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It’s like this: We have (ka”h) five children learning from home, and only one phone that we can use. How can anybody juggle this type of course load? Granted, most of the girls’ classes are being recorded, so they can listen at staggered times, but there are a few live classes that overlap.
I suppose that we’ll need to talk to the schools to request some flexibility, but I wondered what everybody else is doing.
(You lot in the CR are my mavens. I always know I can come here to ask these types of questions. It’s a relief to know that there’s someplace I can turn.)
It’s beautiful that you have such a beautiful family. Kneinehara!
But with 5 children you should have just received from the government in the amount of $4900. You should be able to afford a few cheap simple Kosher cell phone lines. (From experience, it’s probably worthwhile to invest in a few sets of headphones so that everyone in the family can use the phones at the same time).
Hatzlacha!Many of the Yeshivos and Beis Yaakovs recently started offering parents flip phones with unlimited voice (calling only) for $20 each.
“But with 5 children you should have just received from the government in the amount of $4900. ”
1.You dont know if they received it yet. There are plenty of reports of those who did not receive it.
2. Maybe they need that money to pay expenses from yom tov.
3. Maybe they have outstanding loans that they have to pay back.I can’t speak for everyone, but we are personally finding it frustrating with even three devices. Speaking to the school and teachers is pointless, as the schools are struggling too and are having a lot of difficulty adapting to the new situation.
Although kosher phones are important blah blah blah, they are also rather overpriced and may be out of range for many people (except in Israel where they are dirt cheap). If a kosher phone isn’t an option because of cost, drugstores and supermarkets sell really cheap phones with just voice and text and a pay-as-you-go plan that usually end up costing bupkis, certainly less than you would otherwise spend on a kosher phone.
Several school districts and MO yeshivos were offering free and “loaner” devices for some of their students who did not have them at home but I suspect that may not be an option with the smaller and more frum yeshivos. Is it possible to check with friends who might have older phones and Ipads which could be temporarily activated at low cost or be used in conjunction with a Wi-Fi hot spot? Its really sad that some kids are missing out on instructional time, especially if the local jurisdiction orders schools to remain closed for the rest of the school year.
$20 a month for unlimited calling, which many of the Yeshivos and Beis Yaakovs started offering, is hardly “overpriced”.
I don’t know whether its “OK” to mention names but in most metro areas, both sprint and Tmobile (still operating separately after the merger) offer low-cost basic plans involving 4 phones for $20-$25/month with unlimited voice access for audio only instruction and sufficient data for the type of online video platforms (Zoom, Blackbaud, etc) that most schools are using for distance learning.
Good luck. Your kids are very fortunate to have a mom who is as concerned about their missing instruction as you seem to be.@MRS PLONY TAG in Far Rockaway had phones and tablets donated to families who need extra devices. If your schools didn’t say anything about it, they probably don’t offer it. I would suggest what I said before, just grab one off of a shelf in Rite-Aid or something. You can have it in your hands immediately, there’s no contract to sign, and it’s rather cheap.
Also, please don’t listen to @Joseph. He gets his jollies from lying to people in YWN Coffee Room so I wouldn’t trust anything he has to say.
“Although kosher phones are important blah blah blah, they are also rather overpriced and may be out of range for many people (except in Israel where they are dirt cheap)”
The phones themselves cost about $100. I wouldn’t call that dirt cheap. The service is only $10-20 per month but if you have 5 kids who need phones, that’s $600 per month and you still have to pay tuition
How’s a kosher phone better than a 2G or 3G flip phone that you can order service on for $10 month with resellers (MVNOs) and have data blocked as well as text blocked at the carrier level?
You can get unlimited voice calling for $10 a month on any old Sprint phone, including Sprint flip phones, for $10 per month from Tello.
Actually, Tello’s price for unlimited mobile calling is $8/month.
“….and [with these older 2G and 3G phones] you canhave data blocked as well as text blocked at the carrier level?
And Reb Yosef neglects to tell you that for a small additional charge, you can have voice blocked as well
“….and [with these older 2G and 3G phones] you canhave data blocked as well as text blocked at the carrier level?”
Yes, you can have data blocked. Or have data and text blocked, allowing voice only.
And with companies like Tello, Twigby, Ting and others there’s no additional charge to block the data or the data and text.
Mrs. Plony: Those are American cellular service providers. Check their websites.
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