When is the right age to buy your kids a cell phone?

When parents decide to buy their children cell phones, they have practically handed them an endless source of important and dangerous information, always if left unchecked. Such a decision is controversial as a certain age for the period when children should have their own personal phone has not yet been accepted.

Common Sense Media, an organization that promotes safe technology and media for children, founded by James Pearson Steyer, a civil rights attorney, professor and author who makes different assessments based on the age of children, writes that there is no right age to buy the children a cell phone, but there are other important factors.

Sommon Sense Media emphasizes that age is not as important as a child's maturity level, ability to follow home and school rules, and sense of responsibility.

“Buying a phone is a very personal and individual decision, but many kids start looking for (and getting) one as early as elementary school. This type of peer pressure makes it harder for parents to delay phone access. When you hand your kids cell phones, you're giving them powerful communication and media tools. They can create text, images and videos that can be shared widely and uploaded to websites instantly. Parents really need to consider whether their children are ready to use phones responsibly and respectfully.”

Factors to consider are:

1. Are they responsible? So they let you know when they leave the house? Do they show up at the time they say they will? Do they follow family and school rules?

2. Do they tend to lose things? 

3. Do they need a cell phone?

4. Do you think they will use the cell phone responsibly? For example, would they text during class?

5. Do they agree to have a schedule to use the cell phone? Are they willing to talk about the apps they're going to download?

6. Do they agree not to keep their phone in the bedroom after they go to bed at night?

7. Will they use it for worthwhile purposes and not to harass others?