The short answer
Children cannot reliably judge the speed or distance of an approaching vehicle until around age ten, so younger children should cross holding an adult's hand. Until then, the goal is to build the habit and the sequence, not to hand over responsibility.
A developmental limit, not a discipline problem
Parents often interpret a child darting into the street as impulsiveness, but it is largely developmental. The ability to judge a vehicle's speed and distance does not mature until roughly age ten, and children of six and seven have measurable difficulty reading the speed and direction of traffic. Young children also have narrower peripheral vision than adults and are less accurate at locating the source of a sound, so a vehicle approaching from the side may not register.
Safe Kids Worldwide and other traffic-safety organizations agree that children under ten should cross with an adult. Parents also tend to overestimate their children's traffic skills, so ten is best treated as a minimum rather than a milestone; some children need longer, depending on their maturity and the streets involved.
A five-step sequence, every time
A fixed routine holds up under pressure in a way that "be careful" does not. Stop at the curb, with toes behind the edge. Look left, right, and left again, watching for moving wheels rather than just cars, since a turning wheel is the earliest sign a vehicle is about to move. Listen for traffic that cannot be seen. Think, and make eye contact with the driver to confirm they have seen you. Then walk, without running, and keep looking until you reach the other side.
Say the steps aloud together at every curb, and within a year they become habit rather than instruction. Children also learn more from what parents do than from what they say, so model the routine yourself: cross at corners, wait for the signal, and keep your phone away while walking together.
Driveways and parking lots carry particular risk
Many young children who are struck by vehicles are hit not in a crosswalk but in a driveway or parking lot, by a vehicle reversing, often driven by someone they know. A small child standing behind a car is simply not visible from the driver's seat.
Hold hands in every parking lot, and present it as something capable children do rather than a rule for babies. Keep the area behind parked cars off-limits for play, and teach children to stop and make eye contact with the driver before walking behind any vehicle, including the family car. Adopt one rule for the adults as well: no one reverses until every child is accounted for.
Two further habits prevent common injuries. Everyone exits the car on the curb side. And children should never cross between parked cars, where drivers cannot see them until they step out; walking to the corner or crosswalk is worth the extra time.
At the curb, out loud
- "Stop. Toes behind the edge."
- "Look left, right, left. Any wheels moving?"
- "Listen. Can we hear anything we can't see?"
- "Is that driver looking at us? Good. Now we walk, and keep looking."
The advice to drop
"He knows to look both ways."
Looking and judging are separate skills. A child can look directly at an approaching car and still conclude there is time to cross, because the ability to judge speed and distance is not reliable until around age ten.
Where this guidance comes from
- Safe Kids Worldwide — Pedestrian Safety for Little Kids and Big Kids
- NHTSA — Child Pedestrian Safety Education: Applying Learning and Development Research
- Children's Hospital Los Angeles — Pedestrian Safety Tips
- Journal of Safety Research — Developmental differences in children's adaptation to vehicle distance and speed in street-crossing decision-making
Last reviewed October 2026 by the Enchantably team against the sources above. This is general guidance for parents, not medical, legal, or emergency advice. In an emergency, call your local emergency number.
