At 5’ 1", I was the tallest kid in my 6th grade class - I was taller than most of the other kids all the way up through grade school. My mother, who was just over 5’ and always hated being petite, was thrilled at the thought that I was going to be a tall(er than her) person. By the time I’d reached full height, I could stretch myself all the way to 5’2". Well, at least I was taller than my mom.
You just can’t tell by early indicators. My best friend in grade school was always a good head shorter than me. They used to call us Mutt and Jeff. She ended up around 5’6" while I just watched everyone grow up around me.
A couple inches taller than average? Doesn’t seem too much to worry about, things tend to even out and if they don’t it’s not like there’s much to do about it anyhow. My friends have two wonderful daughters, 6 and 10 years old, and they have always been at the top end of the growth curve - they’re perfectly healthy, normal kids, they just happen to be a bit taller than many of their friends.
According to that prediction site, my son will be 6’3". I hope so. His daddy is 6’ 5", and I am only 5’ 4". My son just turned 5 last week, and is about 46 inches tall. I think he is in the 95% for his age. His weight is in the 75%. Whew…cuz we run chubby on both sides, and so far he is taller than he is heavy.
Here is another site, that is good for growth percentiles.
This was a major problem for me throughout elementary and middle school. I’d get picked on by older kids, and then I’d get into trouble with the people in authority who’d assume that I was the older kid who should know better. It was pretty frustrating. It also didn’t help that I was taller than my fifth grade teacher; he was about 5’4" and I was at least 5’5". At least some of the girls in my grade were within an inch of me on either side by the time I hit middle school.
Unless your kid reaches more than two or three inches taller than her classmates, it shouldn’t be a major issue. Just make sure that you encourage happiness about her height and also make sure that she’s not worrying about being fat just because her much shorter friends wear smaller clothing sizes. Size 6 may be just right for someone who’s 5’3", but it may be emaciated-small for a girl who’s 5’10" with a not-so-wilowy frame.
My soon to be 4 year old daughter is 45" tall, which is so off the charts, it’s almost comical. And, the odds are pretty good it’s legitimate and will result in a really tall adult since the combined height of her parents is 12’10".
I wouldn’t worry too much about it – just help her to own her height. Being a shorty, I always hated to see girls that were ashamed of their height – I would have loved to be 6’! According to many sites I found on the web, my (not-quite-9 year old) son is WAY TALL. They say he should be 4’1" – he’s 4’9" or 10". He’s taller than many of his classmates, but not by that much.
My 21 year old son is 6’5" tall. If I can jump in to the funny class picture discussion, in kindergarten, my son was not only taller than all of his classmates, he was also taller than the teacher by a head or so. Granted she was petite, but I still giggle when I look at the picture.
Signed, Perpetual Shortarse (quit growing in about eighth grade at five foot three point five. I have younger sibs who’re five nine and five eleventyannahalf. They both slouch.)
Wow - that predictor puts my son at 6’5" grown up. That is pretty tall. He does seem quite tall for his age, but I live in Dutchland, home of the Supertall, so around here he is not a freak
He must get it from my side - my husband is only 6’ or so. I am 5’11", so I am guessing my “much taller than average” stats are boosting his prediction.
Halloween can be an issue too, later on. I got lots of comments about being too old for trick-or-treating when I was only 9 or 10, because I was so tall. My son started to get them a couple years ago as well, and some neighbours were not all that nice last year. This year, unlike his friends, he decided not to go. He said it was too much of a hassle, so we’re going on a holiday to Vancouver instead.
I also started carrying his birth certificate with me for those times when cashiers and ticket takers questioned his age (if a place has reduced prices for those aged 6-12, for example).
I tried WhyNot’s cool height predictor, which gave me the same height for my son that his pediatrician gave us, but when I tried to punch in my own numbers from when I was a child, it said:
My baby sister is almost 6’3". I’m pretty sure she hit six feet around sixth grade. I know it was really hard for her for a while. But she learned to sew (so she could make some of her own clothes) and is now teaching high school home-ec in Utah, and happily married to her 6’8" husband.
