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First smart ‘phone? For a 10 year old….

^^

Fully agree!

My business recruits into Social Media agencies; my 2 nieces both have phones now, both from the ages of 11 (eldest is 15 now); they're both VERY active with lots of after school activities (sports, music, choir etc) and their high school is the one their father teaches at, 15miles away from home. So, when lifts are needed or plans change, a quick call/WhatsApp/text message soon keeps their folks, grand folks and myself (if I'm needed for one of the school runs as I run my business from home) up to speed etc

I'm 39, I baulked when they asked for phones, even though I've always got a top of the range Android handset on me. However, it's 2017, not 1987. Long gone have the days with an emergency 10p for the public phone etc!

Like everything else, all in moderation and the sooner they learn their responsibilities around these phones (and the dangers of the cockwombles out there) the better!
 
What you are all arguing against is inevitable. Everyone is in front of screens far more than they should be. Anyone on this forum included, making you a hypocrite.

When your child arrives at school with a flip phone from the 90s, they are going to be very much in the minority. My sons schools makes them put the phones in lockers in the morning and they are only allowed out for one break period in the day. This seems like a reasonable balance in the grand scheme of things.

I bet the head of ebay germany allows his kids to have a personal laptop, or PC, or tablet, or tv in their room or to watch tv on their no doubt 75in QLED LG Wallpaper tv. Its inevitable. Hiding your kid in a cupboard because of outdated views is not going to help them any more than a silver foil hat.

The OP is raising a valid concern and you throw around accusations of hypocrisy at people you don't know. You attempt to nullify alternative views with that shibboleth 'silver foil hat'. If you want to wager on the parenting skills, or otherwise, of the head of Ebay Germany why not head off to BetFred* where you will be appropriately parted with your cash.
* Other gambling outlets are available, proliferating even.
 
No, you are not being old fashioned, you are raising a hugely salient point. The implication of several other posts on this thread amply demonstrates this.
She will be needing one when she’s getting to and from school on a bus next school year, I wouldn’t be happy if my daughter was out without hers, I can contact her or trace where she is using “find my iPhone” and that helps give me piece of mind and keep her safe. Getting one a few months earlier and teaching her to be responsible with it isn’t a bad idea. What a 10 year old shouldn’t be doing is using Instagram and snapchat and absolutely not Facebook. Something like WhatsApp with which they need each others number in order to communicate is more sensible but you still have to keep an eye out for bullying and remember that your child can be a culprit as well as a victim (this isn’t directed at anyone).
 
This thread started as a "what 'phone?" question but has taken an interesting (and welcome) turn on safety of kids in the digital age. I too baulked at the suggestion of getting her a smartphone, but childhood now is not the same as ours, as I expect ours was different to our parents. At 10 I was damming streams and making dens. Like it or not, our lives our entwined with tech (with iPads, Netflix, Youtube, Xbox, DS's, Kindles, etc, etc), even some of her homework has to be submitted on line. There's no putting the toothpaste back in the tube!

The issue, to my mind, is how much access to give her, with controls, and keeping her safe. I think I have a reasonable handle on what the dangers are, but even so, it's still a concern. I think there are studies showing correlation between social media use and mental health problems in kids, that's an area we will definitely block until she's older. "Screen time" can be limited at home. We are still feeling our way through all this but of course want to do the best for her.
 
My daughter has had an iPad mini since she was 6, no social media etc. though. It is locked to my account, so she can't install apps etc. without my permission. Have held off on phones, but when they get to High School, I think it would be too limiting to not let them have one. Education is key of course, as well as limiting device time IMO.

...personally I'd go for something like an iPhone SE second-hand / refurb.
 
If you plan on limiting screen time to her being at home, with you present, another consideration for you will be the data limits in the package. You can put all the parental controls on your home router & wireless plan, but when she’s out of the home & data roaming, they are obviously irrelevant.
Lots to consider, most of it is unpleasant, but at least it’s got you asking questions & weighing up options, which is a good thing.
 
This thread started as a "what 'phone?" question but has taken an interesting (and welcome) turn on safety of kids in the digital age. I too baulked at the suggestion of getting her a smartphone, but childhood now is not the same as ours, as I expect ours was different to our parents. At 10 I was damming streams and making dens. Like it or not, our lives our entwined with tech (with iPads, Netflix, Youtube, Xbox, DS's, Kindles, etc, etc), even some of her homework has to be submitted on line. There's no putting the toothpaste back in the tube!

The issue, to my mind, is how much access to give her, with controls, and keeping her safe. I think I have a reasonable handle on what the dangers are, but even so, it's still a concern. I think there are studies showing correlation between social media use and mental health problems in kids, that's an area we will definitely block until she's older. "Screen time" can be limited at home. We are still feeling our way through all this but of course want to do the best for her.

It sounds as though you're pretty clued up to be fair. I gave way myself and let my daughter use Snapchat after pressure from both my daughter and her mother telling me "it'll be fine", and it was whilst her account was set to private, but she changed it and some pervert sent her some vile messages, which she told me about immediately. I temporarily banned her and have since allowed her back on with her account set to private, which I check at random. Best bet to begin with is no social media. All social media on an iPhone is done through apps, which you have control over, you can set a password for all app downloads. I agree with the iPhone SE too, excellent phone and pretty robust, especially in a 360 protective case.
 


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