Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Oy vey you people are crazy. There is no need for a 10yo to have a phone.

Sometimes it is a safety issue. If your child walks to school or takes metro, they need a phone. Where do you live, PP?

There is no way I'd let a 10 year old take Metro alone. 11 would be my bare minimum, but after all the track fires, and other safety issues, not to mention the actual crime, not even sure I'd go that young.

That's great for you but some people don't have a choice. A friend of mine had her 10 year old commuting by metro bus and metro rail across town to and from school. She was a single mother and worked outside of the city and had to leave before him in the mornings. He didn't have an iPhone but he did have a phone.

And pp's are right about there not being payphones. I was in a situation recently where my phone was dead, my car charger stopped working and I was stuck in horrible traffic trying to get to my son in aftercare. I really needed to call my husband to see if he could get to my son quicker but there were no payphones in sight. I considered yelling at a driver next to me and asking them to call my husband for me but I thought that would be heading into crazy lady territory. Unfortunately I got to him 20 minutes late.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Oy vey you people are crazy. There is no need for a 10yo to have a phone.

Sometimes it is a safety issue. If your child walks to school or takes metro, they need a phone. Where do you live, PP?

There is no way I'd let a 10 year old take Metro alone. 11 would be my bare minimum, but after all the track fires, and other safety issues, not to mention the actual crime, not even sure I'd go that young.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Oy vey you people are crazy. There is no need for a 10yo to have a phone.

Sometimes it is a safety issue. If your child walks to school or takes metro, they need a phone. Where do you live, PP?

Yeah, there are no payphones anywhere, so what are they supposed to do, bug a stranger to borrow their phone?

Anonymous wrote:Oy vey you people are crazy. There is no need for a 10yo to have a phone.

Sometimes it is a safety issue. If your child walks to school or takes metro, they need a phone. Where do you live, PP?

My children did not get smartphones until college - when they could pay for the upgrade to include a data plan.

High school. And I get the pass code and can check it at any time.

Oy vey you people are crazy. There is no need for a 10yo to have a phone.

DS had a slide out keyboard phone until he was 13, when he got his first iphone. I upgraded and gave him my old phone. Did he need it? No. But he wanted it and I liked the ability to use the GPS feature to track his whereabouts. He is in high school now and commuting to school via metro, so it really comes in handy to track him using find friends.

FWIW, many of his friends had iphones at age 10.

When they can afford one out of their savings and at least contribute to the monthly payments. Until then, a lesser phone will do fine.

Thanks these are great. Keep them coming...

My old iPhone... as soon as I decide or basically when he is anywhere alone. You can set up text to go to a computer or iPhone so you can monitor them.

DD was 13 and DS was 11 when they got their first phones. They're not iphones though. Why would a child need an iphone? They have cheapo $10/month republic wireless plans. They can talk and text all the want but data is over wifi.

No smart phone to begin with. I got my step daughters slide out keyboard phones so they could text easily. Let them use those a couple of years and the got them iPhones. You need to see how responsible he will be first. Does he lost things? Break them? I wasn't putting out that kind of money just to have something lost the first month. And my younger stepdaughter did lose it a few times. She's broken the screen of the iPhone three times.

She was 8th grade when she got an iPhone. The older step daughter was 10th grade. I will aim for 8th grade for my son as well.

Our rules are about content. No downloading apps without my knowledge (password protected). Don't post, photo, or text what you don't want the four Ps to see - parents, police, proncipal, or pedophile. We let the girls keep their phones at night for access to their mom as desired. But my son will have to give his up at bedtime.

She got her first phone at 9 or 10 - because she was taking the train to school an hour away alone. First iPhone at 12 - summer before 7th grade.

Minimal rules - I can check it at any time, don't send nudes, tell me if anyone sends her any, don't bully people or be mean, etc. Be careful with people she doesn't know.

My son is 12 and does not have an activated phone. He has one that he can use at home for texting at home. When did your child get their first phone and what were the rules.
any and all advice is appreciated.