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UK: Almost a quarter of kids aged 5-7 have smartphones
(www.bbc.com)
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this post was submitted on 19 Apr 2024
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Being a good parent isn't doing whatever's easiest to distract your kid.
When they are at the point of going to sleepovers, play dates at friends, camp, etc it also makes a lot of sense to give them a lifeline.
The kids line I pay for gives me all the parental controls I could dream of and control over her contacts. I am 100% present, but I’m not dumb enough to send me kid out into the world without a lifeline.
It seems being needlessly judgmental is the easiest of all.
Dumbphone seems enough for a "lifeline". Also parental controls where the parent sees absolutely everything seem dystopian af anyway, I would not like to expose my potential child to such an experience.
Lmoa you’re suggesting that me fully managing my seven year old’s phone is dystopian? The free-phone-because-it’s-my-old-phone with great parental controls is way safer than a dumb phone with no contact management or GPS tracking.
You can do whatever the fuck you want in this “dystopian” world, but try to be less judgmental when you think a dumb phone is a better option for a child.
Why do they need a "lifeline"? They can ask an adult to call you if they need something. If you don't trust them at a sleepover or play date, then don't send them.
I let my kids go to their friends' houses all the time and sometimes to the local park by themselves, and I've never once regretted not giving them a phone. They know our address, phone numbers, and how to get home, and we pre-arrange what time they should be home (they have simple watches).
That has worked well for us.