A tough decision!
by Michele Coakley
(Overland Park, KS)
Michele
When to get a cell phone for your child? My daughter is now 12 but she started asking for her own cell phone when she was 10. She was a fifth grader at the time and for the most part she was always with me. I attended her sports activities and I was her scout leader as well. She didn’t need a phone to communicate with me...it would have been purely for her enjoyment!
When she entered middle school it was a whole new environment. She was staying after school for math lab, going to activity nights, I was no longer her scout leader and she became way more involved in volleyball. She was also going over to friend’s houses after school which meant riding the bus home with them. I was okay with giving her my cell phone to carry for some of those times - but it required me to stay home in case she called!
One day I ran out to the grocery store and realized if she called home I wouldn’t be there. I knew then it was time for her own phone. We looked into adding an additional line but it came out to almost $50 bucks a month! Another mom introduced me to kajeet and so I researched them.
We purchased a phone and the $14.99 a month plan. It has been a great thing for us! I don’t have to worry about her going over her minutes or accessing adult content on the web. And she just texts me if her plans change. It has really given her a sense of independence and responsibility. We have been really pleased with the service Kajeet provides and recently upgraded her phone!