We were all kids once. You know as well as anyone that kids bullshit their parents all the time. Just because your kid might tell you where they’re going, doesn’t mean that’s where they’re going.
Comment on Parents turn to smartwatches for their children amid global phone screen-time pushback
sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works 5 weeks agoWhy do you need to keep track of your kid? Are you ever in a situation where you don’t know exactly where they are and for some reason need to?
My kids know where they can go, when they need to check in, and what time they need to be home. They know my phone number and can call me using a trusted adult’s phone. It’s really not an issue.
based_raven@lemm.ee 5 weeks ago
sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works 5 weeks ago
Sure, and that’s how they learn. When I catch them (and I have), they lose my trust, which means losing privileges for a time until that’s rebuilt.
My kid took a bike outside of the agreed area, so I took the bike away (partially disassembled) until they rebuilt my trust. A week or so later, I put it back together and told them I’m going to trust them again, and it hasn’t been a problem since. I didn’t put a tracker on the bike or anything, but they now know I’m serious about consequences. I’ve since expanded the area they’re allowed to go because they’ve earned my trust, and they’ve asked when they want to go outside the area (I usually say yes). I explain why the rules exist, and I’m pretty reasonable about being flexible.
I’d much rather they learn that when they’re young instead of getting used to working around filters and whatnot. Teach them discipline and consequences of making poor choices, if you keep the training wheels on too long, they’ll never develop it.
natryamar@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
Bruh I don’t even have a kid yet. Also, this could be for peace of mind if the kid is in a position where they can’t ask for help from someone else.
sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works 4 weeks ago
When you do, I hope your opinion changes because:
- A kid should never be in that position
- If they are, a phone isn’t going to help
- There’s a decent chance the phone got them into that situation (e.g. chatting with predators online)
So I reject the premise. If a kid isn’t safe without a phone, adding a phone won’t make them more safe.
natryamar@lemmy.world 4 weeks ago
We went talking about a phone we were talking about a smartwatch…
sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works 4 weeks ago
Change “phone” to “smart watch” and my point stands.
adoxographer@feddit.dk 5 weeks ago
I’ll reply to you once, because i feel it needs to be said.
Other people, have other lives, in other places, with different kids. That gives them a different situation to yours. The fact that you and yours can/can’t do a thing doesn’t mean others can/cant.
Thank you
sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works 5 weeks ago
Fair.
I can only speak for my situation and my kids, and compare that to what I see in articles. I also can’t help but look at the stats and see rising rates of depression and whatnot that seems highly correlated to the proliferation of “helicopter parenting” and social media, which tug kids in opposite directions.
So I’ll speak up about my experience, which I think is a practical alternative to what I see on social media being pushed by groups selling products that feed on FUD.
adoxographer@feddit.dk 5 weeks ago
And that’s also very fair, i tend to agree with you where parenting is more educating than helicoptering.
However cities are different, countries are different, norms even, and what might work in Paris, might not work in Dallas, or in Helsinki.
Also some kids might enjoy having the ability to talk to their parents and don’t see it as an infringement on their freedom, because it’s also how you act on the information you’re given. Others might not. You might even change your opinion if your circumstances change too.
I’d say, had you said - for my particular situation - I wouldn’t have batted an eye.
All that said, kids making mistakes and being kept far from monitoring and social media is a good thing 🤓
And thank you for being cool about this 🤩
sugar_in_your_tea@sh.itjust.works 5 weeks ago
Sure, and if that’s what they want, I don’t see an issue with it. I’m not saying phones/smart watches are bad, I’m saying that the reasons so many people get them (to track their kids) are bad.
A parent/child relationship should be based on trust, and that goes both ways. Remember, we’re not raising them to just shift subservience to you onto some other entity (e.g. government), we’re raising kids to think and act on their own, and they need some level of independence for that to happen. They’ll fail, and hopefully the consequences are severe enough to teach them before failure has more severe consequences.
If they’re always tethered to their parents via some tracking device, when will that happen? If they never take off the training wheels or mommy/daddy always catches them before they fall, when will they learn on ride on their own?
Fail early, and fail often. That’s how we learn, and we shouldn’t rob our kids of that.
That should go without saying for any opinion.
That said, people are generally pretty similar from place to place. Some of the nicest people live in some of the worst places. Kids aren’t randomly getting molested in back alleys, most of that happens with family members and close relatives.
Instead of tracking them, consider teaching them what to look out for. Generally speaking, if they keep to themselves and stay with friends, people will leave them alone. Criminals just don’t want to mess with kids.
You too. 😁