Nowadays, the world we live in really seems to be over-run by technology in all areas, and this also means that children are basically growing up with technology being a huge part of their lives from a very young age, so it’s important for parents to understand that this isn’t something that’s going to change as much as we’d perhaps prefer to not have our children surrounded by technology 24/7.

One of the biggest issues that many parents are facing right now when it comes to children and technology is deciding when the time is right to get them a phone, and the truth is although this is entirely for you to decide, there are certain things that can help you make the decision a little bit easier.

So, in this post we’re going to share with you how to decide if your child is ready for a phone or not.

Are they responsible?

Just as adults do, it’s important that children are able to learn and understand the importance of responsibility in life, and getting a phone is something that will be a good thing to teach them about responsibility. For example, phones are expensive and they need to be able to appreciate and understand this and not just be careless with where they leave the phone lying around or by treating it like it’s something that can be replaced quickly and easily if they break it.

Responsibility is something that children should be taught from an early age because it’s an essential life skill and one that will serve them well in adult-hood, so if you see that your child is behaving responsibly with other things in their lives, then it could be a good indication that they’re ready to have a phone.

Will they appreciate it?

Appreciation is a big part of deciding whether or not your child is ready for a phone because many children simply don’t understand the value of things from a financial perspective or how long it takes to make the money that goes into buying something like a phone. However, it’s definitely the responsibility of parents to teach this to children, and the earlier the better - things like looking after their toys, taking care of their room, etc are all things that can be done to teach children about the importance of responsibility.

Do they follow rules?

When it comes to technology, just because it’s something that’s going to play a big part in their lives, doesn’t mean there shouldn’t be any rules in place, and so it’s important that, not only do you have some rules laid out for your children when it comes to their phone, such as letting them know you’ll be installing something like Family Orbit on the phone and they have to follow your rules in terms of when they use the phone and what kinds of social media they use, etc.

Are they old enough?

Although it seems like even toddlers nowadays are using phones, it’s obviously not the case for the most part, and if you’re trying to figure out if your child is old enough for a phone, then a good way to figure this out is by looking at things like if they walk to and from school on their own and if they do things without you such as going out with friends.