What Is The Right Age To Get A Phone For Your Child?

Is your young child constantly asking for a mobile phone?

Do you know the right age to get a phone for your child?

A study by  media in 2019 has shown that 53% of 11-year-old US children own a smartphone. In the present situation of the pandemic, with everything working in virtual mode, this number might have increased drastically. The prevalence of cell phones is increasing among children. It might have many effects on the overall well-being of the kids. 

There is a debate going around the ‘right age’ to get a phone for your kid. Let’s dig into this piece of information to learn more about the right age. The write-up also covers the things parents need to remember before giving their children a phone. 

What Is The Right Age To Get A Phone?

Parents are the best judge for their kids to give a phone or not.However, experts say that a child should not get a phone before the age of 12-13 years of age. But, the right age to get a phone for their child should be a parent’s decision. Getting a personal phone is a big step for young children. Kids at their gullible age can get exposed to harmful content, activities, games, and applications through their phone. Hence, the judging parameters for parents to get a phone for their child should be the child’s maturity. Children should own a personal phone only if they are mature enough to use it securely. 

The Thing To Keep In Mind While Getting A Phone For Your Kid

1. Is he/she responsible enough?

Children who get a phone should be responsible for using it judiciously. With maturity comes a sense of responsibility. If an irresponsible child gets a phone, it might have a negative influence on him/her. The phone can be a source of distraction and can affect their social life, education, and overall well-being. Giving phones to responsible kids can work positively for them. 

2. Help keep them safe

A personal phone to the child can invite many dangers for them. They can easily fall prey to scams, frauds, cyberbullying, or consume explicit content through browsing. It can result in a hindrance to their growth and also lead to other harmful impacts. Hence, parents should help them keep the phone safe and use it judiciously. 

3. How will you track phone usage?

With regular monitoring, you can promote the safe use of the phone. Parents need to apply for parental checks to keep their children safe from any danger. TiSPY, a parental control application, can work as a boon for the parents. With TiSPY, parents can regularly monitor the phone usage activity of their kids remotely. They can track the kid’s social media activity, call logs, internet browsing activity, and even their live location. 

4. What kind of internet content should he/she consume?

Parents need to check the content their kids are consuming through the internet. The internet has loads of information that can be both relevant and irrelevant to kids. Kids, because of their curiosity, might consume explicit and harmful content from the internet. It can harm a kid’s mind. Parents should look before getting a phone for their kid and see the content they are consuming on  the internet. 

What Do Experts Say About The Right Age To Get A Mobile For A Child?

There are many households where the kids do not get a phone until they reach high school age. The ultimate aim for the right age to get a phone for your kid is to make them realize the value of face-to-face communication. Getting a phone at a young age can make kids less social and less confident. 

Even legendary entrepreneurs like bill gets in an interview stated that his kids did not get a phone till they were 14. James Styer, the owner of a non-profit organization, had strict rules about not giving phones to his kids till they are of high school age. But, as they say, no two children are the same. It depends only upon the parents to judge if their child is mature enough to get a phone. 

What To Do When The Child Insists On Buying A Mobile From You?

Try to give Positive parenting and Say NO

Children tend to  be attracted to the perks of the phone and start insisting on a phone at a young age. If you don’t think they are mature enough to have a mobile phone try explaining it to them with reasons. Saying a direct NO may induce rebellion tendencies in them. Hence, try to make them understand through different examples and storytelling.

2. Start using a parental control app like TiSPY

If you decide to get a phone for your child, consider monitoring their overall phone activity. With parental control apps like TiSPY, parents can track all the phone usage activity of their children. The TiSPY works in hidden mode and brings all the information from the kid’s phone to the dashboard provided for the parents. With monitoring apps like TiSPY, parents can monitor call and SMS logs, social media activity, downloaded applications, read chats, and the internet browsing history of their child. It can help them ensure their child’s safety from the dangers of phones. 

Conclusion

Getting a phone for their young children has seen an increasing trend among parents. It can be harmful for young kids to get access to their phones. Hence, parents need to know the right age to get a phone for their kids. Experts say to not give a child a phone before the age of 12-14. However, the ultimate decision is made by parents, who determine whether or not their child is responsible enough to obtain a phone.