How do I prove my child's age?

[serene56]

Bringing a birth certificate does not hurt but currently they play it by ear.

The most common test is asking the child himself how old he is.

if they asked my grandson how old he is-- he will tell them 5. He will be 2.7 and VERY big. His sister is 9 and 5'4' and wears a 9 show. THe parents are 6'3 and 5'9

I really do not think they will ask how old the child is.
I am not taking a birth certificate as i take enough stuff to get me through the parks each day

 

[Amanda999]

if they asked my grandson how old he is-- he will tell them 5. He will be 2.7 and VERY big. His sister is 9 and 5'4' and wears a 9 show. THe parents are 6'3 and 5'9

I really do not think they will ask how old the child is.
I am not taking a birth certificate as i take enough stuff to get me through the parks each day

FWIW, CMs have indeed asked my son his age (both at park turnstile and, several times, to ride with his twin brother but without parent/older child (I can't do Space Mtn anymore!)). They did it very nicely - not in a tone as if they are checking up on what a parent is saying.

I always take a xerox of DS's birth certificate (its all folded up, shoved in with other stuff - takes no extra room). Of course YMMV; maybe its 1 in 1,000 times they ask.

 

[lovethattink]

This is a zombie thread, but we're going to keep it open as the question does come up from time to time.

Jedi training is one place they ask age for sure.

 

[finnster77]

Not to be argumentative, but how does a birth certificate prove anything?
Who's to say that birth certificate belongs to that particular child?

 

[Magpie]

Not to be argumentative, but how does a birth certificate prove anything?
Who's to say that birth certificate belongs to that particular child?

It doesn't technically "prove" anything, but it does speak to the fact that the parent is aware that the child looks older than he is and is prepared to back up their word with some kind of documentation. It's an effort on the parent's part to avoid unpleasantness.

To the castmember, it also says, "Regardless of whether this document is legit, this is a parent who is definitely not going to admit they're lying, regardless of what their kid says. Better not to press the issue."

When my son was little, he was extremely tall for his age. I once had a bus driver call him out for only using one ticket (the twelve-and-under fare). I had to go back to the front of the bus and tell the driver that the boy was nine. The driver scowled at me and said, "As if!" To which I replied, "I should know, I gave birth to him!!" I would have loved to have had a birth certificate to wave in his suspicious face.

That was almost ten years ago. I just checked, and it seems our bus system has since added the line, "If you look older than 12, you must show proof of age to take advantage of the child discounts." That certainly wasn't the case when my son was under twelve! (Not sure what sort of proof of age they expect a 12yo to have... there's no indication on the website.)

 

[kohlby]

Though I haven't heard of people asking at Disney - and I do realize this thread is old - asking the child is very unreliable at that age. My eldest was very tall. (My husband is 6'5" and I'm only 5'1" which made my tall kid look even bigger next to me). He was asked for his age outside of Disney at restaurants before. Once he was asked and he told them the wrong age. He was 2 and said he was 4 - and he was easily the size of a 4 year old. The waitress gave me a look. I told her to ask him again. He then said he was 10. That helped the waitress know I wasn't trying to cheat the system - my kid was unreliable with telling his age. So, if you have a kid like this, asking the worker to ask your child again may help unless your kid is stuck on being slightly older and gives consistent answers. (On the flip side, my youngest wouldn't answer anyone when asked until he was 6). Middle child was never asked - she always looked far younger than she was and we always paid the correct price so instead we got shocked looks that yes, she has a ticket since she's old enough. She did get her share of surprised looks at Disney when she was 3 and had a ticket.

 

[goofyernmost]

Hey all....I have a 2 1/2 year old DD, who takes after her mom...simply put...she's tall! I stand 5'10" in flats!!

I'm afraid that when I get to the entrance - and I don't have a ticket for her - b/c she's not yet 3 - I'll get called out.

Do I need to bring a copy of her birth certificate to the parks?

Probably sounds like a dumb question, but I figure I can't be the first parent to ponder this issue...

Thanks!

Count the rings????

Seriously, just to be safe bring a birth certificate, but, historically they will take your word for it. But, better to be prepared then have a nasty surprise.

 

[chloelovesdisney]

I brought a copy of my kid's birth certificate just in case, when he was 2yo he would tell everyone he was 4yo, no idea why.

 

[Samdari]

Why are people not taking cell phone photos of their child's birth certificate to always have a copy with them? Have carried this for years due to suspicious parents/coaches at my son's soccer games.

 

[Minnesota!]

My kids are freakishly tall, too. The only place they were every questioned was the airport when they were under 2, flying as a lap kid. I wouldn't sweat it, but having a copy of the BC will probably ease your mind

 

[bumbershoot]

Thanks guys - I always feel better being prepared...especially considering the fact that my DD has been on a weird kick lately where she tells people she's 8years old - or 30...

You should have seen the look this one little old lady gave, when she asked my DD how hold she was, and my DD replied by saying she was 8...too funny...

Thanks again!!

But it's not weird at all. And I'm responding to everyone else here who thinks it's just their 2 year old who does this.

It's a totally normal and common stage of development at this age! And the cms know this. So when they ask a 2 year old, they expect to hear anything from 2 to 35.

It's not just your two year old being weird. It's your 2 year doing something that is absolutely typical for the age.


Not to mention, a tall kid with tall parents is unlikely to be asked. My son is tall and doesn't have overly tall parents. And even we haven't been asked.

 

[Vijoge]

My 5 y/o DGD will either say she is 11, 17, or simply reply "I'm a grown woman!"

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

The best prove I can think of for a child is just bring the birth certificate. Granted their is no photo, but if you have only 1 child of the same approximate age, you should be good.

AKK

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

Why are people not taking cell phone photos of their child's birth certificate to always have a copy with them? Have carried this for years due to suspicious parents/coaches at my son's soccer games.

Excellent Idea!

 

[JimmyV]

Trivia for the day:

The child who was the subject of this thread is almost 10 now and is a month or two from being a Disney Adult!

 

[brooke789]

OP may need to carry that birth certificate again to prove she's not a Dis year adult!

 

[Robo]

Why are people not taking cell phone photos of their child's birth certificate to always have a copy with them? Have carried this for years due to suspicious parents/coaches at my son's soccer games.

Give me Photoshop and about 8 minutes and I can "improve" the age on any child's birth certificate... on a cell phone image.

Technology giveth... and technology taketh away.

 

[Samdari]

Give me Photoshop and about 8 minutes and I can "improve" the age on any child's birth certificate... on a cell phone image.

Technology giveth... and technology taketh away.

The cell phone photo is not good enough to get a government id.

But it tends to convince opposing coaches/parents in youth soccer, and I am guessing, WDW CM's.

 

[jason10mm]

There are soccer coaches who require a birth certificate to verify parentage? What kid playing soccer can't ID their own parents? I think a coach/parent would get a beat down if they stopped me from interacting with my own kid. Then again, I don't put up a series of stickers on the back of my car that would allow a stranger to know all my kids names, ages, favorite sports, school, name of pets, etc

As for WDW, I've never had them ask. About anything. They don't, AFAICT, even look at your birthdate before handing you a "Happy Birthday" button or anything else that gets you a little bit of preferential treatment (Anniversary, 1st Visit, etc).

 

[Samdari]

There are soccer coaches who require a birth certificate to verify parentage? What kid playing soccer can't ID their own parents? I think a coach/parent would get a beat down if they stopped me from interacting with my own kid. Then again, I don't put up a series of stickers on the back of my car that would allow a stranger to know all my kids names, ages, favorite sports, school, name of pets, etc

As for WDW, I've never had them ask. About anything. They don't, AFAICT, even look at your birthdate before handing you a "Happy Birthday" button or anything else that gets you a little bit of preferential treatment (Anniversary, 1st Visit, etc).

The birth certificate is to verify age. My son is quite tall for 11. He is U11 and often the tallest player when playing with u13's. When he does play with U11's, most coaches (and especially opposing parents) don't believe he qualifies.