{Note: This image only shows part of the list!}
How do you decide when your child is ready for a cell phone or a personal device?
When we started our Family Tech Think Tank we knew we needed to have a discussion with our kids about when the right time would be to get a cell phone or personal device.
After some research, we were inspired to create a list of behaviors that demonstrated emotional maturity and responsibility. As we brainstormed together, the kids helped us come up with a great list of ideas! (Tyler and I threw in our two cents as well.)
The result? A list of 12 questions for kids and teens to ask themselves when they feel they are ready for a personal device or a cell phone.
It’s unlikely any kid will be able to achieve 100%. That isn’t the goal. The goal is for that child to be able to answer “almost always” for most of the questions before they are ready for their own device or cell phone.
You may have noticed that I’m only sharing a screenshot of HALF of the list. 🙂 If you have already signed up for our Tech Think Tank then this list will show up in your inbox a few days later.
If you haven’t signed up for the Think Tank, you can still do so by going to our homepage right here! Enter your name and email address in the yellow box at the top of the page. This handy list will make it to you a few days later.
You can print it out, or use the questions as a springboard to come up with your own list as you work through your own Family Tech Think Tank with your kids! If you’d like more specifics on how to know if your child is ready for a cell phone or personal device, check out our article, Ready…or Not? A Cell-Phone-Ready Checklist to Use with Your Child.
Also, we don’t recommend starting your child out with a smart phone in most cases. Check out our thoughts on that in this post: Handing Your Child a Cell Phone: A Simple Four-Phase Process You May Not Have Considered.
We’d love to know—how you decide when your child is ready for a personal device? Please share in the comments below!
