In our home, like phones, Trackers are a part of independence of us
I want to be sure they get where they are going (especially during snowstorms or when they go over 45 min away).
I’m not at all concerned they are where they say they will be but about safety. They don’t have to be specific places. When they go with friends, they are allowed to be free range as long as we have a general idea of how long they will be gone.
It’s been helpful for us.
Deleted an odd situation for privacy purposes but we’ve had more .. a phone call from a sibling/passenger w dd1 “mom we think dd1 got on the freeway going the wrong way. Can u track us and let us know?” Etc
Honestly, I’m not sure I’d be handling teen years as well as I hve without trackers.
One thing to tell would be how and why we stArted. When dd was 13 she had older friends who drove and was often wanting to go places alone. We allowed it but required she text upon arrival. She kept losing privileges of riding w friends due to not calling or texting. So we decided a tracker. This allowed me to simply check on her instead of her letting me know she arrived. As she began driving it was the same thing.
I don’t sit at home tracking them. Although in a few really bad snowstorms I did
but it’s been a valuable tool.
And it has nothing to do with being where they said they’d be
honestly that never even occurred to me
I’m concluding like many parenting “tools,” this could be used positively or punitively. The teen years are meant to be a transition into adulthood. They have a parental safety net while functioning independently. I like the trackers as a part of their safety net