# Acting alone or with other parents

**Should we coordinate phone and social media rules with other parents?**

Whether you set phone and social media rules on your own or agree on them with other parents, a pledge or the school.

In short: Parents choose between 4 main approaches: Decide alone; Coordinate with friends' parents; Formal pledge; Push for school policy. Evidence: your call. No outcome evidence picks a winner. Preference, culture, money and logistics decide. Best settled: school age.

- Area: Screens, phones and digital life
- Evidence: Your call
- Best settled: School age
- First published: 2026-10-03
- Last updated: 2026-10-05
- Page: https://www.raisingyourchild.com/topics/screens-phones-and-digital-life--acting-alone-or-with-other-parents

## Acting alone or with other parents: what are the options?

1. **Decide alone**: You set your own rules regardless of other families.
2. **Coordinate with friends' parents**: You agree on rules with the parents of your child's friends.
3. **Formal pledge**: You sign a shared commitment with other families, such as waiting on smartphones.
4. **Push for school policy**: You ask the school to adopt a policy.

## Acting alone or with other parents: what does the evidence say?

**Your call.** No outcome evidence picks a winner. Preference, culture, money and logistics decide.

The Wait Until 8th pledge activates once 10 families in a grade sign

Sources:

- [Wait Until 8th](https://www.waituntil8th.org/)

## What else is worth knowing?

A rule is easier to keep when a child's friends have the same one. Some parents coordinate with other families or sign a pledge. Others prefer to decide independently.

## Questions to ask each other

- Would we team up with other parents on phone rules?
- How would we feel being the only family with a rule?
- Would we push the school to take a position?

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General information, not medical advice. Two parents can each answer this and compare: https://www.raisingyourchild.com/explore?cat=screens-phones-and-digital-life&topic=screens-phones-and-digital-life--acting-alone-or-with-other-parents