It would not come as a shock today when we find teenagers carrying with them their very own personal mobile phones. Millions of teenagers worldwide have cellular phones with them either because they want to keep themselves abreast with the latest technology (that is how they really are) or because their parents themselves wanted them to have one because it allows them to monitor their whereabouts. You have to admit letting your children bring with them a cell phone offers a lot of advantages.
If it is the parent who wants their kids to have a cell phone, then it is only fitting that they shoulder the billing. Of course, you have to set some boundaries and inform your teen not to spend more than you what you have budgeted for it. If it is the teen who insists on having his or her own mobile phone, then it is just right that he or she shoulder part of the expense. The great thing about this is that your teen would learn how to budget and manage his or her funds. To avoid them going overboard when it comes to cellular phone expenses, you could start them off with prepaid phones. If there are no credits left on the phone then they cannot make calls or send messages. There is a strong tendency for teens to waste valuable talk time with just petty conversations over the mobile phone. Having a prepaid line, would teach them to limit their calls to important ones only.
I believe that the most popular models chosen by teens nowadays would definitely be the camera phones. They could basically fool around with it while taking pictures but warn them though that sending these images constantly to other cell phone users would be taking up much of the bill as well.
If your teen drives, spending a few more dollars on a hands free device or Bluetooth earpiece shouldn’t bother you. Teens need to be able to have both hands on the wheel while they may be taking an important call from you or from their friends. It is advisable though that you impose on your teens not to make or take calls while driving for safety reasons.
I would have to say that although some parents dislike the idea of letting their kids have their own cellular phones, I believe that any parent would agree that being able to know that they are safe and secure is totally priceless. Any parent would feel at ease knowing also that your children could call you anytime in case they will be in trouble.
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