No, our children don't need a smartphone!

Does a child really need a phone? Do they really need a smartphone? Instinctively, we would tend to say yes to the first question… and no to the second. And for good reason: the phone meets a simple and essential need: to be able to communicate, to reassure, to be reachable. The smartphone, on the other hand, goes much further. It includes recreational features that make people forget the main function for which parents initially bought it. 

Because initially, when you choose to equip your child with a phone, it is for security reasons: to be able to reach them when they start going to school alone, for example, or so that they can call an adult in case of a problem. That's the basic idea. A bit like when, in the 90s, some students had a phone card to call their parents from a phone booth if there was a problem (the "older" ones will recognize themselves). But that was then! Before the Apple giant flooded the market with its smartphones, which have almost become the norm over the years... And with them came a plethora of applications that made us all completely addicted. Today, imagining that a phone is only used for making calls is almost sacrilege... And yet, if we go back to the fundamentals, it's still its primary function, the one that makes parents take the plunge when it's time to get their children their first device. 

What! A phone is for making calls?! 

But here's the thing: at the time of purchase, a question arises: what phone for my youngest, knowing that my good old flip Nokia died in the 2000s and that, in any case, my offspring would hate it so much that they would hide it and forget it at the bottom of their bag? Then only the smartphone option remains, with restrictions, parental control, remote surveillance... So many features that are very easily bypassed by "children", who are not always as innocent as one might think. Forbidden apps, hidden in a secret file, empty cases found on the coffee table... Not to mention the number of tutorials available on YouTube to circumvent the prohibitions... When it comes to "cheating", all means are good. But why are they so devious? Because giving them an object with which they can do so much but which, ultimately, is only allowed for a few options, is like letting them watch television without a remote control... They will turn the house upside down to find it! The solution, therefore, is not to tempt them thanks to a suitable solution that really protects them: a The Phone. 

Let's really protect our children from the risks of hyper-connection 

Do you smell that nice strawberry scent? Too bad for you, puffs are only for adults! You will probably find the image a bit too strong, but it has the merit of highlighting a reality that we can no longer ignore: hyper-connection and the use of social networks are just as bad for mental health this time. A teacher in a school in the Alpes-Maritimes for about twenty years, Rebecca explains a shift she has observed: "Many students tell us about their discomfort, stress, anxiety. Because of social networks, children have less and less empathy for each other, increasingly hurtful phrases... What we see is a resurgence of self-harm, suicide attempts... If, a few years ago, the main problem to deal with during breaks was fights, that's no longer the case today... We have more children who are isolated, who don't feel well and who ask for help." And what if helping them was precisely to offer them the only tool they really need to communicate: a phone, without internet connection, without social networks, without addictive or overly stimulating games, without anything that isolates them, ultimately. 

Back to basics, to the foundation 

Recently, the hammer has (finally) fallen. Social networks are now prohibited for those under 15. Proof that the extent of the addiction problem to TikTok, Insta, and other social platforms is finally being taken seriously. A first step. It is up to us parents now to persevere, to try to promote good practices, to help our children enter into healthier digital consumption as early as possible. And there are solutions, such as The Phone, a simple phone to communicate when needed and stay "connected" to the basics, the ones that matter, their parents, their friends, their loved ones. A phone that looks like a smartphone and that they will be proud of. But a phone that will protect them and create no addiction, no habituation, and will teach them that the essential is played out in social interactions, in real communication, in face-to-face encounters, those that bring us joy and good humor. We are not serious when we are 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 years old... Not mature enough either to understand the risks of hyper-connection. So, a phone, yes. A modern device, of course. But a protective solution. The Phone, the only phone your child really needs!