Reply to Who regrets getting phone for their child at that 12-13 yr age and wishes they waited?

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Reply to "Who regrets getting phone for their child at that 12-13 yr age and wishes they waited?"

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I had a 12-year-old boy on a bike stop me on the street because he was lost (we live in a super safe community) and he wanted to call his mom. He asked if he could use my phone and of course I said yes, then waited with him while his mom drove to pick him up.

I thought it was so cool that this kid didn’t have a phone but felt empowered to approach a safe-looking stranger and problem-solve. So many kids are terrified of talking to strangers, don’t know how to judge “safe” from “unsafe” or sketchy looking, and wouldn’t have a clue how to get out of a jam without a personal cell phone.

Sharing as I think this is an unconventional reason to not get a phone too early. This kid was able to have a really nice conversation with me while we waited and was super polite and thankful. Those are the skills that kids should be developing.[/quote]

Not all strangers are good people.  He got lucky.  [/quote]

He did not get lucky. The vast, vast majority of strangers are good people. If you worry about strangers, then teach your kids to look for a "mom" if they are in need of help. (Because, you know... of the small minority of bad people, the vast majority of those are male.)

I am a high school teacher, and I hate cell phones. I often show my students how to look up their time spent (wasted, imo) in their phones. My students genuinely seem shocked at their hours per day.

I have a 16 year old and a 20 year old. Both of them got cell phones on their 14th birthdays, which was in the summer before starting HS. We said no social media until they were/are 17. We've talked a lot about people being phone zombies, etc and put a 1-2 hour usage per day limit on the phones (my husband and i also follow the usage limit). I think it helps that they are 1) male and 2) very, very into competitive sports. Obviously, my college student makes his own phone "rules" at this point. But it is easy to see that he doesn't use his phone that much (because he didn't get addicted at a young age, imo).[/quote]

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