I’ll state at the outset that I have issues with little kids using grownup devices — cell phones, ipods, iphones, Blackberries.Perhaps my children at 6, 10, and 13 were born too late to have had the opportunity to play with these grownup devices at 1, 2, or 3 years old. In the early days, I never let my kids play with my cell phone at any time. Mommy’s cellphone was tucked away in the diaper bag behind the gate.
Or, maybe it is because when my oldest child was little many of my friends did not even have a cell phone…I know can you even imagine being without one? The ones like me with a cellphone would not have dreamed of giving a phone to our 1-year-olds. One of my 1-year-olds would have mashed it up and spit it back out. Figuratively speaking, of course.
I don’t understand the rush to give children grownup devices. Why the hurry? Why not wait until the children are preteens? When my kids were little, if a toy did not interest them it might have been thrown aside in favor of a new toy. Bye bye cellphone.
Why not let little kids use a Leapster — for the 5 and under set — or Nintendo DS — for the 6 and up group — or any other handheld game suitable for a younger kid? Or better yet ditch the electronic games for the little ones in favor of Fisher Price toys or Leap Frog push button toys. My youngest had a kid-sized version of a cellphone. Kids are only young once — why rush the growing up process by allowing little kids to use Mom/Dad’s cellphone or other device?
With the increased use of electronic devices by little kids, is there an increase in the number of repairs or new phones needed? I have enough instances of breaking my own phone — don’t need my kid to add to my track record. Hello, currenty Razr phone with tape on the front. A previous phone had tape on the broken hinge. Sad!
I would imagine more phones, BB, iphones will be broken or damaged by kids dropping them or spilling things on them. One of my kids dropped my cell phone on the driveway. Picture me explaining the situation at the Verizon store. Another kid stirred a glass of OJ with a cordless phone. Grrr…on both counts.
Can sites be blocked on an iphone? I can only imagine what sites my kids would have found if allowed to play with my phone. A toddler wouldn’t notice if an adult website popped up, but an elementary school kid would notice AND might not tell mom or dad right away.
Do you let your toddler/child use your iphone, cellphone? At what age did you start?
