Smartphones have become near-universal among children, with up to 91% of 11-year-olds owning one. Here's what to consider when deciding if your child is ready for one.
First of all, my sons are fortunate to have parents that rarely use their phones. They’ve seen some of their peers, for the past 3 or 4 years, using phones incessantly and can’t understand why they’re wasting their time.
We have always set limits with media intake (PS5, PC gaming, YouTube, etc) and have explained to them why. So, they understand that their minds/emotions/friendships are developing and too much media intake can interfere with it.
As a family, we try to spend as much time outdoors as possible. We go for long nature walks, mountain hikes, swimming, car camping, etc. Their closest friends share similar restrictions with media intake and most of them would rather be riding bikes or playing school sports.
They asked us when it would be appropriate to have a phone. Our answer was when they are able to pay for it themselves. They didn’t complain and agreed.
First of all, my sons are fortunate to have parents that rarely use their phones.
This a thousand times. Smartphones are toxic in a way general-purpose computers aren’t, in that they’re attention-grabbing addiction machines. The notification is a curse upon mankind.
I have peers in their mid thirties whom it would be a miricle if they left their phone in their pocket for more than 30 minutes. My average phone screen time per day is < 1.5 hours…lower on weekends surprisingly. And people can’t comprehend how.
It’s simply eliminating all non-critical notifications, uninstalling everything that isn’t a strict need. Yes, I probably browse on Firefox more than I want, but at least I’m not doomscrolling through 3-5 infinite social media feeds for hours on end.
First of all, my sons are fortunate to have parents that rarely use their phones. They’ve seen some of their peers, for the past 3 or 4 years, using phones incessantly and can’t understand why they’re wasting their time.
We have always set limits with media intake (PS5, PC gaming, YouTube, etc) and have explained to them why. So, they understand that their minds/emotions/friendships are developing and too much media intake can interfere with it.
As a family, we try to spend as much time outdoors as possible. We go for long nature walks, mountain hikes, swimming, car camping, etc. Their closest friends share similar restrictions with media intake and most of them would rather be riding bikes or playing school sports.
They asked us when it would be appropriate to have a phone. Our answer was when they are able to pay for it themselves. They didn’t complain and agreed.
This a thousand times. Smartphones are toxic in a way general-purpose computers aren’t, in that they’re attention-grabbing addiction machines. The notification is a curse upon mankind.
I have peers in their mid thirties whom it would be a miricle if they left their phone in their pocket for more than 30 minutes. My average phone screen time per day is < 1.5 hours…lower on weekends surprisingly. And people can’t comprehend how.
It’s simply eliminating all non-critical notifications, uninstalling everything that isn’t a strict need. Yes, I probably browse on Firefox more than I want, but at least I’m not doomscrolling through 3-5 infinite social media feeds for hours on end.