As a parent, you need to be prepared for several milestones in your children’s lives. One of the major ones that you need to prepare for is when you are going to get your child their first mobile phone. With the age at which many are getting their first phone getting younger and younger every year, it is vital that you time it at the right moment. Let’s take a closer look at some of the factors that might determine if your child is ready for their own phone.
Independence
One of the big reasons why many parents choose to get their children a phone is to allow them a little more independence than they might have had up until that point. If your child is a pre-teen, they might be heading out of the house on their own a lot more. You trust them to get themselves to school, and you might let them out to hang around with their mates in the local park or somewhere else.
However, for safety reasons, it can be wise to get them a phone here as it will allow you to keep in contact with them if needs be. You never know when they might need to get into contact with you, so giving them a phone is the best way to do so. It also means that you can check up on them if they are late for their curfew, or if you might also be heading out the house while they are away. Opening up these conversations between you and your child gives them a chance to build up their own independence in a way that is easy and productive for both of you.
Friendships
Once your child gets a little bit older, they are going to want to be able to maintain their friendships outside of the playground and the classroom. To do so, they are going to need a way that they can stay in touch with their friends and that, inevitably, means their own mobile phone.
Nowadays, few households have a landline where they can get in touch with each other. They also might not feel comfortable asking for your phone so they can talk to their friends, and likewise you might not want to hand over your handset for them to disappear on a 3-hour phone call. Sometimes, getting them their own phone can be the best way to move forward.
Before doing so, you need to make it clear to them what the rules of the phone will be. For example, if they are old enough to have social media accounts then you might want to make it clear that you want the passwords to them. Though you might never have reason to check their social media and private messages, having access to them can be key in keeping your child safe when they first venture into the online world.
Cost
It is worth considering the cost of a phone. If your child is expecting to get the latest iPhone and all the gadgets that come with it, you might want to gently point out to them the reality of this actually happening. Many have a cheaper handset for their first phone. While it will still be a very good model, it is likely to be a lot more affordable than what they could be expecting.
Another option is to give them your old phone when you get an upgrade. If you are on a contract, you might be eligible to upgrade to a new model when you renew. This will give you a free handset, and it might still be in perfect condition. Then, you just need to get a hold of a SIM card for your child.
Make sure to look through what you will be getting in terms of data and features when comparing SIM-only deals as it can differ quite a bit. Realistically, how much data is your child going to need? They might be able to make do with just 1GB a month, especially if they have access to Wi-Fi at home and at school. Compare SIM-only deals together so you can find something that works for both of you.
Responsibility
Is your child ready for the responsibility of owning their own phone? This is an important factor to check, and you need to make sure that they fully understand what comes with owning their own phone. This is not just a fun gadget that they are going to be able to use to chat with their friends and take pictures with. It is an important device that they need to have the maturity to be able to care for.
For example, it will be their responsibility to ensure that the phone is always on and is always charged. While everyone does run out of charge every now and then, if your child is constantly claiming that their phone is flat as a way of not answering your messages, you might need to have a word with them.
In addition to this, it will be their responsibility to look after the health of their phone. Even a cheaper model can be expensive to replace. Accidents do happen, but a child who constantly drops their phone and cracks the screen is showing that they are not responsible enough to look after a phone. You might want to ask them to begin to cover the cost of something like a repair or a screen replacement if they keep breaking their phones. You could also downgrade them from a smartphone to a basic handset.
Boundaries
There might be certain rules about using the phone around the house. A common one is to put the phone away for dinner as this is a time when you are coming together as a family. You do not want to be distracted by someone’s phone going off, and you want everyone to have their full attention on the meal. Therefore, it is important to explain to your child that them sitting on their phone throughout dinner is going to be unacceptable.
You might also have rules about where they are allowed to keep the phone at night. Some parents like to ensure that their children’s phones are left charging somewhere like the kitchen overnight. This helps to ensure that they are not going to be on their phone all night when they should be getting some rest. Blue light from a phone can disrupt their sleeping pattern, and a child who is of the age where they might be getting their own phone needs to be getting all the rest that they can.
These are all factors you need to consider when you are thinking about getting a phone for your child. This is not a simple decision to make, and it can put a lot of pressure on you as a parent – especially if your child is one of the last in their friend group to get a phone. Make sure that this is a decision that you make with them and not for them. This will undoubtedly lay the boundaries for future decisions you might have to make about their independence as they age.
