I have also taken the batteries out of old cell phones and allowed my children to play with them. They especially love the flip phones. However, some children want to be allowed to use the real thing. My five year old son is one of those kids.
My son loves to talk on the phone. He also loves to answer the phone. He loves to push the buttons on the phone. Thankfully, our phone doesn’t often ring, so it usually isn’t a problem.
One day recently someone from a doctor’s office called and my son got to the phone before I did. He said, “Hello.” The person on the other line said something and my son said, “Here is my mommy.” The woman on the other end didn’t seem too happy that a child answered the phone. However, when one of the grandparents call they are always thrilled when he answers the phone. 🙂
I really don’t have a problem with my son answering the phone because by doing so he is building his communication skills and he is learning a real life skill. Not only that, he can practice number recognition.
A great way to incorporate number recognition into using the telephone is to allow your child to push the buttons for you. Our telephone has a feature which allows us to push the numbers before we get a dial tone. This lets me verify that my child entered the correct numbers. I don’t allow my son to dial every time, but if he asks it usually isn’t a problem.
Another idea for number recognition while using the phone is to teach your child his or her telephone number. I found a cute telephone song at Little Fingers That Play that I think would be a great way to teach a child his or her phone number. (Also, if you have never checked out Deborah’s blogs you need to. Excellence in Early Childhood Education and Little Fingers That Play)
