Roughly what height for passing the 5-step test?

twokidstwodogs

New member
Can anyone give me a rough idea about how tall kids generally are when they pass the 5-step test? I know it will vary a lot by child and by car, but I'm curious. I have an eight year-old niece who is not much bigger than my six year-old. (I'd guess she's no more than 54 inches and 48 lbs.) Her parents are starting to let her ride without a booster, and I'm not convinced that she's big enough. I've passed along the 5-step test information, but am trying to see how much I should push the issue.
 
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joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician
I think the government PSA's are right, about 4'9" http://youtube.com/watch?v=LH_DU24burk
(butt all the way back, feet flat on the floor, shoulderbelt on the collarbone, is my criteria... my 56" almost 11 year old is *almost* there but the belt still fits lower on his thighs in a booster, so he still sits in one in even our smallest car where he does meet those fit specs).
 

twokidstwodogs

New member
Thanks, Julie. That confirms my suspicions. (I'm not sure she's even 54"--she could well be an inch or two below that.) I'll work on it with them.

(I have relatives with older kids coming to visit, and I am suddenly realizing that there is a lot I don't know about car safety for 7-10 year olds.)
 

joolsplus3

Admin - CPS Technician
Yeah, my tallish 8 yo is not quite 53"...no way is she boosterless in any car :( (still, 8 is pretty good in comparison to most people...so maybe they'll understand.. do a search in the google box on this board for 'think again' it pulls up a big thread with crash test videos and discussion of big kids in boosters.

:)
 

wendy1221

New member
My 8 year old passes when he's sitting on the rear bench of my Sienna, but there's no way I would let him ride without a booster. He's still in a high back. I don't think he would pass anywhere else in the vehicle, or in any other vehicle for that matter.
 

Mom to a few

New member
My 8 yr old son (50th percentile for height and weight) isn't even close to passing the 5 step test in the 3rd row of my Sienna. I'm guessing he'll be closer to 10 yrs old before he'll be fitting a seatbelt well. He's still in a Parkway, and every other child at his school is in a backless Turbo Booster...

Our school's policy for field trips actually states that if a child is under 5 feet tall, then they MUST use a booster seat, or they will not be allowed to participate in the field trip. They actually have a chart on the wall where they mark the height of each child in the class periodically so they can keep track of it:thumbsup:. In his class, there were only 2 kids who were tall enough to use a seatbelt only. It's proabably a safe bet that your niece isn't tall enough/big enough at this point. Good luck getting through to them!
 

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