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The way easier solution to this content rating mess is don’t give your young child a phone/tablet. Give them a coloring book and a Snap Circuits kit. I realize

by dymk 7y ago

The way easier solution to this content rating mess is don’t give your young child a phone/tablet. Give them a coloring book and a Snap Circuits kit. I realize this isn’t something Google can do something about; this is directed at the parents giving an internet connected device to a developing mind.

dgzl 7y ago
You think that is easy?
- devoply 7y ago
  It is if you never start. Once your kids are hooked, forget it.
  - dgzl 7y ago
    And what about exposure from outside your control? Edit: and what about for parents who don't have the resources or ability to manage that kind of control? My point is that it's not easy, not even in the slightest.
    - dymk 7y ago
      I don’t understand why this has suddenly become so complex; you simply don’t give the kid a phone. That’s not a resource, that’s a lack of a resource. If they’re super young, they’ll entertain without electronics. Give them a coloring book. If they’re a little older, tell them to go use that Snap Circuits kit. Or here’s a ZX Spectrum and a manual on z80 asm. Or here’s a Nintendo DS and a Pokemon game.
      - secabeen 7y ago
        The challenge is when all their friends have a phone, and they want one. Sure, if the culture at your kids school is no one has a phone, then no one cares. If not, it's a lot harder, and does have impacts on them socially.
        devoply 7y ago
        And you tell them no and that's that.
        cf498 7y ago
        Your kids being the only ones without an tablet/smartphone is social death. Great they are not stuck to a screen, instead they will be a miserable outcast. I agree with your initial post, but the implementation is far from easy and needs an collective approach if you dont want to just ruin your kids lives.
        dgzl 7y ago
        I don't agree that it's social death, because I've seen it managed fine. But I do think that rebellion is inspired from rules, especially over socially popular phenomenon.
        cameronbrown 7y ago
        It sucks how it is but I've seen plenty of people totally ostracized because they lack internet/social media. Nobody wants to communicate unless it's online.
      - dgzl 7y ago
        I agree with not giving a young person a phone, but I don't consider it easy. This life has all but demanded the smart phone be an essential part of success. A well off (not necessarily financially well off, rather good parent status) parent might be able to keep this away from a child, but I don't think the same is for most parents in America.
      - caseyf7 7y ago
        The pressure kids get from their schools to be on iPads, Google classroom, a whole set of apps is unreal. The schools don’t even ask for permission before giving them all of these things.
jarfil 7y ago
Then you wouldn't need to write apps targeting kids, since no kids would be able to use them, and all of this doesn't apply to apps for adults.
- dymk 7y ago
  I don’t expect all parents to follow my advice, so there’s always going to be a market for apps targeting children.
sunstone 7y ago
A tablet, not connected to the net might be reasonable compromise.
point78 7y ago
Do you have kids?
killjoywashere 7y ago
Having tried all the above and far more, I'm here to tell you Snap Circuits got nowhere with my kids. I will say I tried to be the dad that gave them access on the theory that 'they'll have to learn sometime, better while they're under parental supervision." How wrong I was. The phones are like crack to an addict. My advice to my friends with significantly younger kids (mine are 14 and 17 now): you don't want your kids to be the first in their cohort to have a phone, and you probably don't want to be last, but you and the parents of their friends should be competing to see who's last.
- smackay 7y ago
  > competing to see who's last That's a very interesting observation but to really get it to work requires very close cooperation between parents. That takes a lot of time and goodwill which is not easy to create or maintain except in very special circumstances or in rather closed groups. Our fatal mistake was to get a phone for our son when he started to walk home from school in case there was any change in the usual schedule. Once the genie is out of the bottle any protocol or agreements are negated pretty much instantly. There are so many pressures to encourage phone use (messaging, etc.) it's impossible to restore any level of control without (potentially severe) social consequences for the kids.
Consultant32452 7y ago
My daughter was a virtual school student last year. Every teacher expected to be able to text and call my daughter throughout the school the day. Technically she didn't have to have her own phone, but in practical terms it was a requirement for (middle) school. Non-traditional schooling seems to be on the rise, so I wonder if this kind of requirement will become more common.

by dymk 7y ago

dgzl 7y ago

You think that is easy?

devoply 7y ago
It is if you never start. Once your kids are hooked, forget it.
- dgzl 7y ago
  And what about exposure from outside your control? Edit: and what about for parents who don't have the resources or ability to manage that kind of control? My point is that it's not easy, not even in the slightest.
  - dymk 7y ago
    I don’t understand why this has suddenly become so complex; you simply don’t give the kid a phone. That’s not a resource, that’s a lack of a resource. If they’re super young, they’ll entertain without electronics. Give them a coloring book. If they’re a little older, tell them to go use that Snap Circuits kit. Or here’s a ZX Spectrum and a manual on z80 asm. Or here’s a Nintendo DS and a Pokemon game.
    - secabeen 7y ago
      The challenge is when all their friends have a phone, and they want one. Sure, if the culture at your kids school is no one has a phone, then no one cares. If not, it's a lot harder, and does have impacts on them socially.
      - devoply 7y ago
        And you tell them no and that's that.
        cf498 7y ago
        Your kids being the only ones without an tablet/smartphone is social death. Great they are not stuck to a screen, instead they will be a miserable outcast. I agree with your initial post, but the implementation is far from easy and needs an collective approach if you dont want to just ruin your kids lives.
        dgzl 7y ago
        I don't agree that it's social death, because I've seen it managed fine. But I do think that rebellion is inspired from rules, especially over socially popular phenomenon.
        cameronbrown 7y ago
        It sucks how it is but I've seen plenty of people totally ostracized because they lack internet/social media. Nobody wants to communicate unless it's online.
    - dgzl 7y ago
      I agree with not giving a young person a phone, but I don't consider it easy. This life has all but demanded the smart phone be an essential part of success. A well off (not necessarily financially well off, rather good parent status) parent might be able to keep this away from a child, but I don't think the same is for most parents in America.
    - caseyf7 7y ago
      The pressure kids get from their schools to be on iPads, Google classroom, a whole set of apps is unreal. The schools don’t even ask for permission before giving them all of these things.

jarfil 7y ago

Then you wouldn't need to write apps targeting kids, since no kids would be able to use them, and all of this doesn't apply to apps for adults.

dymk 7y ago
I don’t expect all parents to follow my advice, so there’s always going to be a market for apps targeting children.

sunstone 7y ago

A tablet, not connected to the net might be reasonable compromise.

point78 7y ago

Do you have kids?

killjoywashere 7y ago

Having tried all the above and far more, I'm here to tell you Snap Circuits got nowhere with my kids. I will say I tried to be the dad that gave them access on the theory that 'they'll have to learn sometime, better while they're under parental supervision." How wrong I was. The phones are like crack to an addict. My advice to my friends with significantly younger kids (mine are 14 and 17 now): you don't want your kids to be the first in their cohort to have a phone, and you probably don't want to be last, but you and the parents of their friends should be competing to see who's last.

smackay 7y ago
> competing to see who's last That's a very interesting observation but to really get it to work requires very close cooperation between parents. That takes a lot of time and goodwill which is not easy to create or maintain except in very special circumstances or in rather closed groups. Our fatal mistake was to get a phone for our son when he started to walk home from school in case there was any change in the usual schedule. Once the genie is out of the bottle any protocol or agreements are negated pretty much instantly. There are so many pressures to encourage phone use (messaging, etc.) it's impossible to restore any level of control without (potentially severe) social consequences for the kids.

Consultant32452 7y ago

My daughter was a virtual school student last year. Every teacher expected to be able to text and call my daughter throughout the school the day. Technically she didn't have to have her own phone, but in practical terms it was a requirement for (middle) school. Non-traditional schooling seems to be on the rise, so I wonder if this kind of requirement will become more common.