One day, my twelve-year-old sister, a free-spirited, energetic girl, had some friends over.  I walked into her room where she was with her friends to tell her dinner was ready. As soon as I opened the door, I froze. There she sat with three other friends–not one word was being spoken.  They were all staring blankly at their iPhones with glazed-over eyes.

        Is this really what our generation has come to? Every year, the number of people using cell phones increases.  What concerns me the most, however, is the age of the cell phone users–how young are they? The iPhone’s combination of calling and texting has made it more attractive to younger generations. This appeal to children, innocents barely a decade old, isn’t all good.  Attention needs to be brought to the negative effects these devices have on young children and tweens.  Tweens and children under the age of 13 should not own an iPhone. Children have survived millennia without smartphones, so why do they need them now?

        Nowadays, children don’t occupy themselves with the outdoors as much as they did in the past, and they depend on iPhone screens for entertainment.  Physical activity for tweens helps to build healthy bones, muscles, and joints. Furthermore, studies have shown that, during a child’s tween years, they need to avoid developing habits of laziness. According to the National Wildlife Federation, children are spending half as much time outdoors as they did twenty years ago. These developments of idleness for children under the age of 13 continue throughout high school.  It was also found that children 8-18 years old spend an average of 7 hours and 38 minutes a day using entertainment media.  These 7 hours and 38 minutes can be better spent outside.  Sitting around and doing nothing on an iPhone can only promote lackadaisical behavior.

        Not only do iPhones reduce activity time spent outdoors, but they also lead to an increase in unnecessary expenses.  In a survey taken by the National Consumers League, 23% of parents of tweens ended up spending more on their children’s phone bills than expected. Families could be spending their savings on day activities or family vacations that will eventually contribute something to the family atmosphere. As I’m sure we all know, going to the beach is a lot more fun than playing Flappy Bird.

       In addition, cyber bullying is a global issue taking the lives of innocent children.  Cell phone usage at a young age can increase the contact kids have to bullies. Tweens are too immature to understand the consequences of cyber bullying and don’t realize how careful they need to be on the sites.  According to The Guardian, from 2013 to 2014, the percentage of 11-17 year olds who experienced cyber bullying doubled from 16% to 35%.  Also, according to a study by Cyber Bully Hotline, 7.5 million Facebook users are currently under the age of thirteen, and 86% of cyber bullying occurrences have been through Facebook.  iPhones and other smartphones allow easy access to social apps for tweens. If tweens don’t have an iPhone, their exposure to these tempting social networking sties can be reduced.

        Even though today is called the “Digital Revolution”, not everyone should be a part of it.  Tweens and kids under the age of 13 still need to experience a normal childhood without being susceptible to the distractions of an iPhone.  Outdoor activities are essential to a child’s health.  Also, children will not be exposed to the dangerous world of cyber bulling as easily if they don’t own an iPhone. Just imagine a world where my twelve-year-old sister wasn’t acting delusional with her’s. Hard, right?  But imagine her running around outside or doing flips in a swimming pool. What will she remember for the rest of her life? Definitely mastering the flip off the diving board. Kids need to live like kids, right?