Although children lack the same facial hair growth that creates true sideburns, a short haircut may necessitate neatly trimmed sideburns. When you cut hair at home, take a few minutes to cut children’s sideburns after finishing the rest of a haircut. Cut carefully to make the sideburns even and symmetrical, ensuring that the finished cut looks neat and attractive on your child.

Thin the sideburns with electric clippers, if you desire. Insert a 1/2-inch attachment into the clippers, and turn the clippers on. Rest the clippers against your child’s jaw so the teeth sit just under the bottom of the sideburn, and move the clippers up the child’s sideburn. Angle the clippers away from your child’s head when the teeth reach the top of the sideburn. Repeat the same process on the other sideburn.

Experiment with different lengths for the child's sideburns before you cut by placing your finger over the bottoms of the sideburns to see what they will look like. A small child will generally not have sideburns lower than about 3/8 to 1/2 inch from the top of the ears.

Position the scissors so the blade is horizontal along the bottom edge of the sideburn. Cut the sideburns straight across neatly, removing about 1/4 inch from the bottom. Do not cut more from each sideburn at one time — you can always trim more if necessary. Repeat the same process on the other sideburn.

Check the sideburns for symmetry. If they do not appear symmetrical, trim the longer sideburn carefully to make them even.

Examine the sideburns again to determine whether you want to trim them more or they look acceptable. If you want the sideburns shorter, trim away another 1/4 inch from both sideburns and then check them again for symmetry.