Generation Smartphone: A Guide for Parents of Tweens & Teens

Generation Smartphone: A Guide for Parents of Tweens & Teens

If you have a school-age child and you haven’t heard that question yet, then be prepared because it’s coming. It used to be that we could wait until our kids were in high school before the issue of a mobile phone came up but not anymore. Now, it’s not uncommon for 11-year-olds or even younger kids to be walking around with a state-of-the-art smartphone.


It seems like smartphones are very common with kids and families these days especially with affordable sharable family plans being offered its hard to say ‘no’ to a smartphone for your child. So, are kids, especially younger ones really ready for a smartphone? Only parents can decide if and when their kids are ready for a smartphone and there are many arguments for and against getting them one, especially at a young age. If you look at the statistics total smartphone sales in 2011 exceeded PC sales where 63% of parents with 3 or more family members call their smartphone the mobile command centre of the family. Further stats show that 77% of teens ages 12-17 own a currently own a smartphone. And so, if you’re considering getting one for your child, you might want to ask yourself some of these questions:

  1. Will this device help keep my child safe?
  2. Will my child be a responsible smartphone user?
  3. Will they agree to not send inappropriate texts or photos.
  4. Will they agree to turn it off in class and not ring up a huge bill?
  5. Will my child be okay with me using parental controls?

Even with all that in mind, if your child is aware of the risks and does their best to stay safe, it’s important for parents to be able to monitor texts, photos, apps, and browsing, block inappropriate content, and use location tracking for safety reasons. A good online resource parents can check out is the website www.stopthinkconnect.org.


If you decide to get one, you should definitely get a smartphone  and stay away from outdated technology like a flip phone or feature phone.  With that in mind, you really should not go out and get the latest’s and greatest high-end smartphones because your child is a child and will almost certainly drop the device. Being a classroom teacher it’s not uncommon to see on a daily basis kids carrying around a smashed phones with or without cases. So, with that in mind, one option is to pass on your old device to them when you upgrade or there are lots of affordable  “unlocked’ smartphones available for under $200 that should meet their needs. The Moto G (3rd gen) ,Galaxy Grand Prime, and HTC Desire 626s are just three that come to mind that are sub-200 off-contract phones currently available on either  Bell, Koodo, Telus, Virgin Mobile and Wind Mobile.


Remember getting an unlocked phone means you are not tied to a contract and so you can then sign-up for a ‘pay-as-you-go’ plan where you can pay month-by-month to help determine how much data you will need.  Also, plans that allow family members to share minutes and data may also be an affordable option. So, if you are thinking you want to share your plan with them then there are lots of older models, like the iPhone 5c or 5s or the Galaxy S4 that you can add to your existing contract and will cost you less than $50 for the phone.  Plans and pricing have changed over the last year and so you might want to check with all providers so as the get the best deal. A good resource I commonly recommend is the website http://www.comparecellular.ca. They allow you to compare plans, phones, and features for most of the providers here in Canada.


Sex, drugs and grades used to be the big 3 family discussions with kids. Now it’s important to add smartphone use and safety to that list. Regardless of the make or model of the smartphone you decide to get, taking time to discuss smartphone pros and cons will send the message to your kids that you trust them enough to provide them a portable smartphone computer but need them to understand how to use it safely and appropriately. One final resource I could recommend is the website www.nqmobilefamily.com. They provide some really good information on using smartphones for kids.



Commercial – The Smartphone Generation

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