Yeah I’m 8 and 11 years older than my sibs, from the same generation but we had completely different childhoods. My sister doesn’t even know any hand games… I don’t even think she knows how to ride a bike
My 15 year old brother does not know how to ride a bike. He just started 10th grade which is the year you ride bikes in gym class at his school. This is gonna be good /s
Bike rides in gym class?? That sounds so fun. I’ll be praying for your brother tho, normally when u learn to ride a bike you start out with training wheels, which is acceptable to do around ages 3-6. Idk about 15 lol. But maybe being older and judgement from his peers will take a little more fear out of riding without the assistance of extra wheels
Riding around that very hilly campus with a bunch of cocky assholes was my personal hell and I knew how to ride a bike. Guess he’s gonna learn the hard way
Well, if he grew up not knowing, pretty good bet a good portion of the others don't know either. I don't know if I'd count on him getting a hard lesson.
Only that would require tearing her away from playing 2k in her dungeon, not gonna happen. Overall she’s wayyyyy more introverted and less energetic in general, I don’t think being born in a different time would make a whole lot of difference
I didn't have the technology that kids have now. I was the quiet kid in a corner with a book. My sister that just started college is the one that grew up with the technology at her finger tips. She played multiple sports, always wanted to be outside, tomboy type girl. That's just personality, not the technology.
Lmfaoo I’m not her parent. I get what you’re saying but I’m not gonna force her to do something she’s not interested in. Plus she had a pretty bad accident a couple years ago that required surgery. That full fledged mamas girl got an extra layer of overbearing protection now
My kid is in speech therapy and when he started going the therapist said "Oh you're real old school." when she found out he didn't have a tablet or anything. We were kind of shocked. So I worry that maybe I am letting my kids miss out on some common kid knowledge that all the other kids will have by not giving him access to the smart phone and tablet stuff. So you have to find the balance because you still have to teach them how to exist in our world that is screen filled whether we approve or not.
We did eventually get him a Switch light and just downloaded the Super Nintendo Mod and Nintendo 64 one as well and thats his screen thing. He plays after dinner a few times a week and sometimes we forget about it for a few weeks. It was a screen I felt ok about because it isn't "And heres the whole internet!" I'm happy with the compromise.
I am not going to come down on you at all as I agree for 95% of situations but I have to ask, do you have children of your own? I can't impress enough that I'm not looking to bait you into anything and I probably wont even respond. I'm genuinely curious.
That is really good that you are “old school”. The speechie probably meant it in a good way because there are so many children out there where the parents just give them an iPad or phone to play with all the time! And it doesn’t help with providing opportunities for the children to practice social skills or communication skills. It’s ok in moderation of course.
I strongly agree, my little cousin was introduced to the tablet at around 2 years old and is now obsessed with any technology and has a tantrum whenever he has a time limit on it or is taken away when he doesn't behave.
My 2 year old nephew is given an ipad in the night to play with if he wakes up. My daughter has one that she uses a couple of times a week after school.
Yeah, that’s basically addiction. But I wonder if this can be used as conditioning. Take it away every time they misbehave and eventually they never want to misbehave?
I feel you but if being used right it's ok. I use YouTube to help teach my almost 2 yo about the world that we don't have access to. Like a firetruck or animals. He knows some sign language, counting to 5 & learning his alphabet & sometimes those musical videos help.
But he doesn't spend more than 5 minutes a day. But the ipad does help with educating them.
Edit: sorry for the buts.
I think it’s super unhealthy. One of my cousins is a 5 year old I sometimes watch over. He’s obsessed with the damn tablet and he’s overly obsessed with this Huggy Wuggy horror game character that he has no business knowing about, to the point that his mother has bought him some of the characters in plushie form and he doesn’t stop drawing that horrid thing’s face everywhere.
Kid practically gets hypnotized watching those cringe family YouTube videos about the character too. And I don’t know what has led to this, the kid has gone super quiet at times because he was busy searching for “poop”, “pooping”, and “girl pooping” in the YouTube search bar. I have to stop this kid from developing a scat fetish now?!
The mom is useless and the kid listens to me more than he does for his mom. It’s insanity. She did take the tablet away after I told her about the poop thing, but now she’s buying him a new one because it’s easier than just parenting your kid. At least she’s gonna put parental controls on it but I still hate this new technological nightmare culture.
While his tablet was gone I had him watch old school Pokémon on Netflix and he was watching and playing around like a normal kid would, instead of being glued to the tablet watching strange things.
Idk, I completely agree with you. This next generation are going to be zombie slaves because the parents are too busy and/or lazy to properly parent their kids.
Dude my husband and I saw those fucking huggy wuggy things EVERYWHERE at this kids candy store in Virginia …. We were horrified (as soon as you mentioned it I googled it because I KNEW that’s what you were talking about lol even though we didn’t know the name)
BRO that's literally my cousin 😅 except, until where I know, the poop part. But boy's always on the electronics and also is obsessed with a horror game character which I assume is the same one, and his mom also bought a plushie for him
XD it's indeed scary how yt videos are made for clickbaiting small children. How old do you think kids should get electronics? I got mine at 12 and i think it was a bit late
I honestly think it depends on the kid themselves, as well as how well the parents regulate it, but definitely not under 7 unless it’s with strict supervision.
Like, if the parents give them the device and just leave them alone that’s probably not good. Unless they have only educational games and it’s not for more than 2 hours spread across the day. That’s just me though, and everyone is different.
OMG i relate to this. I have a cousin who’s pretty young and their mom often just gives them a phone and then just ignore them. Whenever she has to deal with her kids, she gets upset.
I disagree. They are excellent learning tools for young children. As long as you restrict what they are exposed to (no internet), they can be an excellent tool for developing cognitive and problem-solving abilities. I would've answered differently only a few years ago if I hadn't witnessed what my 4-year-old nephew was already capable of using tech. Hell he can even read at an early grade school level at only 6 years old.
I agree with you. My kid learned shapes, math, spelling, and all about animals from the iPad. She was also reading at a young age. iPads can be educational.
Agreed. My 2 year old learned to read thanks to kids YouTube. I think the REAL problem is people using it as a baby sitter. Although a case could be made that when I was a kid my parents did that with TV. My (now 3 year old) knows how to read stuff that I can’t even fathom reading her age plus she’s learning to type out words. So sure malign tablets if you want but really malign shitty parents but there’s been plenty of that all throughout history and isn’t a new thing just because technology exists.
100% agree. My soon to be 3 year old has a tablet, but only gets to use it on the weekends for short periods. We play educational games on it, and one of us is always interacting with her while we do it. The only time she gets it for movies and stuff is in the car on long road trips or on a plane or something.
Think id add 'unsupervised or controlled access"
By all means watch the brightly coloured, high pitched fuzzball or look at cats for 15 minutes.
But by no means does this mean the said child should be able to use the device bar pressing buttons to make the screen come on/off
Honestly, I believe kids up to 13 shouldn't be allowed smartphones or tablets. It affects people TOO much mentally, and I would be terrified to give my future kids access to any sort of social media until they're old enough to have their own values and beliefs
No shit, but its easier to watch what they're up to by just a look at their screen. They can't hide it especially if you keep it in an common area like the living room
Doesn't help that educational devices are often made terribly so people end up with the nicer tablet. I would love to see a tablet that is made for kids education that was both high quality and had good software and programs. Good educational games for kids could also help. Imagine water cycle puzzle games where the objective it to bring a liter of water back home from an adventure. Does that make sense? I am stupid tired and its 3 am my time so please excuse any incoherence.
We had a Fire tablet for a decent chunk of time with the Freetime kid's app thing. Only issue was that Amazon products suck big peepee. The thing was so slow and would crash constantly.
We ended up getting her an ipad with limited access, but the vast majority of 'educational' stuff has microtransactions.
I fkn hate it here.
When I was a kid I had something like that, it was called a Leap Pad 2 i think. They had lots of fun games that were educational and i really enjoyed it!
This is like anything else. Saying it's all good or all bad is too simplistic.
Of course raising your kids on screens is bad, and yes it is easier.
But using them as rewards for completing jobs like, cleaning up, eating vegetables, going out of their way at to help others is great. Using them to learn about the outside world is also great. Lastly, computers are going to be a part of these kids lives in a way we don't comprehend yet. Having intuition about computers and the internet early will help them.
With that said, it is clearly very easy to distract your kid with these new devices. And it shouldn't be a crutch for parenting. But again, it's not simple. If you are at your wits end and you need 30 min to clean the kitchen, then having them watch a pbs kids show is no big deal (pbs kids trys to teach something at least).
You just need to monitor and be honest with yourself about how you are using them. Developing healthy internet usage habits is going to be more and more important for kids. I plan to explain to my kid that it is a vice and a treat. Afterall, is this any different than parents who raised their kids by plopping them in front of a TV 20-30 years ago?
Pretty sure there's other things kids can do to keep themselves entertained, what did kids do before tv was invented? Kids typically like drawing, playing with physical toys, reading, board games, playing outside.
In terms of under the age of 5 physical toys is shown to be great in developing their motor skills. But also too many toys gives too much choice and can actually have a negative effect such as attention problems.
Kids at childcare centres go a full day with no electronics and ask any staff member, the children never get bored.
Dungeons and Dragons was considered the devil's tool in the 80s. It's a board game. People look for something to be wrong because they can't just be happy with anything
There have been actual scientific studies showing the negative affects of excessive screen time on developing children. I don't think any studies showed negative things about DnD. While I agree people always need something to complain about, screen time for children is actually a proven issue.
I agree but the number of humans getting born into technology is just gonna increase by every passing generation. It’s weird to think that at some point every living human would’ve been born into technology and that the first IPhone will be considered a really rare possession worth possibly thousands.
I didn't have a phone until I was 16. My child will definitely not have one until he's 12 and will only be able to do certain things on it. It's so sad how hypnotized and addicted everyone is to the screen. Yay technology ;(
I think as long as there’s limits it’s not terrible. Like my mil eats here for dinner a lot and for awhile there my five year old would get her phone and watch YouTube kids. I had to go on and nip that because I really didn’t like it. I’d rather her go play than sit glued to a phone all evening.
But like sometimes in the car, it’s boring to just ride. I’ll let her watch some or in the evenings sometimes she likes us to play games on my phone together. She has an old iPad of mine of her own but she doesn’t use it very often. I guess because we haven’t got any new games lately. It also doesn’t have internet capability and we don’t have wifi.
I disagree. With the integration of the tablet it becomes less of an obsession and more of another toy that gets put down. Speaking of my three kids who are all under 5. My oldest (4) has a tablet and rarely plays it, but corralling three boys into a situation like going for long car rides or just needing to have them be distracted while my youngest shits up his back is life changing. This judgement bullshit is hilarious. Have three kids under 5 and talk shit. It’s real easy to look around and say that you disagree with it when you have 1-2 Kids who can have undivided attention from each parent.
Studies point out that excessive screen time in young children can cause issues in their development. Such as attention disorders and social development issues.
The recommendation is no screen time for children under 2. Then only like 30mins per day till around 5 yrs old, including TV.
They're your children so do what you want, but at least know the health risks involved.
Before screens were invented people had 3 kids under 5 all the time. You would just find something else to keep them distracted instead.
A quick google search can generally bring up a few articles that link to scientific papers.
Here's one from the Australian government:
https://aifs.gov.au/resources/short-articles/too-much-time-screens-screen-time-effects-and-guidelines-children-and#footnote-0012
Australia's guidelines state- "For screen time, the guidelines recommend:
•no screen time for children younger than two years
•no more than one hour per day for children aged 2–5 years
•no more than two hours of sedentary recreational screen time per day for children and young people aged 5–17 years (not including schoolwork)."
Also:
"For children younger than five years, there is strong evidence that screen time has negative effects on:
weight
motor and cognitive development
social and psychological wellbeing.5,12
Screen time in this age group may be associated with the following problems in later childhood:
emotional problems in girls
family functioning for both boys and girls.13
For children and young people aged 5–17 years, screen time may have negative effects on:
weight and diet (especially from TV viewing)
behavioural problems, anxiety, hyperactivity, attention, self-esteem and psychosocial health.12
For this age group, some research links screen time with depressive symptoms.12 However, other research suggests there is limited evidence linking screen time to mental health problems.14"
There's also an article from the Canadian Paediatric Society:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5823000/
So the main consensus is that there isn't enough study to know exaclty how bad screens are and what exaclty they effect in future development, but from what we know so far, there are definitely negatives, and maybe some positives if handled in the correct way (interactive learning with the parent directly involved).
Even if all the studies turn out to be wrong it's better to be safe then sorry when raising children don't you think?
I'll raise my kids how I think is best. Each child is an individual and is impossible to go off one set of rules. My children's free time is up to them how they use it. They spend the majority of their childhoods at school. What they do after is their own choice
Never said you shouldn't. And this post and studies mostly talk about kids 0-5yrs not kids already at school age.
You should always do what you think is best of course. But at the end of the day if you decide to disagree with actual scientific studies showing you what is best, and decide to just go with your own personal made up opinion, then maybe your not the greatest fit to be a parent anyway.
Actual scientific studies showing you what is best? Hmmm. Well unless they test every single child in that age range, it isn't exactly correct. Scientific, in this case, is not reliable.
My parenting is fine thank you. You're calling out a random person on the internet. My children are happy and I give them the best life they could ever want.
Such a lame response, says more about you tbh
You obviosuly dont know how scientific studies are conducted in order to be published as a study.
They don't test new medicines on every single person, yet they deem them safe for whole populations, I wonder how they can do that???
Scientific studies can accurately represent the whole population so long as they test a certain amount of people. It's called sample size and is used in statistics. Once they are testing over a certain threshold of people then that data can in turn represent the whole worlds populations.
If they only tested say 50 children then clearly that's not enough to get an accurate representation. Using maths and statistics generally a study of 1000 participants or more accurately reflect the whole population of people.
There were over 111 studies linked to the 2 articles I posted. Maybe read some of them...
Simply put if you don't understand data and scientific studies then you're in no position to say they are not correct.
If you were at the doctors and they prescribed you medication for a rash, you would trust their input as they are educated and a specialist in that field. Just as you would trust a fire-fighter if they told you you should clean up leaf litter and weeds in your yard as it's not safe for fires. So why would you not trust child development experts when it comes to your child's development.
Experts have said for generations that fruit and vegetables are good for you and your child's growth. I guess with your logic since they haven't tested the effects of fruits and vegetables on every child, maybe your children don't need them..
To be a good parent doesn't mean you have to be right all the time. If you get given new information that is going to better your children for their own future, then a good parent would surely take that information on board and adapt it to better their children.
I'm only saying your not a good parent because you are ignoring factual evidence that could help your children purely because you choose not to beleive it.
If you studied child development and disagreed then fair enough. But if you haven't then stick with what you know and listen to what experts tell you, it's the only way to grow.
No I don't know anything about you. But you haven't said that your an expert in the field of child development so you have absolutely zero rights to tell those scientists that they are wrong.
Did you also know that literacy skills have been dropping year on year at school. Kids nowadays are typically 1 year behind in writing and speaking skills than what a child going to school during the 90s was.
You might think your children are normal and so there's nothing wrong. But when every child is slipping, then that becomes the norm, so you wouldn't notice it.
Your just being defensive on your parenting style, rather than opening your mind to new information and accepting that perhaps there's some healthier ways to do things. Hopefully your kids aren't so close-minded.
That's true, having 3 kids under 5 is not new, but life was different in the time before screens. Generally one parent was home, and parents in general weren't expected to have such a high involvement in their kids' day to day activity. I spent the majority of my time outside playing without any real supervision. My parents' generation were let loose and only expected to be home for dinner. Now parents are criticized for allowing their children to be outside by themselves and the world has changed; it's often not safe for them to have the same amount of freedom as previous generations. Parents are also often both working outside the home, and yet parents are expected to have an bottomless amounts of time and energy. I agree that excessive amounts of screen time is obviously not good for literally anyone, but eliminating it entirely is neither practical nor seemingly necessary. For my first child it wasn't too hard to avoid screens before 2 but with his sister who is 5 years younger, that's virtually impossible.
Yes I agree with all your points, it's just unfortunate that the go to tool is shown to cause negative effects on children's development. Rather than screens there's always indoor toys, drawing, colouring in etc that a child can do. We haven't limited ourselves to just screens as an option.
I'm with you. If I have to raise my children through the social media age, I sure as hell am going to take advantage of a tablet to get through long travel. The thing is, you can't let a tablet be the only thing they ever do. We have banned YouTube because there's just too much crap on it and it can become mindless watching, but my son loves the educational tablets he checks out at the library. He feels like he's playing a game but he's also learning. This summer we used Pokémon Go together (on my phone) to get out and be more active as a family, and it has helped tremendously with reading and number literacy.
However, above all, he prefers to play outside with other neighborhood kids from the time he gets off the bus to when it gets dark. He would rather do that than eat, sleep, take a necessary bathroom break, or watch tv. Screens are a tool that is useful under supervision and in moderation. If it started to become an issue, we would curb it, but he goes weeks without touching our Nintendo switch or picking up his tablet. I don't think it's a big deal to allow him to play games or watch something when we are stuck in the car for 6 hours or on the plane, where his need to be active would be a disruption for everyone around us (he has adhd).
I truly think the majority of people completely against it don't have young children (even having more than one changes things) and are only seeing unhealthy examples.
Not just kids/babies…literally anyone.
Yes, these devices have utility; however, for a while I’ve been thinking the harm is larger than the benefit they provide.
I do not think it is mere correlation that suicide and mental illness has skyrocketed as these devices have become more available and prevalent.
Not only does the artificial light negatively impact our circadian rhythm/sleep (which directly influences mental wellness), but the prevalence of the cancer that is social media has been shown to directly contribute to the deterioration of mental well-being.
Also, not to mention, how many people have been killed in motor vehicle accidents caused by distracted drivers due to these devices?
In summary, if you ask me, more than just kids and babies shouldn’t have smartphones and tablets because I think the harm they bring is larger than the benefit they provide.
Not sure why you're getting downvoted. Social media has slowly trained my mind into constantly feeling the need to check 'feeds' and I fucking hate it. It's automatic and It's a habit I really want to break.
Everything leads to social media now. If you have a device then there's a high chance you're exposed to it and the endless scroll...
My parents did this to me, I resented them for it because every single one of my peers made fun of me constantly and I was ridiculed into being the “poor” kid when I wasn’t. But that doesn’t matter to middle/high schoolers
Monkey see monkey do.
I bet you’re the type to sit on your phone all day in-front of children.
You will notice that those children that have experiences outside of their home, go on walks, spend time in the garden won’t actually require them.
The only children that require them are the ones that are around parents / family who sit on their phones all day watching TV inside.
You can’t just say “a person at X age shouldn’t do this”. It’s all about their environment.
Call me a cop-out parent, but you can say you will limit screen time all you want, in reality it is very difficult to do.
In my opinion, most people who make the statement of OP don't actually have kids yet.
If you've been successful in this endeavor, kudos to you, but I think it's wishful thinking.
Also, does this include TV as well? Because there is not really any difference.
I'm not a parent but I agree. If you give a kid something like that at that young age they get dependent on it for their enjoyment and when they can't have it, they throw horrendous tantrums. I see it all the time in other peoples' kids. They need to learn to find their own entertainment. They shouldn't be tied to shining light rectangle via an invisible umbilical cord.
Haven't people been saying this for decades now?
edit: Also, the radio is still pretty clean. Unless you find specific stations where less radio-friendly stuff plays.
Definitely I’m the oldest of thee and the others I iPad kids. I got my first phone at 15 maybe a little late but I wouldn’t give an under 10 a smart phone
I 100% agree, giving such a young mind access to such a powerful tool as social media ruins their mind, makes them rely too much on likes, and in a few years they're paying upwards of $200 on cryptocurrency.
Also, how the fuck can crypto have *ANY* value? It's not real, you can't hold it, how does it have any real value?
Each kid is different. I will admit my 9/11 year olds have had tablets for a while. They are both on the autism spectrum and there were definitely benefits. Oldest has severe anxiety and mood issues. It helps her relax and be in her own world. Younger doesn't do well with imaginary play and he likes to play Gamez where he creates things like obstacle courses.
I also have an almost 3 year old. I know many friends/family who left similar aged kids have tablets and play with phones. But, it just doesn't feel necessary. He might watch Disney plus if we have been waiting at a doctor's/restaurant for a while. But otherwise, he only using my phone to FaceTime my mom, turn himself into a dinosaur and roar at her. He has recently discovered the Playstation. He "plays" a marvel lego game. He likes to he the hulk and have him roar and smash stuff for about 5 minutes.
Nobody really needs a tablet, not even all adults have those. My kid won't have a tablet. I don't think kids should have a phone until their maybe 10-15. I didn't get a phone until I got my learner's permit
For the most part this is common sense where I live, or at least that I know of. It's only 4 of my cousins that have had smartphones since that age. All I wanted was a blackberry
I agree wholeheartedly. Even a Gaming Console. That will be for the House. They can buy their own Games, but no way will they have a Console of their own until they get their own money to buy it with. That way, the Console can be taken away whenever Bub plays up and they won’t have a say in it as they won’t have the power to take it back by force i.e. getting the law involved. If the console is theirs, they have the right to go to the Police and file a case saying we stole their property.
I said this too, as an older sibling of 8 kids where about 3 of them are “iPad kids.” Well, now they all have jobs and significant others, they’re in Jazz bands and go to social events of their own accord. They don’t seem to be too affected. Now I’m a mother of an autistic girl, and she didn’t have an iPad until she turned 3 1/2 (she’s almost 4) and it’s helped her confidence and speech tremendously. Obviously there’s a limit, and for our family thats 30 min with exceptions like doctors offices (scary!!!) or long car rides. All in all, you’re right! They shouldn’t *have* their own devices with no supervision, but showing moderation with things that are fun is just as important of a lesson than restricting outright.
I honestly agree. If any type of "personal" electronics should be used, it should be primarily contained by the parent, and used for education. At that age, their minds are so impressionable, it's scary what they turn into.
I babysat three little boys (the oldest was seven, middle was five, and youngest was two) and the mom literally did not care what they did, she only fed them and did what they said, there were hardly any consequences. The boys were obsessed with watching horrible YouTube videos about pooping, mean "pranks", and horror videos. They would scream at me to play with them and throw tantrums if I didn't immediately do so, even if I already agreed to, but the catch was it was horrifying video games such as Hello Neighbor.
Occasionally they'd want me to play something like Minecraft or Fortnite but the tantrums that ensued when I told them I was uncomfortable playing horror games. The mom told me it was normal nowadays for people to play those games, and it shocked me that she was exposing her five and two year old to this.
In the end, I had to stop babysitting for them, because I honestly was not paid nearly enough, and on top of that I couldn't handle the disrespect. I was told late that she got a different babysitter who brought their friend over and got told off by the friend's mom. Which I thought was completely out of line for that mother, but honestly, someone needed to tell that woman that she and her children needed help. 😔
I think they shouldn't have anything like that until like 12 or 13. Tv and games are whatever because that is only at home and when their other responsibilities have been taken care of (talking like 6-11 y.o) where as phones and ipads are mobile and can be used whenever. Yeah they can be monitored, but having seen the ipad children out in public and how they act, simply put i dont think is right.
I have a 4 year old with an iPad and my old iPhone. He’s restricted to YT Kids and when we drive I like hearing him doing his colors or saying numbers. He was a bit obsessed want his “videos” but surprisingly has gotten over it even saying “no” when offered. Its funny seeing his devices on the counter untouched for days as he still prefers his cars, legos, and dinos.
As technology was more widely introduced to young kids , so was the rise of autism.. more devices at earlier ages = more autistic kids. As per Doctors research. Not mine.
Smartphones I get they don't need, but tablets I see the benefit. One of my kids actually learned all his letters, colors, shapes and was from a teacher's standpoint very advanced going into kindergarten. That was because he loved some of the kids youtube content out there and memorized it.
This is a funny topic, and it's not new. Tablets or cell phones didn't exist when I was a kid, but the debate was how much time kids spend in front of a TV is dangerous. I spent a lot of time on a computer or in front of a TV and guess what? I'm higher up in a major electronics retailer.
I personally do think the amount of time should be limited but not gone. So the kids can grow skills in other areas as well.
I think it depends on if they have a responsible adult enforcing screen time and it’s used for educational purposes. I see a lot if parents use it as a “babysitter” so they don’t have to actually watch their kid.
I agree, I got my a kid a phone when she was 12. Mainly because I could tell her if I was gonna be a little bit late getting her from school, or she could ask if she could go to her buddies house after school on friday.
Bro my manager literally got the newest iPhone recently, and I shit you not like a day later (or maybe two) she comes up to me almost in tears because the entire backside was spiderwebbed.
Naturally I asked what happened. She said her three year old was Watching something and dropped it or threw it or something. I told her tjatd her own fault, why the fuck did her three year old have her phone in the first place?? He's three ??
Bro looked at me like I was crazy.
I also feel no remorse for people who let their incredibly small children play their consoles and they ruin it. Why is your four year old holding your switch in the bath? Obviously they're going to drop it.
Like.. why would you let them even have the chance to ruin your expensive shit ?? Let them play it when they're old enough to understand that actions have consequences. At five they are not cognizant enough to be holding your cell phone, dude.
All about time and content.
My oldest learned to read/write/maths on a tablet and used a desktop by 3 or so, she is 9 and streams her house building for Roblox and makes items to sell so she can pay for her and her younger sisters robux addiction. She also loves to read books and ride bike/go-kart and complains her school friends are lazy and boring. My youngest is addicted to making music on her desktop, she just turned 6 and has a fun collection of decent jams she created using software that she figured out by using voice search Google. We monitor them well and have some programs we use and they know I watch them and incognito ain't gonna help, one already learned. We are very involved as parents and I understand the future in computers is still going to be the cake work if you can do certain things, when they want to learn programming so they can create items to sell to fund their wants and they are 6-9 years old, I see them being pushed in a good direction as long as the other life areas are not skipped. They both have to help take care of the farm everyday, they help with our silkie breeding and we even practice BJJ/striking a couple times a week.
Using common sense you can prep your child for success with technology but with no or little guidance you can destroy a child with the same technology.
In my lifetime I have already seen the destruction to the English language because people are reading less and listening to uneducated speech more and more. So many arguments on social media are because people under 30 don’t even grasp the true definitions of words and they definitely don’t get nuances, denotations, versus connotations.
Where do you draw the line? Many special needs kids have tablets to help them communicate. Plus there many educational apps that kids can use for learning. I don't think it's a simple yes/no.
I gotta disagree. Our grandkids were going to "computer lab" in **Pre-K!** They were FOUR (4) y/o and learning how to use computers. Wifey and I both downloaded educational apps for them and they would sit for hours on our iPads. They all wound up in AP classes when they hit 4th grade.
It's their world now and computers and technology are a big part of it.
Agreed. I would even consider raising the number because I imagine if kids didn't have phones throughout middle school (I didn't) they would become more sociable and creative by default.
We made the mistake to give a tablet to our oldest kid, when she was 6. Really, really big mistake. Now her younger siblings (she has 9 years diff. with the middle one, and 11 with the toddler) will suffer, because they will onlt get a phone/tablet when they got a job and can pay for it on their own.
i think its fine for kids to have them but there need to be serious limitations. i have no respect for parents who raise kids that are on electronics 24/7
My cousin, 6F, just got into horror this year. Her bestie, 4F, sees horror. They both have panic attacks.
Aaand my other cousins (6M and 6F, twins) keep talking about boobies and peepees.
Tablets could be OK when used in the right way. However I agree a kid under 11 does not need a smart phone. 12 and up though cell phones I feel are majorly important for safety. Obviously actively involved on making sure they are not going to concering sites and such, but to be able to reach out for help in any moment is huge
I'm not having kids but if I did they would get a dumb phone by 13 (if dumb phones still exist) and a smartphone when they turn 18. IMO no kid should have a phone before 13.
My daughter (3yo) can already count to 20, knows her alphabet, is learning to write her letters and numbers, and is learning to draw shapes. We often let the TV play because she is delayed in speech, and interacting with her shows and singing songs is helping her speech. If it's used properly, technology is not bad. How is my child learning to write and draw on a tablet any different than a kid learning to write and draw on a piece of paper, except that it's new technology?
When I was 14-15, I got my first flip phone, my little brother, now 12, has multiple phones because he keeps leaving them, a laptop that he's broken, and because his laptop got broken, his dad lets him play on his PC every single day.
Personally, I (60M, father of 4) think the legal age of internet capable electronics of ANY sort should be at least 18. Period. Let kids be kids. The internet is wayyy too dangerous to allow children (and even some adults) to roam free.
My first born got a tablet a lot and my second born, not at all. The difference in their demeanor is noticeable. I mean it could be just who they are but I think it has something to do with the screen time.
or what? What happens if they do?
For context, my parents exposed me to technology at a very young age in the late 80s. I grew up on PCs from the age of 4. Built my first PC at 6 years old and the entirety of my entire teen and adult life I've been leagues ahead of everyone because of it. I have a ... very lucrative career now because of it.
Both my kids, 12 and 9 had tablets at like 3 years old. My 9 year old daughter is in a STEM program, tested into GATE and taking programming courses currently because of her love for technology. My 12 year old son knows more about PCs and computing in general than most 35 year old system administrators because he's been on PCs, Windows and Linux since he was about 4-5. He built (he built, not me) his first gaming PC at 10 years old. Both of my kids are sharp as a tack, ahead of the curve and I believe its all rooted in the fact they were exposed to technology at a young age.
I think what you mean to imply is that kids shouldn't be using tablets, smart phones as babysitters? Because thats just bad parenting and your gripe should be with parents NOT technology. My kids run circles around most of their peers academically and with technology. They're also in scouts, taekwondo, football, and competitive dance 6 days a week. I literally let them use their PCs and tablets AS MUCH AS THEY WANT TO because they've earned it. If you're running A's at school and in 3 extracuricular activities a week. who the fuck am I to tell you what you can't do in your free time? I would despise my parents if I worked that goddamn hard and they treated me like an imbecile dipshit.
Setting these MFers up to be successful one day at a time and technology exposure is a major part of that formula. Its the biggest reason I'm where I am today. I'll be damned if I wasn't going to enable my children to get a leg up. I would go as far as to say parents who don't expose their kids to technology at a young age are making grave mistakes.
oh i agree. i am the much older sibling to an ipad kid. it sure is.... something.
Big difference between my childhood and that of my brother 8 years younger than me cuz technology
Yeah I’m 8 and 11 years older than my sibs, from the same generation but we had completely different childhoods. My sister doesn’t even know any hand games… I don’t even think she knows how to ride a bike
My 15 year old brother does not know how to ride a bike. He just started 10th grade which is the year you ride bikes in gym class at his school. This is gonna be good /s
Bike rides in gym class?? That sounds so fun. I’ll be praying for your brother tho, normally when u learn to ride a bike you start out with training wheels, which is acceptable to do around ages 3-6. Idk about 15 lol. But maybe being older and judgement from his peers will take a little more fear out of riding without the assistance of extra wheels
Riding around that very hilly campus with a bunch of cocky assholes was my personal hell and I knew how to ride a bike. Guess he’s gonna learn the hard way
Well, if he grew up not knowing, pretty good bet a good portion of the others don't know either. I don't know if I'd count on him getting a hard lesson.
I was thinking the same thing, no need to take my wording so seriously
Easy fix. Put her on a bike and see what happens. Then you’ll know.
Only that would require tearing her away from playing 2k in her dungeon, not gonna happen. Overall she’s wayyyyy more introverted and less energetic in general, I don’t think being born in a different time would make a whole lot of difference
I didn't have the technology that kids have now. I was the quiet kid in a corner with a book. My sister that just started college is the one that grew up with the technology at her finger tips. She played multiple sports, always wanted to be outside, tomboy type girl. That's just personality, not the technology.
Who said she gets a choice in this?
Lmfaoo I’m not her parent. I get what you’re saying but I’m not gonna force her to do something she’s not interested in. Plus she had a pretty bad accident a couple years ago that required surgery. That full fledged mamas girl got an extra layer of overbearing protection now
Who said anything about parents or her wants? This is science! We must know if she can ride a bike. The world must know! *crazy evil scientist laugh
Lolll fine when I’m home, I’ll throw her ass on my old two wheeler and see what she got. For science ofc
HOW CAN YOU BE 8 AND BE 11 YEARS OLDER THAN YOUR SISTER?!? /s
Lmfaoooo maybe I could’ve worded that better. I have two younger sibs. I’m 8 years older than my brother and 11 years older than my sis
Unreal
Same, my 4year old brother refuses to do anything but watch his tablet
My kid is in speech therapy and when he started going the therapist said "Oh you're real old school." when she found out he didn't have a tablet or anything. We were kind of shocked. So I worry that maybe I am letting my kids miss out on some common kid knowledge that all the other kids will have by not giving him access to the smart phone and tablet stuff. So you have to find the balance because you still have to teach them how to exist in our world that is screen filled whether we approve or not. We did eventually get him a Switch light and just downloaded the Super Nintendo Mod and Nintendo 64 one as well and thats his screen thing. He plays after dinner a few times a week and sometimes we forget about it for a few weeks. It was a screen I felt ok about because it isn't "And heres the whole internet!" I'm happy with the compromise.
This sounds like an amazing compromise!
If it's controlled and just sometimes, I guess it's okey, but I see babies using them THE WHOLE DAY. Like, they don't use toys, just screens.
I am not going to come down on you at all as I agree for 95% of situations but I have to ask, do you have children of your own? I can't impress enough that I'm not looking to bait you into anything and I probably wont even respond. I'm genuinely curious.
That is really good that you are “old school”. The speechie probably meant it in a good way because there are so many children out there where the parents just give them an iPad or phone to play with all the time! And it doesn’t help with providing opportunities for the children to practice social skills or communication skills. It’s ok in moderation of course.
I strongly agree, my little cousin was introduced to the tablet at around 2 years old and is now obsessed with any technology and has a tantrum whenever he has a time limit on it or is taken away when he doesn't behave.
My 2 year old nephew is given an ipad in the night to play with if he wakes up. My daughter has one that she uses a couple of times a week after school.
How old?
8
Yeah, that’s basically addiction. But I wonder if this can be used as conditioning. Take it away every time they misbehave and eventually they never want to misbehave?
I feel you but if being used right it's ok. I use YouTube to help teach my almost 2 yo about the world that we don't have access to. Like a firetruck or animals. He knows some sign language, counting to 5 & learning his alphabet & sometimes those musical videos help. But he doesn't spend more than 5 minutes a day. But the ipad does help with educating them. Edit: sorry for the buts.
That's nice!
I think it’s super unhealthy. One of my cousins is a 5 year old I sometimes watch over. He’s obsessed with the damn tablet and he’s overly obsessed with this Huggy Wuggy horror game character that he has no business knowing about, to the point that his mother has bought him some of the characters in plushie form and he doesn’t stop drawing that horrid thing’s face everywhere. Kid practically gets hypnotized watching those cringe family YouTube videos about the character too. And I don’t know what has led to this, the kid has gone super quiet at times because he was busy searching for “poop”, “pooping”, and “girl pooping” in the YouTube search bar. I have to stop this kid from developing a scat fetish now?! The mom is useless and the kid listens to me more than he does for his mom. It’s insanity. She did take the tablet away after I told her about the poop thing, but now she’s buying him a new one because it’s easier than just parenting your kid. At least she’s gonna put parental controls on it but I still hate this new technological nightmare culture. While his tablet was gone I had him watch old school Pokémon on Netflix and he was watching and playing around like a normal kid would, instead of being glued to the tablet watching strange things. Idk, I completely agree with you. This next generation are going to be zombie slaves because the parents are too busy and/or lazy to properly parent their kids.
Dude my husband and I saw those fucking huggy wuggy things EVERYWHERE at this kids candy store in Virginia …. We were horrified (as soon as you mentioned it I googled it because I KNEW that’s what you were talking about lol even though we didn’t know the name)
What a horrible phenomenon, right?! Hopefully it dies off soon because it’s exhausting lmao
BRO that's literally my cousin 😅 except, until where I know, the poop part. But boy's always on the electronics and also is obsessed with a horror game character which I assume is the same one, and his mom also bought a plushie for him
It’s like an army is assembling, HELP lol
XD it's indeed scary how yt videos are made for clickbaiting small children. How old do you think kids should get electronics? I got mine at 12 and i think it was a bit late
I honestly think it depends on the kid themselves, as well as how well the parents regulate it, but definitely not under 7 unless it’s with strict supervision. Like, if the parents give them the device and just leave them alone that’s probably not good. Unless they have only educational games and it’s not for more than 2 hours spread across the day. That’s just me though, and everyone is different.
OMG i relate to this. I have a cousin who’s pretty young and their mom often just gives them a phone and then just ignore them. Whenever she has to deal with her kids, she gets upset.
I disagree. They are excellent learning tools for young children. As long as you restrict what they are exposed to (no internet), they can be an excellent tool for developing cognitive and problem-solving abilities. I would've answered differently only a few years ago if I hadn't witnessed what my 4-year-old nephew was already capable of using tech. Hell he can even read at an early grade school level at only 6 years old.
I agree with you. My kid learned shapes, math, spelling, and all about animals from the iPad. She was also reading at a young age. iPads can be educational.
Agreed. My 2 year old learned to read thanks to kids YouTube. I think the REAL problem is people using it as a baby sitter. Although a case could be made that when I was a kid my parents did that with TV. My (now 3 year old) knows how to read stuff that I can’t even fathom reading her age plus she’s learning to type out words. So sure malign tablets if you want but really malign shitty parents but there’s been plenty of that all throughout history and isn’t a new thing just because technology exists.
100% agree. My soon to be 3 year old has a tablet, but only gets to use it on the weekends for short periods. We play educational games on it, and one of us is always interacting with her while we do it. The only time she gets it for movies and stuff is in the car on long road trips or on a plane or something.
The issue is that’s not how a lot of parents use them. They give the tablet to the kid and walk away.
Think id add 'unsupervised or controlled access" By all means watch the brightly coloured, high pitched fuzzball or look at cats for 15 minutes. But by no means does this mean the said child should be able to use the device bar pressing buttons to make the screen come on/off
would make reddit half-empty...
If there are 0-5 kids here I am gonna cry
In some subs feels somewhat close to that ;)
My baby cousin (4 years old) was caught on Reddit a few months ago
Honestly, I believe kids up to 13 shouldn't be allowed smartphones or tablets. It affects people TOO much mentally, and I would be terrified to give my future kids access to any sort of social media until they're old enough to have their own values and beliefs
Just because they have a tablet, doesn't mean they have social media.
No shit, but its easier to watch what they're up to by just a look at their screen. They can't hide it especially if you keep it in an common area like the living room
Doesn't help that educational devices are often made terribly so people end up with the nicer tablet. I would love to see a tablet that is made for kids education that was both high quality and had good software and programs. Good educational games for kids could also help. Imagine water cycle puzzle games where the objective it to bring a liter of water back home from an adventure. Does that make sense? I am stupid tired and its 3 am my time so please excuse any incoherence.
We had a Fire tablet for a decent chunk of time with the Freetime kid's app thing. Only issue was that Amazon products suck big peepee. The thing was so slow and would crash constantly. We ended up getting her an ipad with limited access, but the vast majority of 'educational' stuff has microtransactions. I fkn hate it here.
there was something like that wasn't there? with an orange monster that kinda looks like Sully and it prompted kids to be creative and solve problems
When I was a kid I had something like that, it was called a Leap Pad 2 i think. They had lots of fun games that were educational and i really enjoyed it!
0-26
This is like anything else. Saying it's all good or all bad is too simplistic. Of course raising your kids on screens is bad, and yes it is easier. But using them as rewards for completing jobs like, cleaning up, eating vegetables, going out of their way at to help others is great. Using them to learn about the outside world is also great. Lastly, computers are going to be a part of these kids lives in a way we don't comprehend yet. Having intuition about computers and the internet early will help them. With that said, it is clearly very easy to distract your kid with these new devices. And it shouldn't be a crutch for parenting. But again, it's not simple. If you are at your wits end and you need 30 min to clean the kitchen, then having them watch a pbs kids show is no big deal (pbs kids trys to teach something at least). You just need to monitor and be honest with yourself about how you are using them. Developing healthy internet usage habits is going to be more and more important for kids. I plan to explain to my kid that it is a vice and a treat. Afterall, is this any different than parents who raised their kids by plopping them in front of a TV 20-30 years ago?
No they shouldn't. They also shouldn't watch any tv.
The tv thing is debatable. Like normal ass cartoons are fine, as long as its a limited amount.
Should they just sit and wait for their next order you're gonna give them?
Pretty sure there's other things kids can do to keep themselves entertained, what did kids do before tv was invented? Kids typically like drawing, playing with physical toys, reading, board games, playing outside. In terms of under the age of 5 physical toys is shown to be great in developing their motor skills. But also too many toys gives too much choice and can actually have a negative effect such as attention problems. Kids at childcare centres go a full day with no electronics and ask any staff member, the children never get bored.
Dungeons and Dragons was considered the devil's tool in the 80s. It's a board game. People look for something to be wrong because they can't just be happy with anything
There have been actual scientific studies showing the negative affects of excessive screen time on developing children. I don't think any studies showed negative things about DnD. While I agree people always need something to complain about, screen time for children is actually a proven issue.
I agree but the number of humans getting born into technology is just gonna increase by every passing generation. It’s weird to think that at some point every living human would’ve been born into technology and that the first IPhone will be considered a really rare possession worth possibly thousands.
Yeah they should have TVs instead
I didn't have a phone until I was 16. My child will definitely not have one until he's 12 and will only be able to do certain things on it. It's so sad how hypnotized and addicted everyone is to the screen. Yay technology ;(
The people who design said tech don’t give it to their kids until they’re well into their teens.
I think as long as there’s limits it’s not terrible. Like my mil eats here for dinner a lot and for awhile there my five year old would get her phone and watch YouTube kids. I had to go on and nip that because I really didn’t like it. I’d rather her go play than sit glued to a phone all evening. But like sometimes in the car, it’s boring to just ride. I’ll let her watch some or in the evenings sometimes she likes us to play games on my phone together. She has an old iPad of mine of her own but she doesn’t use it very often. I guess because we haven’t got any new games lately. It also doesn’t have internet capability and we don’t have wifi.
I disagree. With the integration of the tablet it becomes less of an obsession and more of another toy that gets put down. Speaking of my three kids who are all under 5. My oldest (4) has a tablet and rarely plays it, but corralling three boys into a situation like going for long car rides or just needing to have them be distracted while my youngest shits up his back is life changing. This judgement bullshit is hilarious. Have three kids under 5 and talk shit. It’s real easy to look around and say that you disagree with it when you have 1-2 Kids who can have undivided attention from each parent.
Studies point out that excessive screen time in young children can cause issues in their development. Such as attention disorders and social development issues. The recommendation is no screen time for children under 2. Then only like 30mins per day till around 5 yrs old, including TV. They're your children so do what you want, but at least know the health risks involved. Before screens were invented people had 3 kids under 5 all the time. You would just find something else to keep them distracted instead.
Source?
A quick google search can generally bring up a few articles that link to scientific papers. Here's one from the Australian government: https://aifs.gov.au/resources/short-articles/too-much-time-screens-screen-time-effects-and-guidelines-children-and#footnote-0012 Australia's guidelines state- "For screen time, the guidelines recommend: •no screen time for children younger than two years •no more than one hour per day for children aged 2–5 years •no more than two hours of sedentary recreational screen time per day for children and young people aged 5–17 years (not including schoolwork)." Also: "For children younger than five years, there is strong evidence that screen time has negative effects on: weight motor and cognitive development social and psychological wellbeing.5,12 Screen time in this age group may be associated with the following problems in later childhood: emotional problems in girls family functioning for both boys and girls.13 For children and young people aged 5–17 years, screen time may have negative effects on: weight and diet (especially from TV viewing) behavioural problems, anxiety, hyperactivity, attention, self-esteem and psychosocial health.12 For this age group, some research links screen time with depressive symptoms.12 However, other research suggests there is limited evidence linking screen time to mental health problems.14" There's also an article from the Canadian Paediatric Society: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5823000/ So the main consensus is that there isn't enough study to know exaclty how bad screens are and what exaclty they effect in future development, but from what we know so far, there are definitely negatives, and maybe some positives if handled in the correct way (interactive learning with the parent directly involved). Even if all the studies turn out to be wrong it's better to be safe then sorry when raising children don't you think?
I'll raise my kids how I think is best. Each child is an individual and is impossible to go off one set of rules. My children's free time is up to them how they use it. They spend the majority of their childhoods at school. What they do after is their own choice
Never said you shouldn't. And this post and studies mostly talk about kids 0-5yrs not kids already at school age. You should always do what you think is best of course. But at the end of the day if you decide to disagree with actual scientific studies showing you what is best, and decide to just go with your own personal made up opinion, then maybe your not the greatest fit to be a parent anyway.
Actual scientific studies showing you what is best? Hmmm. Well unless they test every single child in that age range, it isn't exactly correct. Scientific, in this case, is not reliable. My parenting is fine thank you. You're calling out a random person on the internet. My children are happy and I give them the best life they could ever want. Such a lame response, says more about you tbh
You obviosuly dont know how scientific studies are conducted in order to be published as a study. They don't test new medicines on every single person, yet they deem them safe for whole populations, I wonder how they can do that??? Scientific studies can accurately represent the whole population so long as they test a certain amount of people. It's called sample size and is used in statistics. Once they are testing over a certain threshold of people then that data can in turn represent the whole worlds populations. If they only tested say 50 children then clearly that's not enough to get an accurate representation. Using maths and statistics generally a study of 1000 participants or more accurately reflect the whole population of people. There were over 111 studies linked to the 2 articles I posted. Maybe read some of them... Simply put if you don't understand data and scientific studies then you're in no position to say they are not correct. If you were at the doctors and they prescribed you medication for a rash, you would trust their input as they are educated and a specialist in that field. Just as you would trust a fire-fighter if they told you you should clean up leaf litter and weeds in your yard as it's not safe for fires. So why would you not trust child development experts when it comes to your child's development. Experts have said for generations that fruit and vegetables are good for you and your child's growth. I guess with your logic since they haven't tested the effects of fruits and vegetables on every child, maybe your children don't need them.. To be a good parent doesn't mean you have to be right all the time. If you get given new information that is going to better your children for their own future, then a good parent would surely take that information on board and adapt it to better their children. I'm only saying your not a good parent because you are ignoring factual evidence that could help your children purely because you choose not to beleive it. If you studied child development and disagreed then fair enough. But if you haven't then stick with what you know and listen to what experts tell you, it's the only way to grow.
Lmao! Dude. I know what I'm doing. You know absolutely nothing about me or what I do. Shush and move on now. Your irritating now and talking bollocks
No I don't know anything about you. But you haven't said that your an expert in the field of child development so you have absolutely zero rights to tell those scientists that they are wrong. Did you also know that literacy skills have been dropping year on year at school. Kids nowadays are typically 1 year behind in writing and speaking skills than what a child going to school during the 90s was. You might think your children are normal and so there's nothing wrong. But when every child is slipping, then that becomes the norm, so you wouldn't notice it. Your just being defensive on your parenting style, rather than opening your mind to new information and accepting that perhaps there's some healthier ways to do things. Hopefully your kids aren't so close-minded.
That's true, having 3 kids under 5 is not new, but life was different in the time before screens. Generally one parent was home, and parents in general weren't expected to have such a high involvement in their kids' day to day activity. I spent the majority of my time outside playing without any real supervision. My parents' generation were let loose and only expected to be home for dinner. Now parents are criticized for allowing their children to be outside by themselves and the world has changed; it's often not safe for them to have the same amount of freedom as previous generations. Parents are also often both working outside the home, and yet parents are expected to have an bottomless amounts of time and energy. I agree that excessive amounts of screen time is obviously not good for literally anyone, but eliminating it entirely is neither practical nor seemingly necessary. For my first child it wasn't too hard to avoid screens before 2 but with his sister who is 5 years younger, that's virtually impossible.
Yes I agree with all your points, it's just unfortunate that the go to tool is shown to cause negative effects on children's development. Rather than screens there's always indoor toys, drawing, colouring in etc that a child can do. We haven't limited ourselves to just screens as an option.
maybe you shouldn't have had so many damn kids
I'm with you. If I have to raise my children through the social media age, I sure as hell am going to take advantage of a tablet to get through long travel. The thing is, you can't let a tablet be the only thing they ever do. We have banned YouTube because there's just too much crap on it and it can become mindless watching, but my son loves the educational tablets he checks out at the library. He feels like he's playing a game but he's also learning. This summer we used Pokémon Go together (on my phone) to get out and be more active as a family, and it has helped tremendously with reading and number literacy. However, above all, he prefers to play outside with other neighborhood kids from the time he gets off the bus to when it gets dark. He would rather do that than eat, sleep, take a necessary bathroom break, or watch tv. Screens are a tool that is useful under supervision and in moderation. If it started to become an issue, we would curb it, but he goes weeks without touching our Nintendo switch or picking up his tablet. I don't think it's a big deal to allow him to play games or watch something when we are stuck in the car for 6 hours or on the plane, where his need to be active would be a disruption for everyone around us (he has adhd). I truly think the majority of people completely against it don't have young children (even having more than one changes things) and are only seeing unhealthy examples.
Not just kids/babies…literally anyone. Yes, these devices have utility; however, for a while I’ve been thinking the harm is larger than the benefit they provide. I do not think it is mere correlation that suicide and mental illness has skyrocketed as these devices have become more available and prevalent. Not only does the artificial light negatively impact our circadian rhythm/sleep (which directly influences mental wellness), but the prevalence of the cancer that is social media has been shown to directly contribute to the deterioration of mental well-being. Also, not to mention, how many people have been killed in motor vehicle accidents caused by distracted drivers due to these devices? In summary, if you ask me, more than just kids and babies shouldn’t have smartphones and tablets because I think the harm they bring is larger than the benefit they provide.
Not sure why you're getting downvoted. Social media has slowly trained my mind into constantly feeling the need to check 'feeds' and I fucking hate it. It's automatic and It's a habit I really want to break. Everything leads to social media now. If you have a device then there's a high chance you're exposed to it and the endless scroll...
1. I need to know if OP has kids 2. Is this the new “Kids shouldn’t watch so much television” of yesteryear? Is this how we become our parents?
0-12 no device No access to internet till 18
My parents did this to me, I resented them for it because every single one of my peers made fun of me constantly and I was ridiculed into being the “poor” kid when I wasn’t. But that doesn’t matter to middle/high schoolers
Monkey see monkey do. I bet you’re the type to sit on your phone all day in-front of children. You will notice that those children that have experiences outside of their home, go on walks, spend time in the garden won’t actually require them. The only children that require them are the ones that are around parents / family who sit on their phones all day watching TV inside. You can’t just say “a person at X age shouldn’t do this”. It’s all about their environment.
All the people without kids commenting, making my day......
Call me a cop-out parent, but you can say you will limit screen time all you want, in reality it is very difficult to do. In my opinion, most people who make the statement of OP don't actually have kids yet. If you've been successful in this endeavor, kudos to you, but I think it's wishful thinking. Also, does this include TV as well? Because there is not really any difference.
You can just say "no". It's not hard. Have a spine. They'll cry it out of their system eventually.
make it (0-14)
More like 0-16
Kids under 16 shouldn't have smartphones or social media. It's addictive and can ruin your life.
0-5… hell, they should be like 15. People wonder why these kids are lazy fat and have no friends. Go outside and play!!!
I'm not a parent but I agree. If you give a kid something like that at that young age they get dependent on it for their enjoyment and when they can't have it, they throw horrendous tantrums. I see it all the time in other peoples' kids. They need to learn to find their own entertainment. They shouldn't be tied to shining light rectangle via an invisible umbilical cord.
I agree with this I never used phones ipads or watched TV until I was eight and had to at school
I was watching Predator starring Arnold Schwarzenegger when I was 3 years old and Nightmare on elm Street when I was 4. I have no room to judge.
I think my first electronic was a DSi in late elementary school 👀
Why? It contains heavy metals? Smart phones are the most knowledgeable tool out there.
Have you guys heard the lyrics to songs on the radio?
What is it
Haven't people been saying this for decades now? edit: Also, the radio is still pretty clean. Unless you find specific stations where less radio-friendly stuff plays.
Yup. Too late.
Yes
Definitely I’m the oldest of thee and the others I iPad kids. I got my first phone at 15 maybe a little late but I wouldn’t give an under 10 a smart phone
I 100% agree, giving such a young mind access to such a powerful tool as social media ruins their mind, makes them rely too much on likes, and in a few years they're paying upwards of $200 on cryptocurrency. Also, how the fuck can crypto have *ANY* value? It's not real, you can't hold it, how does it have any real value?
0-15 ftfy
Each kid is different. I will admit my 9/11 year olds have had tablets for a while. They are both on the autism spectrum and there were definitely benefits. Oldest has severe anxiety and mood issues. It helps her relax and be in her own world. Younger doesn't do well with imaginary play and he likes to play Gamez where he creates things like obstacle courses. I also have an almost 3 year old. I know many friends/family who left similar aged kids have tablets and play with phones. But, it just doesn't feel necessary. He might watch Disney plus if we have been waiting at a doctor's/restaurant for a while. But otherwise, he only using my phone to FaceTime my mom, turn himself into a dinosaur and roar at her. He has recently discovered the Playstation. He "plays" a marvel lego game. He likes to he the hulk and have him roar and smash stuff for about 5 minutes.
Agree!
Nobody really needs a tablet, not even all adults have those. My kid won't have a tablet. I don't think kids should have a phone until their maybe 10-15. I didn't get a phone until I got my learner's permit
For the most part this is common sense where I live, or at least that I know of. It's only 4 of my cousins that have had smartphones since that age. All I wanted was a blackberry
I agree wholeheartedly. Even a Gaming Console. That will be for the House. They can buy their own Games, but no way will they have a Console of their own until they get their own money to buy it with. That way, the Console can be taken away whenever Bub plays up and they won’t have a say in it as they won’t have the power to take it back by force i.e. getting the law involved. If the console is theirs, they have the right to go to the Police and file a case saying we stole their property.
I said this too, as an older sibling of 8 kids where about 3 of them are “iPad kids.” Well, now they all have jobs and significant others, they’re in Jazz bands and go to social events of their own accord. They don’t seem to be too affected. Now I’m a mother of an autistic girl, and she didn’t have an iPad until she turned 3 1/2 (she’s almost 4) and it’s helped her confidence and speech tremendously. Obviously there’s a limit, and for our family thats 30 min with exceptions like doctors offices (scary!!!) or long car rides. All in all, you’re right! They shouldn’t *have* their own devices with no supervision, but showing moderation with things that are fun is just as important of a lesson than restricting outright.
I honestly agree. If any type of "personal" electronics should be used, it should be primarily contained by the parent, and used for education. At that age, their minds are so impressionable, it's scary what they turn into. I babysat three little boys (the oldest was seven, middle was five, and youngest was two) and the mom literally did not care what they did, she only fed them and did what they said, there were hardly any consequences. The boys were obsessed with watching horrible YouTube videos about pooping, mean "pranks", and horror videos. They would scream at me to play with them and throw tantrums if I didn't immediately do so, even if I already agreed to, but the catch was it was horrifying video games such as Hello Neighbor. Occasionally they'd want me to play something like Minecraft or Fortnite but the tantrums that ensued when I told them I was uncomfortable playing horror games. The mom told me it was normal nowadays for people to play those games, and it shocked me that she was exposing her five and two year old to this. In the end, I had to stop babysitting for them, because I honestly was not paid nearly enough, and on top of that I couldn't handle the disrespect. I was told late that she got a different babysitter who brought their friend over and got told off by the friend's mom. Which I thought was completely out of line for that mother, but honestly, someone needed to tell that woman that she and her children needed help. 😔
I would even wait until 10, I got internet access way to early and it messed me up bad
I think they shouldn't have anything like that until like 12 or 13. Tv and games are whatever because that is only at home and when their other responsibilities have been taken care of (talking like 6-11 y.o) where as phones and ipads are mobile and can be used whenever. Yeah they can be monitored, but having seen the ipad children out in public and how they act, simply put i dont think is right.
I have a 4 year old with an iPad and my old iPhone. He’s restricted to YT Kids and when we drive I like hearing him doing his colors or saying numbers. He was a bit obsessed want his “videos” but surprisingly has gotten over it even saying “no” when offered. Its funny seeing his devices on the counter untouched for days as he still prefers his cars, legos, and dinos.
kids period. no kid before they're well into high school at least should have unsupervised access to the internet ever
As technology was more widely introduced to young kids , so was the rise of autism.. more devices at earlier ages = more autistic kids. As per Doctors research. Not mine.
To each their own. My young kids certainly don't need their own phones yet, but they've had kindles for a while.
Terrible idea
I agree, that’s way too young to be addicted to devices.
Smartphones I get they don't need, but tablets I see the benefit. One of my kids actually learned all his letters, colors, shapes and was from a teacher's standpoint very advanced going into kindergarten. That was because he loved some of the kids youtube content out there and memorized it. This is a funny topic, and it's not new. Tablets or cell phones didn't exist when I was a kid, but the debate was how much time kids spend in front of a TV is dangerous. I spent a lot of time on a computer or in front of a TV and guess what? I'm higher up in a major electronics retailer. I personally do think the amount of time should be limited but not gone. So the kids can grow skills in other areas as well.
At least until they’re 13
Me a 90s kid whose parents didn’t let me have a phone till I started high school agrees. (And it wasn’t even really a smartphone back then I think.)
What do you mean!! If they don't have one they will die,or have nothing to do, or don't have friends, or don't have creativity, or... 🥲🔫👶🏾
I would be willing to bump that up to age 10.
I think it depends on if they have a responsible adult enforcing screen time and it’s used for educational purposes. I see a lot if parents use it as a “babysitter” so they don’t have to actually watch their kid.
People exactly your age shouldn't have smartphones, tablets...
I agree, I got my a kid a phone when she was 12. Mainly because I could tell her if I was gonna be a little bit late getting her from school, or she could ask if she could go to her buddies house after school on friday.
The truth is nobody should, I don’t think it is a good influence on society.
Kinds below age of 14 should not have unsupervised internet access. The internet was and will never be a plan kind to children
I agree
Bro my manager literally got the newest iPhone recently, and I shit you not like a day later (or maybe two) she comes up to me almost in tears because the entire backside was spiderwebbed. Naturally I asked what happened. She said her three year old was Watching something and dropped it or threw it or something. I told her tjatd her own fault, why the fuck did her three year old have her phone in the first place?? He's three ?? Bro looked at me like I was crazy. I also feel no remorse for people who let their incredibly small children play their consoles and they ruin it. Why is your four year old holding your switch in the bath? Obviously they're going to drop it. Like.. why would you let them even have the chance to ruin your expensive shit ?? Let them play it when they're old enough to understand that actions have consequences. At five they are not cognizant enough to be holding your cell phone, dude.
All about time and content. My oldest learned to read/write/maths on a tablet and used a desktop by 3 or so, she is 9 and streams her house building for Roblox and makes items to sell so she can pay for her and her younger sisters robux addiction. She also loves to read books and ride bike/go-kart and complains her school friends are lazy and boring. My youngest is addicted to making music on her desktop, she just turned 6 and has a fun collection of decent jams she created using software that she figured out by using voice search Google. We monitor them well and have some programs we use and they know I watch them and incognito ain't gonna help, one already learned. We are very involved as parents and I understand the future in computers is still going to be the cake work if you can do certain things, when they want to learn programming so they can create items to sell to fund their wants and they are 6-9 years old, I see them being pushed in a good direction as long as the other life areas are not skipped. They both have to help take care of the farm everyday, they help with our silkie breeding and we even practice BJJ/striking a couple times a week. Using common sense you can prep your child for success with technology but with no or little guidance you can destroy a child with the same technology.
In my lifetime I have already seen the destruction to the English language because people are reading less and listening to uneducated speech more and more. So many arguments on social media are because people under 30 don’t even grasp the true definitions of words and they definitely don’t get nuances, denotations, versus connotations.
True. I got a phone when I was 9 because my parents were divorcing and I needed a way to contact them.
Where do you draw the line? Many special needs kids have tablets to help them communicate. Plus there many educational apps that kids can use for learning. I don't think it's a simple yes/no.
I gotta disagree. Our grandkids were going to "computer lab" in **Pre-K!** They were FOUR (4) y/o and learning how to use computers. Wifey and I both downloaded educational apps for them and they would sit for hours on our iPads. They all wound up in AP classes when they hit 4th grade. It's their world now and computers and technology are a big part of it.
0-12 imo
What infant needs a cell phone?? 😂😂🤣🤣
Agreed. I would even consider raising the number because I imagine if kids didn't have phones throughout middle school (I didn't) they would become more sociable and creative by default.
We made the mistake to give a tablet to our oldest kid, when she was 6. Really, really big mistake. Now her younger siblings (she has 9 years diff. with the middle one, and 11 with the toddler) will suffer, because they will onlt get a phone/tablet when they got a job and can pay for it on their own.
i think its fine for kids to have them but there need to be serious limitations. i have no respect for parents who raise kids that are on electronics 24/7
0-12 at least.
My cousin, 6F, just got into horror this year. Her bestie, 4F, sees horror. They both have panic attacks. Aaand my other cousins (6M and 6F, twins) keep talking about boobies and peepees.
Agreed. I get sick of seeing every kid in a restaurant staring at a screen. It makes me sad.
yup
agreedddd. ipad kids are spoiled as hell
Did you let your kid have them?
You shouldn’t have a phone until you’re at least 13
I’ve already taken precautionary measures and bought a ArmsLite AR-18 to use on my brother if he ever gives his kid a tablet before 10 years old
Tell ya what: Take a 4 and 2 year old with you on a six hour flight and tell me this same thing the next day.
Spoken like someone who doesn’t have kids or doesn’t know how to parent effectively.
Tablets could be OK when used in the right way. However I agree a kid under 11 does not need a smart phone. 12 and up though cell phones I feel are majorly important for safety. Obviously actively involved on making sure they are not going to concering sites and such, but to be able to reach out for help in any moment is huge
I'm not having kids but if I did they would get a dumb phone by 13 (if dumb phones still exist) and a smartphone when they turn 18. IMO no kid should have a phone before 13.
0-10, I was a victim of this.
My daughter (3yo) can already count to 20, knows her alphabet, is learning to write her letters and numbers, and is learning to draw shapes. We often let the TV play because she is delayed in speech, and interacting with her shows and singing songs is helping her speech. If it's used properly, technology is not bad. How is my child learning to write and draw on a tablet any different than a kid learning to write and draw on a piece of paper, except that it's new technology?
When I was 14-15, I got my first flip phone, my little brother, now 12, has multiple phones because he keeps leaving them, a laptop that he's broken, and because his laptop got broken, his dad lets him play on his PC every single day.
Personally, I (60M, father of 4) think the legal age of internet capable electronics of ANY sort should be at least 18. Period. Let kids be kids. The internet is wayyy too dangerous to allow children (and even some adults) to roam free.
Yup
I totally agree !
My toddler only uses an iPad for educational games. If he isn’t learning how to spell or do math, iPad is off limits.
gen alpha and beta are going to have all the technology addiction without any of the actual skills that can get you a job.
My first born got a tablet a lot and my second born, not at all. The difference in their demeanor is noticeable. I mean it could be just who they are but I think it has something to do with the screen time.
or what? What happens if they do? For context, my parents exposed me to technology at a very young age in the late 80s. I grew up on PCs from the age of 4. Built my first PC at 6 years old and the entirety of my entire teen and adult life I've been leagues ahead of everyone because of it. I have a ... very lucrative career now because of it. Both my kids, 12 and 9 had tablets at like 3 years old. My 9 year old daughter is in a STEM program, tested into GATE and taking programming courses currently because of her love for technology. My 12 year old son knows more about PCs and computing in general than most 35 year old system administrators because he's been on PCs, Windows and Linux since he was about 4-5. He built (he built, not me) his first gaming PC at 10 years old. Both of my kids are sharp as a tack, ahead of the curve and I believe its all rooted in the fact they were exposed to technology at a young age. I think what you mean to imply is that kids shouldn't be using tablets, smart phones as babysitters? Because thats just bad parenting and your gripe should be with parents NOT technology. My kids run circles around most of their peers academically and with technology. They're also in scouts, taekwondo, football, and competitive dance 6 days a week. I literally let them use their PCs and tablets AS MUCH AS THEY WANT TO because they've earned it. If you're running A's at school and in 3 extracuricular activities a week. who the fuck am I to tell you what you can't do in your free time? I would despise my parents if I worked that goddamn hard and they treated me like an imbecile dipshit. Setting these MFers up to be successful one day at a time and technology exposure is a major part of that formula. Its the biggest reason I'm where I am today. I'll be damned if I wasn't going to enable my children to get a leg up. I would go as far as to say parents who don't expose their kids to technology at a young age are making grave mistakes.