How Old Should Your Children Be Before You Give Them a Cellphone?

Today, you can see children as young as seven years old with cell phones.  Is this age too young for a child to have a phone?  Some would think that it is, but the truth of the matter is that it all depends on your situation and your child.

Determining the right age to give your children a cell phone is something that each parent will have to determine on his or her own.  There is no magical age that makes children responsible enough to have a cell phone.  It all depends upon each individual child.

If your children have more responsibilities around the house, and if they are at an age when they have practice and rehearsal after school, they may be ready for a cell phone.  Children who are comfortable with technology and who do not have a habit of losing things can probably handle the use of a cell phone better than those who lose everything you give them.

Make sure that you let your children know that the cell phone is not to be used to download unlimited ringtones, as those things cost money. 

You should be able to find some relatively cheap phones at the cellphone store that are the best bet for your children’s first phone.  Children do not need to have the latest model of the iPhone since, there is always a chance that they could lose it or drop it.  Buying your kids a cheap yet reliable old-style phone is the best bet for their first phone.  Tell them that if you want a better model, they will have to save up with their own money and buy it.

To help your children understand responsibility a bit more, make sure that you have them deduct a portion of their allowance each week as their “phone bill.”