Does your 8 year old use a booster?

[Leeham Rimes]

X is 4'7" and 80 pounds, when looking up recommendations, I found that the minimum height to go without *any* booster at all (backless/high back/5 point) is 4'9" and 8-12 years of age.

X is giving me a hard time b/c I have him in a high back (which honestly, he still fits in a 5 point but it looks a little uncomfy so I let him switch) and nobody else he knows uses a booster of any kind, and many are shorter.

I told him it doesn't matter what his friends/his friends' families do and we'll talk about it when he's the minimum height required to go without.

But it did make me wonder b/c I was pretty surprised when I realized that we were in the minority among people we know IRL. (and not just on X's say so, just through casual conversation and such, we are definitely in the minority, for Wes too and he's 6) I'm just curious now.

[minionkevin]

My kid is not yet 8, but my oldest will definitely not meet the height/weight recommendations and belt fit requirements to be out of it at/before 8. My younger one probably will meet the weight/height (he’s huge). Fulfilling the 5 steps is more important than weight or a minimum age (like 8 - it’s different if we’re talking about a 13 year old), and belt fit can differ based upon seating position.

[eddy]

I had a giant child and he was still in a booster until 9 I think. We got rid of the high back at some point. 

[jenna]

My tall 8 year old (80 lb) still rides in a high back booster. He is not mature enough to sit still - using his seat belt - without it.

[gerder3]

My daughter is 7.5 and we just switched from the 5-point harness. My baby brother is 8 and he's still in the harness. DD is tiny and will likely be in the high back booster for a couple more years and like you I get a lot of guff from her because her friends are in regular boosters or out of them completely. When she asks when we'll change her seat I usually say "when you're in college." Lol

I honestly think it's because the parents just don't realize the safety benefits.

[huskymom]

My 7.5 year old is 3’9” so we’ve got awhile! She just moved to a HBB a few months ago.

[karinothing]

My kid is 7.5 and only 46inches and 42lbs so he is still in a harness. He will be in a booster long past 8.

[sarahswim]

My kid is 9 and 80 lbs. He is still in a booster (not a high back) and will be for a while.

ETA:  if a friend picks him up or he's going with another mom, he usually goes without it.  

[sarahbear]

Almost 9 year old, and no. We had him in a seat only booster for 6 months after he was 8. Recent field trip and not one student had a booster in his class of 28. These are 8/9 year olds.
ETA: Tbis isn't a statement hidden like a critique. Do what you're comfortable with. I can say I haven't seen anyone using a high back for a child over 8 around here, but that's just my small sample size.

[Deleted]

My kid won’t be 4-9 until she’s like 11, so yes. I know very few 8 year olds who are that height so basically all of them should be in boosters.

[cmeon]

DD is 9.5 and still in a (backless) booster- we actually checked last weekend, and the belt is still too high (comes across her neck) for her to sit safely without it. DS was almost 10, IIRC, when he was able to ditch the booster altogether.

ETA: And yeah, we're one of the last, for sure- but, kids regularly get into front seats, don't wear seat belts, and ride on the backs of motorcycles without helmets here- so, I'm not going to use my kids' peers as examples for what we should do.

ETA2: www.boosterseats4safety.org/about-booster-seats/ <-- Do this "test", don't rely on height alone (DD is above average in height, but, apparently, it's all legs).

[Leeham Rimes]

Feb 21, 2019 20:06:52 GMT -5 cmeon said:

so, I'm not going to use my kids' peers as examples for what we should do.

oh me either. Sorry kid, lol.

[usuallylurking]

My DS1 turns 9 next month and I still have him in a 5-point. 🤷🏼‍♀️ We are going on a road trip to San Diego this summer so I will likely leave him in the harness until after that trip, because I imagine he will sleep during the drive. Honestly the biggest reason I haven’t switched him at this point is because I know this works, he hasn’t outgrown the limits, and I don’t have to mess around with new seats and configurations.

If he rides with a friend he uses a booster. We are definitely one of the last in a harness, and probably were even a year or two ago. But I don’t care, and he doesn’t seem very aware of the discrepancies either.

[Jalapeñomel]

I figure I’ll leave my kid in the booster for as long as humanly possible. Lol

[fivechickens]

My kids will be 8 in April and they are still in a high back booster and probably will be for awhile still. DD3 will probably be in a HB booster even longer because of her disability.

ETA: Most of my kids classmates are still in some kind of boosters. DD3 BFF is almost as tall as me (5’5”) so she is not in one. My neice (5 months younger than mine) isn’t in one either but she is also in the 95% for height and weight.

[circa1978]

Mine will be 8 next month and us tall for his age but still in a high back booster. The weight limit is like 120 pounds so I don’t feel any urgency to switch things up.

[abs]

DD is in a regular booster. I imagine she will be for awhile.

[lauralala]

DS is 9, 4'6" and 75 pounds. He is in a backless booster - we just took the back off in my car a few months ago, but he has used backless in DH's truck for a while now. He will be in the booster until the seatbelt hits him in the right spot.

[devonpow]

DS1 stopped using it sometime in his 8th year- his pedi told us at his appointment that year that he was tall enough to not use it anymore if we wanted, so I assume he measured in at over 4’9”. I feel like we kept him in his (backless) booster for a while after that anyway but didn’t care when he was carpooling or catching a quick ride with someone else. Now he’s 11 and always trying to sit in the front seat (he’s 5’3” and 105 pounds but I’m still making him wait until he turns 12 and he’s not happy lol)

[anonymous]

My 9 yo is in a high back booster and will be for a while

[ohgillian]

My 8 year old is maybe 4’7” and 70 lbs and he’ll be in a booster until he’s 4’9”. We carpool with another family with an 8 year old about the same size. Both my kid and theirs use backless boosters.

My 6 year old is tall but very lightweight. She also has some muscle weakness. She’s in a 5-point and will be for the next several years.

[sonrisa]

Yes. High back booster. She's she's 4'5" and 69 lbs.

[186momx]

My 7.5 year old just switch to HBB right before school started in September as she outgrew the 5 point harness. She uses a booster for afterschool van and a for carpool stuff. She is a super lightweight and the belt just doesn't fit well in our vehicles for the backless booster. She will say something every once in a while. We were in a pretty severe car crash when she was 5 and that made her very aware of how much safer she is in her car seat vs a seatbelt. She had very little injury while mom was a giant mess.

I also see K kids getting out of the front seat and their toddler siblings riding in low back boosters. Our state law just says kids under 2 must be refacing. After that it just says when you hit 40lbs you can ride in whatever system fits bests and you should stay in a system that fits you best until age 8.

[foodiemom]

Yes, mine stay in one until they are 4’9” and I did find we were in the rarity for people who do that. At my sons 9 year appointment we didn’t even ask but she said ‘ooh, 4’8! So close to not needing that booster!’ He was out of it about 2 months later and my kids are among the tallest in their class.

[jellymankelly]

My almost 9 year old is still using one, and will be for at least another year. He’s the size of an average 7 year old. He’s 4’2 and 55 pounds. Who knows when he will be big enough. My oldest just hit 80 pounds this past year at age 12 (but he’s 5’3, so he’s obviously not in a booster any longer).

[Dumbledork]

DD is 9.5 and still in a booster, but not a high back. She moved out of high back at 8, I think. She’s small for her age.

Most of the kids in her class are still in boosters. My niece and nephew, however, moved out of boosters when they were like...5.

[Leeham Rimes]

Feb 21, 2019 20:45:17 GMT -5 186momx said:

We were in a pretty severe car crash when she was 5 and that made her very aware of how much safer she is in her car seat vs a seatbelt.

H and I both investigate car crashes for a living and I wonder if that makes me more vigilant than some, bc I see often how much your life can be changed in the blink of an eye.

[lindyanne]

My 9.5 year old is in a booster

[cleo29]

My 9 year old is in a booster still. After our car accident two years ago, the seat belt hitting the correct spot was driven home to me. So, yes, i will keep them using one until that is happening.

[Jermys]

Edith just stopped using a booster recently when she hit the height requirement and the other requirements on the safety website someone posted earlier. I'm pretty sure she was the last kid in 5th grade to still be in a booster, but IDGAF.