Should I give my 10 year old a phone or hold out?

R

3w ago1 min read

He's asking and all his friends have one. His mom thinks he's too young but I'm wondering if I'm being overprotective. We could set it up with parental controls and no social media yet. He's responsible and gets good grades. But I also know about the dopamine stuff and how phones are designed to be addictive. Any advice on what age you gave yours their first phone? Also what controls are actually worth using?

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Comments(3)

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BBen H.Regular3w ago

The parental controls help but honestly they're not foolproof. My son figured his way around pretty quick. Maybe compromise with a basic phone that just calls and texts for now?

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MMichael H.New Dad3w ago

We went through this with our oldest and I'd say wait if you can. All his friends having one is real pressure but 10 feels young to me. We did 12 with heavy parental controls and it worked out fine.

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PPete Y.Regular3w ago

I'm with your wife on this one. The FOMO is tough but he'll survive without it for a couple more years and honestly life's easier without managing screen time battles at 10.

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