Parents of kids 10+ - do they have a cell/smart phone?

[lolc]

My son is 11 (and just 'graduating' the 5th grade) and I am surprised by the amount of kids who have cell phones at his age! Many not just cell phones, but smartphones. 

When we went to his middle school orientation a few months back, the school seemed to basically be encouraging students to have smartphones. It seems almost mandatory that students have either a tablet or a smartphone so they can use certain apps in class. Again, I was pretty surprised by this. Not judging, but just surprised. Then again I guess this is the day and age we are living in. 

So now my son is asking me for one. He is a pretty responsible kid. I can see pros and cons to this. I have an older model smartphone I can give to him if I wanted to add him to my plan. The battery life isn't very long, but it is a smartphone and is capable of skype, apps, etc. 

Anyway just wanted to know what parents think, what many people do or don't do, etc. I'm heading into uncharted territory! 

[mrsjuleshs]

DD got a cell in 5th grade and she got an iphone once she got into 7th grade. They had a quiz where they could either use a phone/tablet or have to find the answers in the book. The grades were drastically different by which method the kids used since it takes longer in a book than google.

Our schools have encouraged phones/tablets and the last few years, their math textbooks have been online only. She even has a few classes (she's wrapping up jr year) that all work has to be submitted through an online portal. The apps and other processes is all about technology. It's becoming pretty standard in our area.

[frkls]

j is in fourth grade and says most of the kids in his class have one. he's not interested, which is so nice.

i remember when we were in the middle of our custody battle for dsd. she was 12 and her mom took away her phone and we were waiting to see if we got custody of her before replacing it. for those few months, she was a total social outcast. her friends are shitty and nobody thought to call her when they all made weekend plans via mass text every week.  

eta: this was seven years ago, so i imagine it's even more so now

[ciescalove]

She has a tablet here, and a cellphone at her dads. I wholeheartedly disagree with her having a cellphone, so she is not allowed to have it when she's with us. She's had it for 3-4 years now.

For school I will eventually allow her to take her tablet with her.

ETA she's 10 and will be in 5th grade in August.

[Queen Mamadala]

Yes, my 11 and 9 year old share my old iPhone 4s. They're under their dad's plan. They have their own tablets. They've actually used tablets for classwork and had days where they could bring their own, but their classes had to earn "electronics" days.

[MixedBerryJam]

I keep reading the title as "Parents of 10+ kids" and I'm all, LOL NO! But my kid got a cell phone at 11 when he started 7th grade a subway ride away. No data, not a smart phone but he did have texting.

[textbookcase]

Yes, my 12 yo got a smart phone for her 11th bday. There are rules and restrictions but she has been good about it so far. We don't have a house phone and she babysits her sisters. She also has sports practice and is involved in a lot of extracurriculars and I am just more comfortable with being able to reach her.
Eta and all 3 (12, 9, and 4) have their own tablets. The older 2 have their own laptops as well, but we homeschool and they need them for school work.

[esdreturns]

My son is in 4th grade and tells me all his friends have one. I don't know if this is true or not, but he still doesn't have one lol.

[georgeharrison]

My kid has a cheapo flip phone that he uses when we go somewhere with crowds. And he has an iPOD that he can use where there is WiFi. We had the same experience with the middle school orientation. They encouraged them for use in school, but also said they can be a huge distraction. Kind of a no-win situation, I think, as my kid is so easily distracted by this kind of stuff.

[styme46]

Dd is also 11 and does not have a cell phone. She has been asking for one for a couple years now, but we think she is too young. She still has a hard time keeping track of things like her glasses and she just got a "F" for the 4th quarter in one subject so she will have to wait a bit until she gets one.

Most of the kids in her class have one though, which is why she keeps asking for one.

[formerlyak]

DS will be 10 in July. He does not have his own phone. I have a prepaid Go Phone that I put in his bag or pocket when he is either with a friend who I don't know the parents super well or we are going to a crowded place like an amusement park where there is a chance (even small) that we could be separated. He does not get it any other time. His friends do not know the number (it's for emergencies only). It lives in a drawer in my room.

DS' school district checks out a ChromeBook to every 3rd - 12th grader at the start of the year when they get their textbooks. Any electronic homework or books are apps they are required to use are on that.

There are a handful of 4th graders in his class who have iPhones. They take them out after school and think they are the shit. None of ds' close circle of friends have a phone - smart or otherwise. And all of us moms have talked that the earliest we will even consider it is 6th grade when they start middle school. We figure if none of them have one, they won't whine about it as much and no one will be singled out as the kid who doesn't have one.

[onetruething]

My 11 yo has an iPhone. It was a reward for getting into a top middle/hs.

My 10 and 8 yo's have iPods to text their friends.

We don't have a house phone, so that is how they talk to their friends after school.

[read247]

Queen Mamadala,My 12 yo has a smartphone. She got last August right before she started middle school (which is 7th grade here). It's a way for her to contact me if she's staying after school and taking the late bus home, and to keep in touch via text/email with her elementary school friends who attend a different middle school. There are a few teachers who encourage use of apps and it definitely helps she has her own access, but in a pinch (such as one time she needed an app not supported by her phone) it it isn't a group thing she can do with another student, the school can/will supply an iPad for in class use. Some of her friends had phones in 5th and 6th grade, but not many.

DD #2 will be 10 this summer and no way is she getting a phone yet. She's only going into 4th grade. She'll get one the same time her sister did - when she starts middle school.  She has an iPod if she wanted to text, but none of her friends seem to be into that.

[devonpow]

DS1 is 9 and we are getting him a cell phone this summer - but no frills no data. He's staying on the playground by himself, walking alone to friends' houses etc now so I want a way to stay in touch.

A few kids in his class (3rd) have iPhones and I think it's nuts! Right now my current plan is an iPhone (or whatever the trendy equivalent is) at 13.

[sweetchix]

DD1 is 9 and in 3rd grade. Some of her friends have phones. I have her my old iPhone 4s, but only as a wifi device. She does not have calling/texting capabilities (unless I decide to get a texting app, not sure on that yet). I only recently let her start using it because she keeps bugging me to use mine for musical.ly.

[stephogirl]

DS is 10 and he has a TracFone for texting us when he gets home from school, from soccer practice, etc.

It was $15 for the phone and $20 every three months for minutes/service. I don't know when we'll make the leap to a smartphone, but we're planning on holding off as long as possible.

[acuore]

My daughter got a smartphone at the end of 7th grade (last year).  Before that, she had a simple flip phone for emergencies that she basically never used.  Now she is practically surgically attached to it.  It seems to be the only way kids these days interact.  I think pretty much 100% of her classmates at this point have smart phones. 

[rupertpenny]

My brother is 14 and does not have one. He has an iPad and I think he uses that to talk to his friends. I assume he'll get a phone when he starts high school in the fall but who knows, my mom is kind of a Luddite.

[lolalolalola]

My dd is 10.5 and finishing up grade 5. She doesn't have a phone and neither do any of her friends. She said in 6th grade you start seeing a lot of kids with them. I am thinking for her 11th or 12th birthday ?

[penguingrrl]

I am starting to think about getting my oldest a phone. She'll be 9 in August and is at the end of 3rd grade now. She's starting to stay home alone occasionally and starting to want to walk places with friends. I won't get her a smart phone, but a basic one that can text.

We don't have a house phone or a working old phone to pass down (we don't replace our phones until they break) so a cheap flip phone will do.

She'll get it at the start of 5th grade at the latest because then she'll be riding her bike to school and I will want confirmation she's there.

I do know a few kids as young as 1st grade with phones, but they are almost exclusively parents who aren't together (divorced or never married and not together) and the non custodial parent wanted it to always be in touch.

[formerlyak]

Jun 1, 2016 16:54:00 GMT -5 sweetchix said:

DD1 is 9 and in 3rd grade. Some of her friends have phones. I have her my old iPhone 4s, but only as a wifi device. She does not have calling/texting capabilities (unless I decide to get a texting app, not sure on that yet). I only recently let her start using it because she keeps bugging me to use mine for musical.ly.

Ds has my old iPhone that he uses in this way. No cell service, just wifi for game apps and facetiming with his dad. He also uses it to listen to pandora and I heart radio.

[lulu13]

They both got smart phones at 10 years old (DS is 11 and DDis 12.5 now).

[jenna]

When my 15 year old SS was in middle school, a majority of the students had smart phones. He, however, does not.

[SpartanGirl]

My oldest is 10 and finishing 4th grade. A lot of her friends got iPhones for their 10th birthdays. She doesn't have one, and we don't have plans to get her one at the moment. We have a shared family iPad that she can use for texting her friends or for school apps. She also has a kindle fire for reading and minecraft. We just don't see a need right now for her to have her own phone too.

[thebreakfastclub]

The last time I was at the Verizon store, I noticed they have a device for young kids.

It can only call out and receive calls from pre-programmed numbers. I thought that was a nice option for that age range.

[definitelyO]

our 10 yr old has an iPhone 5 -BUT no data service - so only works with WIFI. (he can facetime, download apps with permission, text and use facetime audio) he's had that for years. but - we won't get a data plan probably until he's in Junior High, which for us is 7th grade - so 12 yrs old.

[MrsPenny]

My oldest will be 11 and in 6th grade this August and she does not. A lot of her friends do but I haven't felt it necessary at this point. When she is older and walking home alone or staying home alone then we will revisit it.

[mslhb]

My DD is only 8 but we will get her a cellphone at 11ish. We don't have a home phone so the minute she spends any time at home alone I feel she needs one. We will likely hand me down an iPhone of ours.

[Mrs. ChanandlerBong]

She's 10
And in 4th. No way is she getting one before middle school. And I'm tempted to make it a pay as you go phone. I don't want her to have an iPhone but someone else told me the same
Thing you heard. They're expected to have some kind of device that can use google.

I'm very not ok with it for a lot of reasons.

[kalil]

My DD is 12 and is finishing 6th grade. She got an iPhone (my old one) for Christmas. I think she was one of the very few kids who didn't have one at that point. At first we didn't let her take it to school. They do have some programs in some of her classes where it is encouraged to bring the phone. We started letting her take it to school in March I think? In order to take it to school she has to be ready and waiting at the door by a certain time. If she's not she doesn't get to take it. It's really encouraged her to get ready quicker. We haven't had any issues taking it to school so far. I do like that if there is an emergency she can reach us. My biggest worry was that she would leave it somewhere and it be lost/stolen. They aren't allowed to carry book bags to class so she takes a purse and keeps it in that on her.
The only people she ever seems to call are her dad and I. Sometimes she will FaceTime with her cousin. She mainly texts with her friends. We don't have a house phone so we always planned on getting either her a cell or a cell to keep as a house phone. So far everything has been fine.