WASHINGTON
"Big Enuff" Demonstration Unit

PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION

“How much does your daughter weigh?” or “How tall is your son?”  These may seem like simple questions with easy answers. However, an estimated 80 percent of parents cannot recite the weight or height of a child within a few pounds or inches. In most of these cases, parents think that a child is bigger than they are, which could potentially be a deadly mistake. Children who are not restrained in a weight- or height-appropriate child safety seat are at increased risk for injury and death in the event of a motor vehicle crash. Because children should be restrained in a child safety seat until they are at least 4’9” tall, about 8 years old, and about 80 pounds, knowing the weight and height of a child is critical. The Safety Restraint Coalition developed the “Big Enuff” Demonstration Unit to help parents quickly and easily assess a child’s height and weight.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

Through child passenger safety activities, the Safety Restraint Coalition wanted to:

• assess the height and weight of a child at a portable, convenient location;

• educate parents on the appropriate child safety seat based on the child’s height and weight;

• develop a portable method to illustrate the relationship between size of child and use of child safety seats; and

• help other child passenger safety advocates easily identify the correct child safety seat.

STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIES

The “Big Enuff” Demonstration Unit started as a growth chart, attractively decorated with cartoon characters known affectionately as “Buckle Up Helpers.”  Because weight is one of the factors in determining the correct child safety seat, the scale feature was added. The goal was to retain the portability of the unit while adding the scale. In order to ensure that the scale did not make a child appear to be taller than they were, a base was designed for the scale and the growth chart was adjusted accordingly. Once a child is weighed and measured, the parent receives a pre-printed sheet with the height and weight information written on the sheet, along with a recommendation for the proper child safety seat.

RESULTS