All her friends apparently have phones already and now she wants one too. I feel like shes too young but I also don't want her to feel left out. My wife thinks we should wait until middle school. Not sure what the right call is here. When did you guys give your kids phones and did you regret it?
I've got four kids and I can tell you the FOMO is the hardest part to push back on. Maybe there's a middle ground like a basic phone for emergencies only? Just a thought.
Ten is tough because yeah, her friends probably do have phones but that doesn't mean she needs one yet. We held out with our oldest until 12 and she survived just fine. The left out feeling is real though.
Ten is legitimately too young. Yeah all her friends probably have phones but that doesn't mean it's the right call. We waited until 12 for our oldest and it worked out fine. There's just too much stuff they're not ready for at 10.
FOMO is real but so are the problems that come with giving a 10 year old a phone. The social media stuff alone is a nightmare. My advice: get her a basic phone for calls and texts only if she really needs one, but hold off on a smartphone.
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Just because her friends have them doesn't mean the parents made the right call. Stand your ground on this one. You'll thank yourself in a few years when she's not addicted to her phone at age 12.