

 

Most of of think than you can have a telephone as soon as you're mature enough, the thing is how to know when the person has reached that point. Once the owner of the telephone (user) get a cell phone they should be able to pay or at least save some money to contribute with the payment. That would be a good way to let them know that it is not a toy but a privilege that should be use in a proper way. I think there's not an specific moment to give our children a telephone but we must take into account this: If they can pay or save money for it, they're ready to get one.

 

I got my first cell phone at the age of 11.It was based on Security purposes. There were no smart phones. A child who has gotten to the maturity stage of having a phone should be giving. I don't think there should be a particular age.many adult still needs orientation concerning how they use there phones as well as the younger ones.Security is needed due to the high rate of tens commuting suicide just because of social media abuse and insecurity.If a child is given a phone for the first time it is advisible to watch is movement.

 

Kids are too curious to everything that is exposed to them. It is a great responsibility for a parent on how they exposed their kids in their formative years to use the cellphone. It would be too dangerous to expose them without proper instructions, with no supervision or monitoring on how they are doing with their mobile phones. Something would be happen without the knowledge of their parents if they are closely monitored and problems later would be beyond repaired. So the proper age for the kids to have their own cellphone lies on the practicability of their parent's duties and responsibilities of trusting and leaving their kids alone.

 

When the person is capable enough to buy it themselves could be a right time. Also, if they're able to be responsible with it. If there were reasonable motives to have the device, would be more reasons for a obtaining of it at a time.

 

I believe the ideal age to have the first mobile phone is 13 years old, because the teenagers spend more time with friends out of home. Moreover, they usually develop the resposibility sense in that age. A important fact that the adults have spent a lot of time using smartphones, as result children wants an entertainment similar. However, it is very important consider the dangers that children can suffer with a mobile phone. For example, if they used message apps, they can be victims of pedophiles which use conversations about games, candy and anything else of the child's interest to approach them.

My mother has not given an Iphone for my younger brother who is 9 years because I have interfered because my brother is sloppy, as result he could lose the phone quickly. In addition, there is the danger mentioned above.

 

Well my girlfriend's sister is barely 8 and she already has one. Granted there are some restrictions on it but not many! Children will learn bad or good things regardless. It is 2017. Especially if they go to a public school. They will quickly learn that they need to make a choice whether or not to do good and the consequences of both. You cannot shelter them forever. They will just rebel.

Granted if they go on Facebook or the like and I see emails from 20-50 something year old perverts and my child is in grammar school then we have some problems.

 

Personally, I completely agree with this. I don't think that younger kids need cellphones. I have a 7 year old boy and a 9 year old boy, who have been begging for cell phones for over a year now. I won't get them one because I don't believe they need one. They go to school and come home and any games or practices they go to are with me. There is no reason for them to have a phone at that age. I see so many kids these days who sit inside on a beautiful day playing on their phones instead of playing out in the yard or with other kids like our generation did growing up. Everyone wants to complain about the new generations of kids being the way they are, but no one wants to change it.

I believe that once they get into high school, they are old enough and responsible enough to have a phone so that they can easily get in touch with their parents and vise versa when they are not at school or at home. I still believe their cell phone usage should be limited, to the point where they are not just glued to their phone all of the time.

 

I agree with what most of the forum members are saying, children should not be given a smart phone until they have a certain level of self-control and have gained the ability of ignoring distractions and focusing on productivity. It is still okay for a child to get a cell phone at the age of 13 according to me. But, even that depends on certain factors like how much a cell phone is needed, and as an extension of that, how independently the child travels.

Another factor is where the child lives. For example, if a child is in a boarding school, the parents would like to be able to do more than call and text their child, maybe a video chat. Parents also want their child to be more independent in a boarding school. So, they should get their child a smartphone. But, if the child is irresponsible, this should be avoided for obvious reasons.

Short answer: Get a regular cell phone at around 13 and a smart phone any time after that when the parents feel the child is more responsible.

 

It all depends on the child and their circumstances. A parent should know their child, and how they act with technology and communication. By the time a child has their own, independent social life (normally around 6-7th grade/11-13 years old), they should be able to make contact, not only with their parents, but also to emergency services.

Keep in mind that not all phones have to be the best model, but flip phones are also perfectly effective. No, it probably won't make them the popular kid by any means. And no, it does not give them all the same abilities as a smartphone (not always a bad thing). However, they are not nearly as expensive and allows them to have a trial basis with a phone. This is also a good idea for children who constantly break, misuse or lose things.

 

In my opinion it would have to be when a child is at least 7-8 years old. Nowadays you can see so many adults using their phones even when they're on their dates. It's very addicting even for a grown man/female. Imagine how addicting it would be for a child. I see 3 year olds with iPads all the time. It's like there's no parent - child connection anymore.

 

I think it depends on how mature and responsible the kid is. They shouldn't receive one until they're 13 or in highschool though, giving a 8 year old a phone would be really unwise. Most of their friends probably won't have a phone themselves, so it really beats the point of giving them one when they're younger than 13 unless you want them to be able to call you when they're that young?

 

I don't think that anyone put an age limit on when to get a child a cell phone. It really should depend on your family dynamics. Also, the maturity level of your child could play a huge role on when to get them a phone. If your child is just wanting a phone to play games and/or access the internet but isn't outside of your home very much, you can get them other electronics to access those things. If your child is not with you 24/7, but you would like to reach them without having to go through another person to do so, then I feel like a cell phone would be important.
If your child is the one wanting the phone for their own personal reasons, you can make it solely their responsibility. A lot of times when a child has to purchase something with their own earned money, they will be more responsible in taking care of it. You can also have them earn money for the purchase of the phone, as well as the monthly charge of maintaining the phone. You then can use the phone as a tool for reprimanding them, as in taking it away for a certain period of time when you need to correct them for misbehaving.

 

If i were a parent there will be instances that it is okay to use phones but most of the times there will be not. Mobile phones are a big help to us it provided as with easy communication especially to adults and teenagers but when it comes to childrens it is okay to use mobile phones cause they can use it to communicate parents if there were any emergency that is needed to be attend to. They could also play with their phones as long as it's only on a moderate use. The age that i think i can entrust my child with a mobile phone is at the age of 12 but still i will still put restrictions upon my child is if they were abusing its use that they are glued all day in front of a mobile phone and if they are also using internet i don't want them to get exposed to malicious words or pornography in the internet. I believe on a young age kids should normally be playing outside and that we shouldn't let them be to attached in using gadgets. So it is okay to use mobile phones as long as it is use moderately, for emergency or for educational purposes.

 

In my opinion,the right time for a child to have a cell phone is the age of 18 because by then the child would be approaching adulthood from being a teenager.During this age the child would have acquired a national identity document and will also be required to obey the Law of the Land.He/She can make wise decision which might not be influenced by peer pressure.We can also conclude that its at this age that a child can easily receive wise counsel from Parents.

 

I believe children should grow up with mobile phones. The future is online and the earlier children are exposed to phones especially ones that can access the internet the better. I believe the internet has got ideas to solve all problems facing mankind and if our children learn how to use the internet on phones correctly then it would change a lot of things.

All we need to do is to guide them towards the best ways to use mobile phones. Heck, they might even discover even better phones. If your child uses his or her phone to do bad things then I believe you are to blame as a parent because you are not guiding them on how to use phones appropriately. Even if you deny them access to phones they will still find them elsewhere, so we should just teach children how to use mobile phones.

 

Mobile phone is one of our necessities in life but I think kids below ten years of age shouldn't have it yet. This device brings different functions to all of us and the trending part here is mobile phones now are very high end. Before it is being used for calling and sending messages to recipients but now, it is more on browsing various websites and social media. Though the major functions are still there but I think it is recommended for children 16 years of age beyond. Children are very aggressive when it comes for newly things that they discover and mobile phones will influence them so much rather than studying. As a father of two kids, I promised them to have mobile phones after their 18th birthdays and I told them that it will be the most expensive device that I'll give as a gift.

 

Children should get a mobile phone at the age of 12 or in their pre-teens, first of all it is not necessary for them to have mobile phone at such early age, it would just keep them from enjoying their childhood life which I regretted when I was a child, I had always thought that a phone would make me happier but I was wrong, I kind of wished I lived my childhood gadget free, except television. My little brother started using phone at the age of two believe me or not, my parents always let him use their devices to watch videos from youtube and he got addicted and couldn't stop. It's affecting his academic performance which is not a good sign, so we eventually took action and restricted him on all our devices at home and make him play his toys instead and have him read story books.