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The 18 Commandments ...!

 
 
Reply Thu 3 Jan, 2013 02:56 pm
Below is a list of 18 commandments (allegedly) one teenager has to follow in order to keep and use his new iPhone.

Quote:
Greg Hoffman is a kid who just got an iPhone from his parents. His mom, Janell Hoffman, wrote these [slightly edited] rules for its use:

1. It is my phone. I bought it. I pay for it. I am loaning it to you. Aren't I the greatest?
2. I will always know the password.
3. If it rings, answer it. It is a phone. Say hello, use your manners. Do not ever ignore a phone call if the screen reads "Mom" or "Dad". Not ever.
4. Hand the phone to one of your parents promptly at 7:30pm every school night & every weekend night at 9:00pm. It will be shut off for the night and turned on again at 7:30am. If you would not make a call to someone's land line, wherein their parents may answer first, then do not call or text. Listen to those instincts and respect other families like we would like to be respected.
5. It does not go to school with you. Have a conversation with the people you text in person. It's a life skill.
6. If it falls into the toilet, smashes on the ground, or vanishes into thin air, you are responsible for the replacement costs or repairs.
7. Do not use this technology to lie, fool, or deceive another human being. Do not involve yourself in conversations that are hurtful to others. Be a good friend first or stay the hell out of the crossfire.
8-9. Do not text, email, or say anything through this device you would not say in person.
10. No porn.
11. Turn it off, silence it, put it away in public. Especially in a restaurant, at the movies, or while speaking with another human being. You are not a rude person; do not allow the iPhone to change that.
12. Do not send or receive pictures of your private parts or anyone else's private parts. Don't laugh. Someday you will be tempted to do this despite your high intelligence. It is risky and could ruin your teenage/college/adult life. It is always a bad idea. Cyberspace is vast and more powerful than you. And it is hard to make anything of this magnitude disappear -- including a bad reputation.
13. Don't take a zillion pictures and videos. There is no need to document everything. Live your experiences. They will be stored in your memory for eternity.
14. Leave your phone home sometimes and feel safe and secure in that decision. It is not alive or an extension of you. Learn to live without it. Be bigger and more powerful than FOMO -- fear of missing out.
15. Download music that is new or classic or different than the millions of your peers that listen to the same exact stuff. Your generation has access to music like never before in history. Take advantage of that gift. Expand your horizons.
16. Play a game with words or puzzles or brain teasers every now and then.
17. Keep your eyes up. See the world happening around you. Stare out a window. Listen to the birds. Take a walk. Talk to a stranger. Wonder without googling.
18. You will mess up. I will take away your phone. We will sit down and talk about it. We will start over again. You & I, we are always learning. I am on your team. We are in this together.

Published on https://www.facebook.com/bartking1

So? What do you think? Should other parents plagiarize this entire list? Borrow bits and pieces from this list? Or openly mock it with their teenage children? Would you use some similar contract with your children and teens?
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Type: Discussion • Score: 3 • Views: 726 • Replies: 2
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boomerang
 
  1  
Reply Thu 3 Jan, 2013 03:04 pm
@tsarstepan,
How old is this kid?

Some of the rules seem contradictory... don't ever ignore a call from mom or dad and remember to turn the thing off during dinner, movies, etc. What if mom and dad call while it's turned off?

I won't be adopting it or mocking it. It seems a bit excessive to me. I'm not a fan of behavior contracts -- they seem to be used by people who don't trust their kids.

I think this must be written by some blogger who wanted other parents to pat them on the back instead of for the kid.
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PUNKEY
 
  2  
Reply Thu 3 Jan, 2013 03:12 pm
I saw this family on TV for just a few minutes. There are 5 children and he is the oldest. He was very young - maybe 13. I think they are good rules for that age group and for first time users of phones. He seemed to be a well adjusted kid and saw the reasonableness of the rules.
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