Phones and tweens

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our school has a policy that devices need to be stored in the lockers or backpacks and off. If on, they will be confiscated and parents need to pick up the device. We gave our child an apple watch. She walks home alone as well as has extracurriculars she travels to by herself. Having the ability to communicate with her for pick up, drop off, and when plans change has been helpful. She certainly could borrow someone else's device if she needed to reach us, though. If it does not seem to make sense for your family to give a device, don't let them guilt you into doing so. They will survive.

Ours does too, but in actually practice it seems that is a nearly impossible for school to enforce effectively. It’s just a huge and widespread problem that they cannot spend all day doing this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our school has a policy that devices need to be stored in the lockers or backpacks and off. If on, they will be confiscated and parents need to pick up the device. We gave our child an apple watch. She walks home alone as well as has extracurriculars she travels to by herself. Having the ability to communicate with her for pick up, drop off, and when plans change has been helpful. She certainly could borrow someone else's device if she needed to reach us, though. If it does not seem to make sense for your family to give a device, don't let them guilt you into doing so. They will survive.

Ours does too, but in actually practice it seems that is a nearly impossible for school to enforce effectively. It’s just a huge and widespread problem that they cannot spend all day doing this.

Same at our FFX county middle school.

There is a no-phones policy, which does not work at all in practice.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Your kid walking or biking to school doesn’t not mean they need a phone. Parents are crazy now

Agree.

And these crazy parents will surely raise even crazier / mentally-ill, offspring.

Do any of you have middle school kids? They almost all have phones, at least in 7th and 8th grade. Mine actually doesn't, but it's more common to have one than not.

Yes. I have two middle school kids without phones. They are fine and have active social lives.

[Anonymous]

Our school enforces the policy in middle school. Some kids still don't have phones in 7th but vast majority do by 8th. The kids without phones certainly manage.

[Anonymous]

Most 6th graders have a phone at our kid's school. We waited till the end of 6th to give a phone and I wish we had waited longer.

[Anonymous]

My 8th grader has a phone but he never takes it to school (and he walks to and from school). He uses it only when he is home to text friends or play games, or if they have a field trip or sleepover. All of his classmates but one have phones and have had them since 6th grade. The level of attachment to their phones varies greatly among them. For my kid, it is a non-issue. The computer, on the other hand...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our school enforces the policy in middle school. Some kids still don't have phones in 7th but vast majority do by 8th. The kids without phones certainly manage.

I think you would be really shocked to see what this enforcement actually looks like.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My 8th grader has a phone but he never takes it to school (and he walks to and from school). He uses it only when he is home to text friends or play games, or if they have a field trip or sleepover. All of his classmates but one have phones and have had them since 6th grade. The level of attachment to their phones varies greatly among them. For my kid, it is a non-issue. The computer, on the other hand...

This approach makes a lot of sense to me.

[Anonymous]

Our middle school’s no phone policy is enforced by collecting them at the beginning of the school day and giving them back at the end. My 6th grader has an iPad with a number so he can text with his friends when he’s home if he wants, but he’s not really into that. No phone for him until 9th. I can’t believe how we will be out to dinner with friends and their tweens will be on their phones not engaging. Or my kids will sometimes be in person with their friends and their friends will be on their phones. We are not a tech free household by any stretch but I think when you’re around other humans, the phones need to be away.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Our school enforces the policy in middle school. Some kids still don't have phones in 7th but vast majority do by 8th. The kids without phones certainly manage.

I think you would be really shocked to see what this enforcement actually looks like.

DP and I agree it's still an issue. My DC's FCPS middle school actually assigns lockers and all backpacks have to be in the locker during the day. That cuts down on a lot of cell phone activity.