Why your kindergartner needs more sleep…

Once naptime is dropped, young kids need an estimated 11-13 hours of sleep within a 24-hour period, however, I would wager that your kindergartner likely needs an extra 30-60mins more once they start the school year.

Why? Several reasons:

1. SO MUCH learning. This Is the biggest reason why you need to provide an earlier bedtime.Kindergarten is a year of big growth and adjustment. Some kids are experiencing a school setting for the first time, but even if they have been in a class setting since their infant years, 5–6-year-olds are suddenly being asked to behave quite differently than in their preschool days. At this age, schools are introducing BIG skills like reading and writing, and the expectation to focus for extended amounts of time can be a frustrating challenge. Also, let’s not forget that learning to read and write is EXHAUSTING. Have you ever learned a new language? Do you remember how tiring it was? Or what about the learning curve of a new job? This is similar to what your kindergartner is experiencing. During sleep the brain consolidates learning and memory, if you are not getting your 5-year-old to bed early, they are missing out on deep sleep that only occurs at the beginning of the night, and that is KEY in helping them absorb all the new information.

2. Overscheduling– Right around this age, we love signing our kids up for a bunch of activities. The kids generally love these classes too, but are we getting home too late? Are we providing enough time to unwind? Is there a time in their day where they don’t need to follow a set of rules, and they get to just be? I would recommend choosing a max of two afterschool activities and making sure they do not end too late in the day. At this age, getting enough rest and free time is honestly more important than tap class.

3. Immune System Support– If your kiddo has not been exposed to all the fun preschool and daycare bugs, I’m sorry to tell you that kinder will not only be a big year of learning, but also a big year of immune system building. In short, your kid is going to be sick. Often. What can you do to help counter this? Get them to sleep! Sleep is crucial for a strong immune system. This is exactly when the body restocks their “weapons” to more quickly fight off illness.

If your child is having a hard time getting up in the morning, or you are noticing a change in their attitude (crankier, more emotional), it is likely that they need that earlier bedtime. Prior to kindergarten starting, my daughter had more of a 7:30-8pm bedtime. At the start of this year though, as a sleep consultant, it was obvious to me that we needed to move to an earlier time. She was struggling to wake up by 7:15am, and we were seeing more emotional outbursts and clear exhaustion by the end of the day. We are now on a firm 7pm bedtime which she hasn’t done since her toddler years and I’m starting to see an improvement.

If you are making these changes with your child, give them some time to adjust to the earlier bedtime before throwing in the towel. The circadian rhythm needs to adjust as well! Finally, one last little tip for your bedtime routine. Take a moment to ask them before bed what their favorite part of the day was, and what their least favorite part was. This will start to give you a lot of insight into what they are experiencing and what is important to them. Don’t ask them right when you pick them up from school. They are probably zonked at that point. Before bed will give you more thoughtful answers!

As always, if your bedtime issues go beyond an early bedtime and your nightly routine is something the whole house dreads, schedule an evaluation call with me. Bedtime routine should be a time for fun and family connection. It should also be swift and painless. If that is not the case, I look forward to turning it around for your family.

With love,

Steph