talk and text only phone for 6th grader
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Anonymous
| For those who got a non-smart (dumb) phone for their middle schooler, what carrier plan did you get? |
Anonymous
| I'm looking into this as well so any recs are appreciated. It seems Verizon has a talk & text only plan |
Anonymous
| You just shut off Safari and all apps. Easy. Just do it on the iPhone. Under general and restrictions. |
Anonymous
| I added my DD for $30 month unlimited text and calling with att. Can add data service but want to wait and see. Phone was $20 total at best buy. |
Anonymous
Does this really work? Also a little worried she will lose the phone so prefer a cheap one. |
Anonymous
| We use Ting. You buy the phone (you can buy a flip phone through them) and then it's pay as you go. Its pretty cheap. |
Anonymous
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Anonymous
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Definitely works. You just shut it off using a passcode. Don't forget it and don't let her figure it out! You can test on your own phone. You decide what to give her acces to. You can even add certain websites and that is all. E.g. School site, weather.com. No fee.
As you give her more access, I recommend Circle and My Circle. You can shut off the phone remotely when you want. Control time limits, web sites etc. Yes I am a control freak. (My daughter is only 12 -- I will ease up as she gets older). Hear on the expense of a phone! Also you will learn that most kids use Snapchat and don't text. At least the older tweens and teens do. It sucks. You can see with whom she is snapping but not content. I did see that she randomly accepted someone's invite and she lost her phone for 5 days. Good luck! |
Anonymous
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I got a dummy phones (talk and text) through verizon for my all three of my kids when they were in 6th. My youngest got hers last year and complains mightily, but I know she's not the only one in her grade who doesn't have a smart phone. My oldest (now 18) didn't get an iphone until she was in 10th, and earned the money for it herself. Def had parental controls on it. My rising 10th grader will get his first smart phone this year (again, $ earned), but he knows he will lose it in a NY minute if he breaks any of our house rules (porn, sexting, etc). I pay for the monthly plan, but we have decent family plan through verizon.
Don't be afraid to be that parent. Once they get on social media, it's pretty impossible to turn back. And most kids are using laptops or ipads for school, so it's not like they have zero access to the interwebs. |
Anonymous
Can they still text and make phone calls if you do this? |
Anonymous
What is Circle and My Circle? |
Anonymous
Yes. |
Anonymous
| Tracfone is what we got for a talk and text dumb phone. Cheap and works fine. |
Anonymous
Another vote for Ting. Using it myself, and very easy to add my kids and manage their use. |
Anonymous
| DS had Tmobile..15/month for unlimited text and 3 (?) of talk a month (not sure if that still exists). DD had ChitChat..unlimited talk and text for just about the same price. |