As a parent of an almost 8-year-old I tossed up all those same thoughts as you especially as our kids head to school with a device. All those turbulent thoughts of “will Piper concentrate more on the device than her schoolwork”, “will she get distracted as she walks home from school with a screen up to her face feverishly taking selfies on Snap Chat whilst walking across the road”!
I have to agree with you…parenting has never been easy with or without screens but it has got harder. Our kids want what other kids have; they want to keep in touch with friends which usually involves access to social media.
In the USA, 66% of parents say that parenting now is much harder than it was 20 years ago.
The issue is and what I came to realise is that safety of our kids is one of our highest concerns whilst also making school for school.
So, while we limit screen time at home where we can monitor usage, safety to and from school and on sleep overs at friends’ houses cannot be ignored. The Kidocall Smart Watch was the answer! The Kidocall Smart Watch functions like a smart phone.
The benefits are numerous:
- Not just anyone can call your child’s smartwatch
- Parents can disable the watch during school hours
- 2-way voice, video calls and messaging
- Great for co-parenting with separated homes
- Set school schedule
- Pedometer
- SOS Alarm - calls and notifications sent to up to 3 numbers
A Kids Smartwatch is Your Best Ally for Their Safety
Brilliant GPS tracker/phone safety watch | Janine on Nov 01, 2020
Love this option for my 7-year-old! I have used it for days that i don't collect him from school to communicate if there are any changes to the plan and it makes me feel safer, for when he is at soccer training without a parent, in case he needs something! I can see how it will be very useful for when he starts being allowed to walk down the road on his own etc. The safety features, including how you can choose the only people that the child can call or get calls/messages from, is very clever. I also like that it doesn't have too many fun games or features for him to play with, as i didn’t want it becoming another "screen time" issue. You can also use the remote camera (you use the app on your phone to take a picture from the watch), which shows you where your child is if you want, and/or get the same effect using the GPS tracker. My son also loves the rewards - little hearts that you send to the watch.