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for all you parents of children who can answer the phone, how do you teach your child proper phone etiquette and what do you consider proper phone etiquette. my son is still too young to answer the phone (although he wants to), but i deal with peopl on the phone several hundred times a day. i am always amazed at how people answer the phone. one of my biggest pet peeves is when you ask for the person you have called for and the answerer, says "may i ask who is calling?" is this really appropriate? how do/did you teach your child to answer the phone?
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My mother worked for the phone company (back in the days where there was only one) so taught us good phone etiquette.
It is proper, when making a telephone call, to identify oneself to the party answering.
Hello, Mrs. Smith, this is Jane Doe. May I speak to Henry, please.
If the caller doesn't identify oneself, I believe it is appropriate to ask the identity of the caller if that is the desire of the person being called. (who shall I say is calling) My DH absolutely hates talking on the phone--he ALWAYS wants to know who it is before he agrees to speak. The receptionist in our office screens calls -- some calls need to be taken no matter what you're doing and some don't.
Quite honestly, I wouldn't allow my child to answer the phone until she is practically grown (and then only with caller ID).
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I always ask who is calling if the person is not courteous enough to identify themselves. How else can we know whether we want/need to take the call? What if someone is harrassing us? Or a more everyday concern: with all the people who call our homes these days, from politicians to people trying to sell something or ask for money (those anti-telemarketing laws only go so far), well, that makes plenty of calls out there most people wouldn't want to take.
As for children answering the phone, I'm with Spaypets, we don't allow it either, period. My daughters are 4 and 7; it'll be a while before I allow it.
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