Age Against the Machine: When Should You Buy Your Kid Her First PC?
When my son got to middle school, he asked for his own computer. He insisted he needed it for school. We argued; at that point in his life, I felt that need was still debatable. I knew he really wanted one so he’d have unpestered access to computer games. His school was then still carefully avoiding any homework that required a computer. And we had a family computer he could use — though not to play games endlessly.
That was only a few years ago. Since then, the timing of this particular parenting decision has moved from high school or middle school to elementary or even preschool. And it’s not because the kids have gone insane or because parents are suckers. It’s because schools have embraced technology so enthusiastically. They now use computers to teach and assign homework that requires it, and technology itself is an important academic topic.
So as you face this year’s back-to-school shopping, you’ll find stores stocked with computers and tablets, some of them targeted at kids as young as three. Paul Friday, a merchandise manager for electronics at Walmart stores, told me, “Back-to-school is a big time for us. We listen to what our customers want. And we are stocking computers and tablets — such as the Sprout Channel tablet — for very young kids.”
(Image: Sprout Channel)
What is the right age to buy your kid his or her first computer? It’s something I’ve given a lot of thought to, both as a parent and professionally. As a contributing editor for GreatSchools.org, a contributing editor covering technology for Family Circle magazine, and a freelance writer who frequently focuses on the intersection of parenting and technology, I’ve written more back-to-school technology stories than I can count,
To get additional perspective on the question, I called another expert on the topic: Caroline Knorr. Caroline and I have been friends since before our teens were born. But she is also the parenting editor at Common Sense Media, with a particular specialty in answering that perennial parenting question, “What’s the right age for ___?”
Once we’d got caught up on the topics of teenagers, marriage, divorce, and the role Tinder now plays in the lives of teenagers and divorced dads (the teenagers are smarter about it), we got down to the question at hand.
It’s never too early
For starters, we both agreed that, when it comes to technology, there is no such thing as “too early" — as long as you start them out sitting in your lap and keep an eye on what’s happening onscreen until they’re nearly out of high school.
My own teenagers grew up with access to computers from the age of three. And while that required investments in time and energy from their parents, to keep them safe online and to make sure they maintained a good online/offline balance, they are now stuffed full of knowledge (because they’ve always had instant answers to every question they’ve had) and they’re pretty tech savvy, too — a good skill to have these days.
Worried about excessive screen time? That’s too big a discussion to settle here. But, as Caroline observed, it’s “a perfect example of the haves and have nots.”
(Image: Adrian Pingstone)
“People with lots of access to technology worry that their kids are getting too much screen time,” she said. But parents who can’t afford technology at all worry that their kids are at a disadvantage.
They shouldn’t worry too much. While Caroline said there have been studies indicating that kids with no exposure to technology are a bit behind when they enter school, she also pointed out “kids learn this stuff so fast they will catch up very quickly once get access” — and they will very likely get such access as soon as they start school.
To share or to buy
So assuming you’ve decided it’s OK to expose your child to technology, the question becomes how. More specifically: Do kids need devices of their own and, if so, what kind? Or should they just share the devices you already have?
For a small child, occasionally using a family phone or computer provides plenty of access. And there are some real benefits to sharing, at least for a while. It’s cheaper, requires less upkeep from you, and allows you to have some control and easier supervision when they go online.
If sharing your computer isn’t feasible — perhaps because you need to use it too often yourself or because you have sensitive data on it that you don't want to put at risk — you’ve got a couple of options,
For preschoolers, a tablet with appropriate parental controls and content can be had for around $100. Once they hit school, however, they may need something more. Your child will likely encounter classroom technology in kindergarten; by first grade, it will be part of the curriculum mandated by Common Core. That’s when computers and more capable tablets might start hitting your school supply list.
(Image: Samsung)
But you should check with the school first: It will very likely have some preferences about the technology your student uses. The smart play is to wait and ask the teacher. Maybe the classroom already has iPads or Chromebooks, letting you get away with buying nothing for at least one more school year. At the very least, you’ll be able to buy the right thing if you ask first.
Even then, you don’t necessarily need to splurge on a full-blown computer. Often, a tablet or Chromebook is all you’ll ever need for school, and those often cost under $200. Add a case (so it doesn’t come home in pieces after the first week) and a keyboard (to make it more useful), and that will probably be enough to get your student through a couple of grades.
Oh, and in case you were wondering: We eventually bought our middle-school son a computer of his own — but deliberately chose one that was relatively underpowered, to make those games less compelling.
