We’re not in the business of telling you what to do for your family. You need to decide what will work best for you. We’re in the business of protecting children < > from the dangers that lurk online and supporting parents through the journey, so you can keep the communication going. Technology is not going anywhere but we need to ask if our children have the maturity and emotional intelligence to handle free reign access to the internet. We believe strongly that no child should have access to social media platforms till they are 13 or above. Each platform has its own age restrictions. We do not want our children in chat rooms, no matter what game they are playing or with who.
If safety is your primary concern for gifting a phone, have you considered a smart watch?
It allows certain numbers to be called, some have SOS facilities and tracking. This is a great solution for worried parents, as a watch is not as easy to snatch from an unsuspecting child. There are some great options to choose from, decide what suits your lifestyle and budget.
See some smart phone options
Should you decide a cell phone is needed here are some guidelines to help you manage this access to the world wide web better.
Cell phone guide to control its use:
- Purchase internet monitoring tools
This will help you better monitor what they are doing online, set filters and time limits. Please note as children get wiser, there are ways to bypass the monitoring tool. - Ensure you install a kid-friendly browser
There is a range of browsers designed to filter out inappropriate content. Ensure you stall this on your child’s phone, it will help lessen the worry. - Keep access to the phone in a public space, like living area or TV room. They must never be left alone or unsupervised till they are much older.
- The hone must never be taken to the bedroom when its nighttime, it will disrupt their sleep and the temptation to play will be too great.
- Try to limit access and make game time a reward for a job well done, or chores completed. Make game time a special time. It’s best to keep game time to no more than 20 minutes depending on their age.
- Do not allow downloads, you can edit this functionality in settings.
- Update your privacy settings. This should be a regular occurrence across all devices.
- Sporadically check and clear history on their browsers.
If you are gifting a phone, empower your child with the skills to protect themselves, spot fake news, deal with cyberbullies, what information to share and how to behave online. No matter what you decide to buy for your children, remember their time with you is precious so enjoy every minute of it!