So, it’s my son’s 7th birthday next week and I got him a computer on Black Friday. I posted about it - $188 cheap thing at Wal-Mart. It’s what I could afford. He is THRILLED. Originally he was going to have a Leapster for his birthday. Sounded good, right? Most kids have something like that, but a $200 laptop would do SO much more. He’s set for Hanukkah and his bday. Like I said, THRILLED. And that’s what we can afford.
His teachers assign reading and writing online and I often use my computer at home for work. Plus he likes to play on National Geographic and has a phonics game on it. He was coming home CRYING last year because he wasn’t reading yet. I am very proud of how hard he works. The kid is a real mensch and it’s nothing I’m doing. I’m lucky.
So he gets a laptop. He’s excited, right? He wants to write his best friend an email. I tell him that you have to ask politely for his mom’s email (i have it, but) so he’s not being rude by ‘spamming’. He said ok.
So what does his best friend’s parents do on Facebook? Well, they post about it! And then proceeds to say that first grade is just too young. I sent him a msg about it, because it hurt and it was aimed at me. Apparently his kid did the, “Jude got this and I want it, too” thing and he had the audacity to tell me that ‘that kind of spending is just not done in our house’ and I was giving my child a sense of entitlement that he can’t handle properly.
All right. Of course there was a lot of :mad::mad: over that but I’m wondering:
When is it OK for a kid to have his own computer? (Or kids to have a shared desktop?)
I think if they’re responsible enough and old enough to type, go for it. His reading and writing definitely improved when he started to use mine, and even though his ‘free time’ is timed, I say it builds tech and English skills…plus I want him to be able to edit photos and videos within a few years. I’d rather see him on the computer “doing” something than being on the couch doing nothing. So everything in our house is limited. I often joke, “Jude, that Wii is making you stupid. Go play with Legos.”
Still, the other person’s issue was that a laptop (even a very cheap one) was just NOT appropriate for a kid that age and that anything before 13 was too young. (Of course, his kid raked in over $4k for his bar mitzvah…)
I was pretty surprised at that one. Did I miss something? So, Dopers, most of whom are tech savvy/hands on parents/chickens in the back yard/Whole Foods lovin’/Apple family types:**
What age is appropriate for a kid to have his own computer? For me, the answer is: As soon as they can type!**