Oh my DH started letting SD5 play on his phone a while back and now that's all she wants to do. She will sit on there and play games for hours. I guess it's not that big of a deal but sometimes I will call DH and his phone will be dead because he let her play on it so long so that kind of stuff annoys the crap out of me (mainly because I pay the phone bill so if I call, I expect to be able to reach him). If his phone rings, he will have to get it from her and then give it back when he's done. I just think it's a little ridiculous. She has her own toys and I don't think she needs to be playing on his phone. I never let her use mine. She can play with her own stuff.

I have never let my 11,13, or 15 year old play on my iphone. They have always had some sort of device of their own-whether it be a nintendo game boy when they were young to their own phones now.

Most certainly if my child at any age ever threw or throws a fit about something I definitely would not let them use it again. If you arent old enough to not throw a fit about it then you probably arent old enough to be using it IMO

SD5 and SD6 both use our phones to play games. We don't have any issues getting them back, or the skids demanding anything though. They also have LeapPads and Nooks, so they have plenty of electronic toys to keep them occupied.

DH used to allow stepdevil14 to grab his phone right out of his hand whenever she wanted it! I mean, it was like it was HERS and she was just allowing him to borrow it or something.

You know how I ended that shit? I texted DH a semi naked photo of me (well, just my boobs in a bra) and said "you like it when I text you these things right?" And when he said "Of course, please don't ever stop!" That was my opportunity to say "NEVER allow SD to play with you phone again, because she goes through this stuff and frankly, she doesn't NEED to be seeing or reading what I send you".

The next time SD reached for Dh's phone, he said "You have your own, no need to touch mine" and he put a password lock on it.

WIN!

I made the mistake of allowing BD4 to look thru my Instagram account. Yes somehow she knows what buttons to hit to go back and forth between all the pics. Now she harassess me daily and I say no because I am afraid she will drop it and smash it!!

I also made the mistake of allowing my niece to look thru my pics once. DH was kidding one night and he put a $100 dollar bill (for food shopping)on my night table and put a note on it that said "fuck me please" and it was funny and I took a pic of it. Oops!

Now I keep it locked!

Holy cow no WAY would I let my kid play with my smartphone. If I ever threw a tantrum because I couldn't play with something that belonged to my parents...oh geez...it just doesn't even compute.

I have a thing about young children and computer games and I think you have to be very careful about what they play and for how long. In my experience they're addictive and soon start to affect their ability to entertain themselves in other ways, and affect their ability and willingness to socialise. I barely manage to keep my own computer use under control so imagine how difficult it is for a child to regulate their own use of games etc.

I occasionally let my 6 year old use some educational games on my smartphone which encourage number and literacy skills, but I always give her a time limit and include it in what I call 'screen time' which is the amount of time they are allowed to be doing something screen based like watching TV or playing a game. I always avoid using it as a first resort entertainment, I think kids ought to be able to manage a car journey or few minutes in a waiting room without being entertained by an electronic device. We went on a 3 hour flight recently and towards the end of the flight she was allowed to play a few games because she had behaved really well and entertained herself with books and colouring the rest of the time. As soon as any nagging begins I withdraw use of the phone for a few weeks, on the basis that as soon as they start to get fixated on it it's a bad thing.

Overall I think frequent use of adult electronic devices is what encourages younger and younger children to think they are entitled to start asking for iPhones and iPads for birthdays and Christmas, which is ludicrous IMO.

ugh I did, they now have their own tablets. They killed my battery like crazy lol

My SS5 has his own iPhone/I touch. DH used to let him play on his phone and he would go through his phone pictures etc, several pictures accidentally got deleted of DH's projects and so we discussed getting him his own for Christmas.

My mom had a 3G which had nothing wrong with it so we put the music SS liked and several games on it. He is only allowed to have it in the vehicle and if we are switching cars DH or I move it with the booster seat so it doesn't get lost. Very rarely on a nasty day we will bring it inside for him to play but that is it.

He has never thrown a fit when we've asked him not to play or turn the music down as one time he told me no and I snatched it he lost it for the mornings on the way to school (we live 30min from school so he will listen to music).

I feel grateful knowing SS can't go through my stuff and that he knows not to undermine us or he won't have the phone. I am sure as he gets older it will be harder but DH and I are very much on the same page.

hell to the no.

he can deal with looking out the window like kids have done for ages before all this technology.

And I would really punish him for threatening to tell grandma.

Little brat.

I don't deal well with the whiny "I'm bored" bahavior. My DS is 11 and I still pack an activity bag for when we're going to be waiting a legnthy time. Lately, he's really been into playing card games with me. If I've forgotten anything or packed something he's not interested in, I'll let him use my phone. DS has always known that the phone belongs to me and using it is a priveledge.

I think the biggest issue is that your SS thinks he can tattle to grandma to get his way. Rein him in! Use the punishment/reward system of your choice, but be consistant. Let him know that if he throws temper tantrums like a toddler, then he will be treated like one - and you would never trust a toddler with your phone.

We allow SD4 and SS8 to play on our phones in the car when we are traveling. I've never had a problem with SS8 throwing a fit about the phones, he seems to understand that it is my phone and he ALWAYS asks very nicely to play on it. And if I need it for GPS or if it rings, receives text, email, etc. while he's playing, he always hands it over to me, no questions asked. SD4, on the other hand, has gotten upset from time to time if she can't play on one of our phones, especially if we are at home and we are on them or need them for whatever reason. When we are at the house, she has plenty of toys to play with as well as the new LeapPad so we don't allow her to play on them. I think it's probably the age/maturity of the child that matters. If they understand whose phone it is and that they are just 'borrowing' and understand its to pass the time in the car/appts then I see nothing wrong with it. If they start thinking it's their personal right to use it anytime they want, it's time to take it away for awhile. Just my opinion!

No. They should read books.