Bed times?
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Bed times?
What time does your child go to bed? And if they're in secondary school already, did you bring their bed time forward when they started so that they could get up earlier for the longer journey (usually) to secondary school?
My Y6 daughter is usually in bed by 9.30 and reads until ten. Is this a late bed time?
My Y6 daughter is usually in bed by 9.30 and reads until ten. Is this a late bed time?
It's only late for her if she can't cope with it.
My dd was going to bed at 9 pm in year 6 and felt it should be later once she got to grammar. I persuaded her to hold on for a while and see how she got on (after reading posts on this site) and sure enough for the first few weeks she was shattered - even she agreed it was unwise to put her bedtime to a later time.
Once the first half term was over it snuck up to 9.30 pm and we're happy with that, we know she doesn't get to sleep until at least 10 pm most nights but she is able to cope with it all now and will have a little lie in on a Sunday if it's needed.
My dd was going to bed at 9 pm in year 6 and felt it should be later once she got to grammar. I persuaded her to hold on for a while and see how she got on (after reading posts on this site) and sure enough for the first few weeks she was shattered - even she agreed it was unwise to put her bedtime to a later time.
Once the first half term was over it snuck up to 9.30 pm and we're happy with that, we know she doesn't get to sleep until at least 10 pm most nights but she is able to cope with it all now and will have a little lie in on a Sunday if it's needed.
I think we had a discussion about this a while ago & there were pretty mixed responses.
Conclusion seemed to be that it depsns on the individual DC & their need for sleep.
Several people reported having trouble getting DCs to go to sleep before they were tired in the evenings but there were several suggestions baout calming them down and encouraging sleep rather than palying computer games, watching TV etc which seem to stimulate the brain & make sleeping harder.
We tend to be an early to bed family so I may not be representative but I would say that 9.30 to bed plus half an hour reading in year 7 might be a bit late - especially when they are adjusting to more travelling, harder work & homework. But you may find that DC want sto go bed earlier once strted at senior school just because they are worn out!
If your household is like ours, the summer holidays see a change in routine anyway so if the bedtime is working Ok atm maybe just leave it until the last couple of weeks of the summer holidays & then gradually work towards an earlier bedtime/getting up neaer the time that will be required for school - encouraging body clock to adjust itself?
Conclusion seemed to be that it depsns on the individual DC & their need for sleep.
Several people reported having trouble getting DCs to go to sleep before they were tired in the evenings but there were several suggestions baout calming them down and encouraging sleep rather than palying computer games, watching TV etc which seem to stimulate the brain & make sleeping harder.
We tend to be an early to bed family so I may not be representative but I would say that 9.30 to bed plus half an hour reading in year 7 might be a bit late - especially when they are adjusting to more travelling, harder work & homework. But you may find that DC want sto go bed earlier once strted at senior school just because they are worn out!
If your household is like ours, the summer holidays see a change in routine anyway so if the bedtime is working Ok atm maybe just leave it until the last couple of weeks of the summer holidays & then gradually work towards an earlier bedtime/getting up neaer the time that will be required for school - encouraging body clock to adjust itself?
She can cope with it now, but doesn't have to get up until 8 as we live a two minute walk from school! Next year will be different.It's only late for her if she can't cope with it.
Yes, I have this problem with her. I've also heard that reading stiumlates the brain and makes sleeping harder (although not me anymore, I'm asleep after two pages!) and she loves to read.Several people reported having trouble getting DCs to go to sleep before they were tired in the evenings but there were several suggestions baout calming them down and encouraging sleep rather than palying computer games, watching TV etc which seem to stimulate the brain & make sleeping harder.
That's what I'd planned! She's often still in bed at half nine in the morning over the school holidays, so this summer we'll have to treat it like jet lag and wake her up earlier and earlier and send her to bed earlier and earlier! (I guess that means I have to get up earlier too!).If your household is like ours, the summer holidays see a change in routine anyway so if the bedtime is working Ok atm maybe just leave it until the last couple of weeks of the summer holidays & then gradually work towards an earlier bedtime/getting up neaer the time that will be required for school - encouraging body clock to adjust itself?
Thanks for the thoughts, everyone.
I really don't think you can generalise and say what is an appropriate bedtime for a child of a particular age. All you can say is whether an individual child is or is not getting enough sleep, and most parents are pretty clued up on the signs if not! My youngest child needs barely any sleep compared with the other 2, and my eldest seems to need more than either of the younger ones. My 8 year old is rarely asleep before 10 (though has to be quiet in his room from 9) and is always up before 6. His 11 year old brother goes to sleep at around 9.30 and gets up around 7. I reckon that if there is such a thing as an average, that is probably it!
That said (teacher voice on here) I do think it is very important not to have TVs, computers etc in children's bedrooms, so you can be sure that when they are in there, they are either reading or asleep. There are many children in late primary/early secondary who can hardly keep awake because they have been playing on the x-box or watching TV till very late. It is not unusual to have children actually falling asleep at their desks, and not just because the lessons are mind-numbingly boring.
That said (teacher voice on here) I do think it is very important not to have TVs, computers etc in children's bedrooms, so you can be sure that when they are in there, they are either reading or asleep. There are many children in late primary/early secondary who can hardly keep awake because they have been playing on the x-box or watching TV till very late. It is not unusual to have children actually falling asleep at their desks, and not just because the lessons are mind-numbingly boring.
I'd say anything from 8:30pm to 9:30pm is fine for Y6+ - but it is dependant on the actual child. As a parent you know what is right for your child and be able to judge the amount of sleep they need to function properly!
My oldest DC has, from very young, been only a 9-10 hrs a night sleeper ... fine now in Y6 and going to bed around 9pm but a nightmare when younger and going to bed at 7pm!
Compare that to my youngest DC who will sleep for 12-14 hrs a night ... goes to bed around 6:45pm-7pm, has to be woken up on a school day - but are left to sleep at weekends ... bliss
My oldest DC has, from very young, been only a 9-10 hrs a night sleeper ... fine now in Y6 and going to bed around 9pm but a nightmare when younger and going to bed at 7pm!
Compare that to my youngest DC who will sleep for 12-14 hrs a night ... goes to bed around 6:45pm-7pm, has to be woken up on a school day - but are left to sleep at weekends ... bliss Heartmum x x x
but are left to sleep at weekends ... bliss
You can't imagine how jealous that makes me...my eldest will be 14 soon and no-one ever sleeps beyond 7 in my house, no matter what time they go to bed. And though they do get up and make their own breakfast, I can still hear them, and I would love a lie-in, just once....
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East lancs mumof4
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- Joined: Thu Oct 15, 2009 3:42 pm
- Location: East Lancashire
I think I would agree and say that it depends on the individual child, and how much/little sleep that child needs, whatever the age of that child! (if you know what I mean 
)
My DD is 13, she goes to bed on a school night at around 8.30pm to 9.00pm, depending on the amount of homework she has or evening activity. If she feels tired she has been known to take herself to bed at 8.00pm
I have to say though that DD really does need a lot of sleep, more-so since she started high school/became a teenager! (in year 6 went to bed at around 9.30pm)
Now weekends are a different matter, she wants to stay up until around 10pm-10.30 and we usually have to drag her out of bed at noon
'Sleepovers' mean exactly that to her , she is always the first one to go to sleep Other mothers love her sleeping over!
)My DD is 13, she goes to bed on a school night at around 8.30pm to 9.00pm, depending on the amount of homework she has or evening activity. If she feels tired she has been known to take herself to bed at 8.00pm
I have to say though that DD really does need a lot of sleep, more-so since she started high school/became a teenager! (in year 6 went to bed at around 9.30pm)Now weekends are a different matter, she wants to stay up until around 10pm-10.30 and we usually have to drag her out of bed at noon
'Sleepovers' mean exactly that to her
, she is always the first one to go to sleep Other mothers love her sleeping over! Who said children became easier when they grew older?
