So what do you think about the topic of parents who let their children/toddlers answer the telephone? Does it bug you, don't care, should there be an "age" when it's appropriate to start letting them do this?

I know that children must learn how to use a telephone and skills as such, since it's a necessary part of life, but it sort of irks me when like this morning, I returned a call to one of the driver-ed teachers, and a small voice answered, probably not more than 5 years old, and all I got was "No. Okay. Bye." and I heard no adult in the background guiding the child as to how to handle the call, so I gave up and figured, well--there's no point in continuing the conversation because the guy obviously isn't going to get the message if I ask the kid to tell Daddy I called, because she was probably too young to even know how to write, to write it down.

So what are your thoughts on this topic?

We NEVER answered the phone that young, I think we started at 8, by 9 I was taking messages for my dad full time and acting as his secretary.

Hmm. Well, let's hope that a child that small was not home alone. And that's too young to answer phones for the reasons you stated. I'd much rather talk to an answering machine, or rely on my own answering machine, where messages are accurate.

It's somewhat annoying when very young children answer the phone unless they know who I am. Otherwise it's just a tug of war trying to get them to figure out what's going on. I think it should only be done for fun purposes; kids don't really need to know how to answer the phone until their convos consist of more than what was on Mickey's Clubhouse lol.

I have had caller ID since my son was young, so I let him answer if it was my parents or a friend who would enjoy it. Otherwise, it was off limits.

I don't mind kids answering if they are going to handle it the right way. What I really, really don't like is speaking to someone and then them saying their kid wants to "say hi." That is totally awkward when the kid says nothing or isn't easily understood.

Speaking for myself, only, I can't remember a time when I was ever not allowed to answer the phone; going all the way back to early childhood. I know some people are finicky when it comes to letting their kids use the phone, but my parents weren't.

Nhaiyel wrote:

Speaking for myself, only, I can't remember a time when I was ever not allowed to answer the phone; going all the way back to early childhood. I know some people are finicky when it comes to letting their kids use the phone, but my parents weren't.

my house had 5 kids, one mom, and a dead father---we were definitely getting to the phone before her.

What i did find strange as a child was that when i was about 8 or 9, my friend and her brother were FORCED by their parents to answer the phone in a particular way "Thank you for calling the Jones residence. This is Gary Jones speaking." Their parent would call home just to test them! At that age, I thought it crazy that a parent would do that. My mom was always telling me to not talk to strangers and not give my name to ANYONE, wasnt even allowed to wear a shirt with my initials or name--- and here were parents forcing their kids to give out their name!

I find it very frustrating to call a number and find myself asking a 2 or 3 year old for their mommy. My kids didn't answer the phone until they were old enough for me to be able to leave them alone for an hour or so. The oldest could never get a message straight, her younger sister sounded very business like on the phone and could tell me who called and what they wanted.

We use mostly cellphones so my kids barely have to answer anything. I agree that it's annoying when a toddler answers the phone and you have to patiently "persuade" them to give the phone to whoever it was you're calling. Even more annoying is when you're talking to someone and they give the phone to their 3 year old while they put you on hold.

I think it's silly. If a kid is old enough to dial, he/she is old enough to answer the phone. I was never not allowed to answer the phone.

I don't think it really matters. If they're old enough to know what a phone is and to be able to answer correctly, then I see no reason why they shouldn't. Just reinforce to them proper safety and etiquette.