Kids of all ages need up to eight hours of sleep every night. Some kids do well when they get even more sleep. As a parent though, you know that your kids do not always go to bed when you want them to and that there’s no guarantee they will fall asleep when they climb into bed. Poor sleep can affect their mood and how they act at school. With seven simple tips, you can help your child get the good night’s sleep that he or she needs.
Put Away the Screens
Though children often love electronics, the screens they use can keep them from getting a good night’s sleep. You should put away all screens for a minimum of one hour before bedtime. It’s helpful to cut back on their screen time earlier in the day too. This includes both cell phones and tablets along with video games and computers. The blue light produced by those devices can seriously affect their sleeping habits.
Use White Noise
Do you find that you cannot fall asleep without some type of noise around you? Kids often feel the same way, which is why white noise helps them. While you may fall asleep watching television, look for better options for your kids. White noise apps work on most devices and play soft sounds that lull them to sleep and help them stay asleep. If you want to avoid keeping devices in their rooms, another option is a white noise machine. These machines have different settings that let you choose the right type of noise and volume level.
Help Them Get Comfortable
If you ever tried to fall asleep in a bed with a rock poking you in the back while wearing jeans and boots, you know the importance of comfort when sleeping. Talk with your children to find out how they feel about their beds. You might learn that they don’t like their mattresses or that there are lights coming through their windows.
Kids also have a hard time sleeping when they wear the wrong pajamas, they might get too hot, or the fabric might not be too soft. Switching to more breathable and softer ones like bamboo baby pajamas and some other simple changes to their bedrooms can help them sleep better.
Establish a Sleep Schedule
You can’t expect your child to fall asleep at a specific time if you don’t establish a sleep schedule. This refers to both the time you fall asleep every night and the time you wake up along with how many hours of sleep you get. Kids should go to sleep and get up at the same time every night and morning. You may need to enforce some new rules to make sure your child follows the schedule you set.
Encourage Physical Activity
After a long day of playing on the beach or walking around a theme park, you’ll look forward to coming home and hopping in bed. If your child has a hard time going to sleep and loves running around the house at night, it might be time to encourage some type of physical activity. Tell your child to put down the phone and take a bicycle ride outside. You can also look for fun games you can play outside as a family such as hide and seek. The more active they are during the day, the more kids can sleep at night.
Give Them More Proteins and Carbs
People of all ages love having a snack right before bed. While you might feel tempted to give your kids some fruit and veggies, try protein and carbs instead. A simple snack is a little nut butter spread on a piece of whole-wheat toast or wheat crackers. While the carbs help them feel a little heavy and encourage them to fall asleep, the protein keeps their stomachs full and reduces the risk they might wake up hungry in the middle of the night.
Conclusion
Another way to help your child get a good night’s sleep is with a set routine. Make bedtime as special as possible. You can make a habit out of letting them pick out which pajamas to wear and the toys they want to take to bed. Kids will also love getting a cup of water and picking out a bedtime story that you read to them. Thanks to these seven handy tips, helping your kids get the sleep they need is easier than you might think.
As the editor of the blog, She curate insightful content that sparks curiosity and fosters learning. With a passion for storytelling and a keen eye for detail, she strive to bring diverse perspectives and engaging narratives to readers, ensuring every piece informs, inspires, and enriches.
