Is 9 1/2 too young for a phone for basic calls and texts?

Fake lips FTW

You have a very skewed notion of "winning."

She is the most prettiest woman ever and if you say otherwise she will make a buzzing noise. The lip vibrations will amplify said noise and you will cease to exist.

Is that what appeals to you? Someone built like a bouncy castle that vibrates?

Do you by chance do magic tricks, always wear dickies under your shirts and have an unhealthy attachment to your mother?

Wait, she vibrates? Or you do?

Does it matter? You wouldn't use the body chocolate!

I'll just take up bulimia temporarily.

YMMV, my younger kid did not exceed her allotted minutes at any point.

Is that what appeals to you? Someone built like a bouncy castle that vibrates?

Do you by chance do magic tricks, always wear dickies under your shirts and have an unhealthy attachment to your mother?

qplr.

Only you can decide what's appropriate. My daughter is 13 and doesn't yet have a cell phone. She is hoping to start babysitting soon, so we'll probably let her use a spare one (a Tracfone) when she is doing that, or if she gets involved in after-school activities.

Kudos to you for being a responsible parent.

I don't see them advertised anymore but there used to be cell phones for kids that only dialed Mom or Dad. Not sure how reliable they were or if kids learned to hack them, but if you regularly remember to check the phone for tampering, it's good.

Thanx everyone for the legit responses. I think that I will. She will not go over minutes, she is responsible for that. She won't call or text much. Many relevant posts. When I was a kid, and I was done with practice, I could use the pay phone and collect call my mom, who in turn would not accept the charges but knew it was time to be picked up. Pay phones are a thing of the past, so in this day and age, cell phones are the only option. I work 35 minutes away, my mom didn't work. a lot of things are different now than when I was a kid. It was safe to leave the house first thing in the morning and not return until dinner. Not now! at least not where I live. I had a house phone when I was growing up, so if I wanted to call my friends, I did just that. I don't have a house phone at their disposal. If for some reason in the near future, I decide to leave her home on short stints, I would feel better knowing she could call "someone" It was not a question of whether or not a kid should have a cell phone, the question was whether or not 9 1/2 was too young for a simple trac phone type thing as a safety measure. She is at the ice rink a lot. There is no pay phone. Walking home 4 miles is a little too much to ask after 3 hours of skating IMHO. I will get the phone, call it the "house phone" that I can determine when and where she can take it.

Check this out: http://geekmom.com/2014/03/free-s...-wireless/