How Young Is Too Young For A Cell Phone?

by Stacey Schifferdecker

If anyone had told me a few years ago that I would be getting a cell phone for my 13-year-old son, I would have laughed. Back then, I didn’t even have a cell phone myself and I saw no reason for young teens to have them. But guess what? When we renewed our plan back in April, we added our son to it and got him his own phone. He’s not much of a phone person and doesn’t use it that much. But now, if I get in caught in traffic on the way to pick him up from school, I can let him know. When he goes somewhere with the youth at church, he can call when he is on his way back so neither of us have to cool our heels waiting in the parking lot. So really, the phone is for me as much as, if not more, than for Kegan.

If you are considering getting a cell phone for your child, here are some factors to consider:

Filed under Parenting, Tweens by More4kids

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Parenting your Pre-Teen

Father and his son Do you feel your preteen or tween needs much supervision? As surprising at it may sound, the majority of pre-teens and early adolescents behave in a responsible manner. They want to show you that they have an understanding of the rules and the common knowledge of right and wrong. On the other hand, we all know that they can also act irresponsibly. And for that reason they do need constant supervision still.

When your children are away from the home they are most often supervised. Most of the day they are at school where they are obviously watched by teachers and staff. If there are camps or afternoon organizations that they belong too then there is always adult supervision as well. Then the times when they are not supervised and out with friends are when they are most prone to getting into trouble.

Parenting and Coaching Tweens to Get Chores Done

By Dr. Caron B. Goode

Kevin's comment: This is an excellent article that can be applied to children of all ages. Reading and reflecting on it really helps one understand not only your child but also yourself. If you ever wonder why you and your child continually butt heads, this article can help. It provides insight in understanding not only your childs personality but your own. It has given me a whole new perspective in understanding my children.

Tweens have a lot on their plates. They have school, friends, extracurricular activities, and impending puberty. It’s no wonder they have a hard time remembering their chores!

Common sense tells us tweens don’t remember chores because they are not important—to them. To tweens, chores may seem senseless. To parents, however, regular chores represent a sense of responsibility and belonging. Chores introduce tweens to the concepts of teamwork and time management. They also help build self-esteem and self-worth through pride in a job well done.

Before chores can teach these lessons, however, children must actually do them. Therefore, chores can be an effective parenting tool only if you master the art of motivating your tween.

Charts, reminders, and well placed notes are all ways of motivating your child. These methods can be very effective, but they can also be very time consuming. If time is something you have precious little of, take heart. There is a way of motivating your tween that does not increase your already heavy workload.

Filed under Activities, Parenting, Tweens by Kevin

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