Cell phones can be both positive and negative for children and teenagers. While parents may be reassured to know their child has a way to communicate in an emergency, cell phones can quickly result in a lengthy bill and a safety hazard. Setting ground rules for children and teens before buying a cell phone benefits kids and parents alike.
Time Guideline
It's hard to monitor children on cell phones when they are making or receiving calls past their bedtime. Instructing children on appropriate and inappropriate phone times can remedy this problem. Have your child turn off the phone at bedtime or take it away each night until morning. It also helps to set no-call times during the day, such as when the child is doing her homework or eating dinner with family. If you are not comfortable with taking the cell phone, let your child know that you will be checking the bill for the time stamp on each call.
Minute Limits
Discuss with your child how many minutes per month is reasonable and stick to the limit. The Keep Kids Healthy website recommends that your child's first cell phone have a prepaid plan so that kids cannot go over the minute limit. Cell phones that are not prepaid generally have a feature that alerts the owner when they are close to their minute limit. Discuss consequences of going over the allotted minutes with your kids and make sure they understand this is not acceptable.
Driving Ban
Make sure your child knows how dangerous it is to use their cell phone while driving, whether it be talking or text messaging. The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia website says adults should emphasize the positive effects of staying off the phone while driving, rather than highlight potential negative consequences of cell phone use while driving. This includes reminding them that being off the phone: allows better attention to the road, less possibilities of an accident and being a better law abiding citizen. Remind them to complete calls or text messages before their drive, know all directions before turning the ignition key rather than relying on a phone GPS and to pull over to a safe place to answer an important phone call.
Also, make sure you and your teen know the laws in your state regarding cell phones. Some states, such as California, ban cell phones while driving unless the device includes a hands-free earpiece.
Camera Rules
Since camera and video are common features in cell phones, it helps to talk to your child and set rules about what is appropriate usage of these features. You may want to disable this feature on your child's phone or buy one that does not include the camera. Also make sure your child knows that taking or receiving pictures of a disrobed or partially disrobed person could be considered pornography and is illegal.
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