Collected.Reviews has seen plenty of debates about the right time or age when a parent should get a smartphone for a kid.
Children require keen attention so before giving them a smartphone with data services from the best mobile network operators, you must watch out for these 4 signs to know if the child is ready to own a smartphone or not.
1. Excess Pressure:
If your child or your friends are constantly disturbing you on the issue of a smartphone, do not give in to the pressure. You are the parent and the future of your child is yours to build, do not make a decision in haste because you are being pressured. Also, it is natural that when your child achieves an accomplishment, you might want to encourage the child with a gift. It could be on a birthday, or after the success of an exam, or after an excellent performance at school. If the pressure is much, rather than give in, try to understand why they keep persisting, try to see reasons with them. If you feel convinced with their reasons, then you can get the child a smartphone, however, if you do not see any reason with them, stand your ground and wait till you have a conviction before you get the child a phone. Do not get your phone for every milestone he or she accomplishes. You can find other ways to motivate the child to do more but let the idea of a phone come with a conviction that the child is matured enough.
2. Lack of Conviction:
Listen to and follow your instinct in matters like this because if things go south, you will be the one to blame and you do not want to regret making a mistake in the life of your child. Instead of getting your child a phone, mentor the child to have good communication skills, and teach the child to be smart and proactive. Take your time to groom the child for the world that he will meet when he begins to use a phone. Teaching your child to know the right things to do at the right time, the right question to ask and the right people to ask, the right place to go, the right time to go, and the right time to leave, and so on. If you think you will be easing yourself of a few stress like worrying about your child’s whereabouts, by getting the child a phone, have it in mind that having a phone will ease you of that stress but heap a bigger load of stress on you.
3. Wrong Decisions:
Another way to know your child isn’t ready to own a smartphone is by studying your child’s decision in certain situations. See if the kids can make the right decisions on their own. If your son is rude, uses harsh words, unremorseful, quick to rage, and slow to making peace, you should hold back from giving him a phone if you don’t want him to be a bully in the social space.
4. Inexperience:
What do you think will happen if you give a bone to a duck? Do you think it will crack it? Of course not! The same is the case with your child; do not give a phone to a child who knows nothing about a phone. Before getting a phone for your child, make sure the child can do basic things on a phone like making calls, sending texts, etc.
Children are very fragile and as a parent, you must watch and control what your child is exposed to. Take good care of your child because that is the way to take care of your future.