Is okay to give my 8 year old a cellphone?

Question

He keeps begging for a cellphone. I don't know if he is mature enough to have one. Most of his friends have cellphones. I want my son to fit in his school enviroment, but I still think that an elementary school child shouldn't have a cellphone. I like walk him to school and pick him up, but he is asking me to leave him alone in the school and give him a cellphone to call me when he is ready to be picked up. Am I being an over protective mom? I know we live in 2008, and technology is part of our lives, but I still think is absurd to give a child a cellphone. He is a good boy and gets excellent grades at school, but I'm afraid that he is going to be corrupted by other children. I recently saw a prepaid kid cellphone at Best Buy, but my son wants a regular cellphone because all his friends have blackberries and whatever. He fears that his friends are going to laugh at him if he gets the kajeet, or something like that. How can I make him understand that is okay not to have it?

Answer 1

He is EIGHT! If you think it is absolutely necessary to get him a cellphone, only buy one that is prepaid and the numbers are preprogrammed (on the Firefly you can call 4 preset numbers).

Do NOT buy him a Blackberry or a "normal" phone!

Answer 2

there is no reason a 8 yr old schould have a cell ph for no real reason. if hes in danger then OK. but not just bc hes begging.  ur not being too over protective ur just being a mom.

Answer 3

A child that our kids play with is 8 years old and when he comes over I see that he has a cell phone so that his mother knows where he is and can call him to come home.  It is NOT his cell phone, it is hers that he uses when he goes out on his bike in the neighborhood.  I dont think a kid needs a cell phone at school at all.  Its just another gadget, another BILL that you dont need in this RECESSION that we're having.

Answer 4

It depends really, Because, if he's gone from you quite A lot, you might want to give him one for EMERGENCYS ONLY, but if he wants one, JUST BECAUSE his friends have one, He has no reason, and he's listening to peer pressure. It dosent make you cool to be like EVERYONE else. :) hope this helps

Answer 5

No cellphone. An eight year old child should never be anywhere that he will need a cell phone.

Every single kid I know in elementary through middle school who has a cell phone has found themselves left in unsupervised places and situations because the parents came to rely on the cellphone as a kind of safety net. A cell phone is not a substitute for adult supervision.

If the kid has a cell phoen then you will be tempted to let him go places alone that you otherwise would not---and he will ask you more and more "don't worry I'll just call on the phone" will become a much-repeated phrase.

I have seen 9-12 year old kids in places without adults to watch over them---when they should NOT have been alone there. They all had cell phones. IMO a cellphone is a lovely way to call for help after you've been molsted or mistreated---it is a lousy way to prevent a kid from getting hurt.

Sorry if this sounds harsh, I just worry about a couple of girls I know :(

Tell him no and if his friends give him grief he needs to learn how to brush it off. Better to learn NOW how to stand up to peer pressure, right?

Good luck :)

Answer 6

I think it's too d**n young. You even think so... you said so in your own question... so there's your answer... and if the opposing argument is that you want your kid to 'fit in' then suck it up, because that's a pretty lame reason for a parent to want their kid to have something. Personally... I can't stand those things.

Answer 7

Be strong and say NO! He's 8 years old for heavens sake. That is crazy! He should just be hanging out and having fun at his age. Sign him up for school sports, craft centers, or the local YMCA.  Are they going to start texting too? Just think 3 yrs. ago and he would have 5!

Answer 8

you should think about it my sister has one and shes eights she responsible, but first she started off with a pre-paid phone and onces she proved to be responsible they got her a line and a simple phone so think about but him to the test you never know until you try.

Answer 9

i would stick to your guns about the cellphone , and if he really wants one and he keeps bugging for you for one  , make him do things around the house , or for your neighbors to earn money to buy it for himself .

Answer 10

Simply tell him no. There is absolutely no reason for an 8 year old to have a cell phone.

Answer 11

no! pls for the sake of innocence and humanity don't give him a cell phone

Answer 12

Tell him that you are not concerned with other children, just with yours. Cellphones at his age with the type of supervision you are providing are ridiculous. Tell him that you will re-visit the subject in about 5 yrs.

Answer 13

you should get him a prepaid really cheap one and only put a few minutes on it, then if he loses it its not the end of the world and you know he needs to wait. if he has it for a while and is doing good with it and you think he's ready you can get him one

Answer 14

Are you kidding me? What the heck does an 8 year old need a cell phone for? Since it's your child asking for it, I'm sure he doesn't want one of those child phones that only calls mom, dad, grandma, and the police. Unless it's one of those, forget about it. Sign him up for some sports and let him socialize there. What does an 8 year old have to talk about on a cell phone? Aren't the parents organizing the social events at that age? Tell your son the truth, the only parents who would let their 8 year old have a cell phone are out of their minds. He's 8, tell him it'll keep him from growing up big and strong.  I'm not sure he's old enough to understand a rational explanation. Who cares if he cries for a day or two? He'll get over it. Like I said, buy him a football and send him to the park with his friends.

Answer 15

You have to do what you feel is right.  The main reason he wants one so badly is peer pressure.  "All his friends have one" is not a reason to get your son a phone.

My son is 7 and asks for one too.  I tell him when he's older.  Sometimes if he goes down the block to play after school, I let him take my cell phone with him so I can check on him and call him when he needs to come home.  He feels pretty cool carrying it that way.

Answer 16

simply tell him no he cant have a cell phone

Answer 17

Wait. "They all have cell phones". 8yrs old? in like grade 3? I go by an elementary school to get to my house from high school every day, and not once have i seen a child in grade 3 with a cell phone. hes eight years old. His social life is called recess. I say dont let him have one till he can pay for it. If something happens at school, the school will call. If something happens at a friends house, the friends mum will call. no big deal. He doesnt need one.

Answer 18

i think he is still too young tons of 12 year old guys i no dont have one. there really is no need to have one until you drive.

but its up to u

Answer 19

Really.

You should get him one.

But, not ot overboard.

Like maybe a Virgin Mobile?

If anyone asks say it's new from... Japan. xD

What if he got in danger?

Cellphones are needed.

Just tell him it's just for emergancies and if he overuses it than just take it away.

Answer 20

An eight year old doesn't NEED a cellphone.  tell him that if he can purchase his own and can pay for the plan then he can get one.

Answer 21

you are the parent tell him no and stick to it..

Answer 22

h**l no dont give him a cell phone... its just a distraction he will be on it all the time and messing with it during class and his grades will begin to drop...

all the other kids that have them just dont have very "stong" parents.

Answer 23

I think an 8 yr old with a cell phone is ridiculous. And, even worse, elementary age children with Blackberries? I mean, come on, I don't even have a blackberry! I would tell him just plain out No. I could understand if he walked home alone, or you were constantly late picking him up, or he were to be in situations where he would be alone, with no other way to contact anyone... but just b/c his friends have one? No way. I don't think that you are being over protective. I am not sure how you would make him understand that it's not okay to have it when there are other parents who are allowing this. Just tell him that when he gets to middle school, or gets a job, that he can then have a cell phone. Tell him that it is no reflection on his behavior... wait what am I saying... is he even going to understand that? He's 8! Sorry if I am sounding rude, I am not trying to. I am just so blown away by this!

Answer 24

you must live in a rich community, because first off he's 8, secondly hes not going to text his friends, lastly what a waste of money. He should get a cellphone when he is 13.

Answer 25

it teaches him to fall into peer pressure if anyone does drugs should he that is spoiling him

Answer 26

Don't be afraid to say no.  I have a 7 year old, and he wont be ready for one for a long time!!

If the other kids make fun, give him some witty things to say "I dont have one because MY mom TRUSTS me." .... "I dont have one because my mom doesn't keep me on a leash!" ..... "I don't want to start a brain tumor this young, no thanks!"

Answer 27

NO!   there are medical precautions.   Brain damage!  RADIATION!

Answer 28

I think you are right, kids today are given to many things at too young of an age. If they want everything, let them earn it, just like you do, if you want something.

Answer 29

You're the parent, and if you say no cell phone until he's older he needs to get over it.  You don't owe him an explanation, just tell him he can have one when he's older.

Answer 30

maybe you should go to att website and they have refurbished cellphones and there cheap nothing wrong with them and i think they might have blackberrys and you can put it on prepaid and no one has to know

Answer 31

h**l no. He is too young for that kind of reponsibility. Period.