The Importance of Sleep

Sleep is one of the most important factors in ensuring a successful school experience for your child.  Getting enough sleep is crucial to healthy growth and development for every child.  Children who get the necessary amount of sleep at night arrive at school feeling relaxed, calm, happy, confident, and able to function to their fullest potential.  Having a good night of sleep enables better focus and concentration required to engage in daily tasks and activites.  It is important to have a routine that promotes quiet activities before bed time which help the child to feel calm and prepare the body for rest.  A routine chart that your child can use to take ownership of his/her bedtime rituals can be very helpful.

How much sleep does your child need?

• 2 years:  11.5 – 15.5 hours total sleep (including daytime nap)


• 3 years:  1 -14 hours total sleep


• 4 years:  11 -14 hours total sleep


• 5 years:  10 -13 hours total sleep

Studies show that increasing your child’s sleep by as little as half an hour can dramatically improve school performance.

Sleep expert Jodi Mindell, author of Sleeping Through the Night says, “If a child has poor sleep habits or refuses to go to nap or go to bed before 10 at night, his parents will assume that he just doesn’t need much sleep.  That’s probably not the case – in fact, it’s likely that such a child is actually sleep-deprived, hence his hyper, overtired behavior at bedtime.”

To see whether your child falls into this group, ask yourself:

• Does my child frequently fall asleep while riding in the car?


• Do I have to wake him almost every morning?


• Does he seem cranky, irritable, or overtired during the day?

Sleep deprivation affects children in different ways than adults.  Sleepy children tend to “speed up” rather than slow down.  Additional information about the symptoms and effects of sleep deprivation is available in the Better Health article.

For more information on sleep habits for children, as well as how sleep affects the growth of your child, visit:

www.babycenter.com
www.betterhealth.vic.gov  

Sources:“Sleep Deprivation.” Better Health Channel. September, 2011.
http://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/bhcv2/bhcarticles.nsf/pages/Sleep_deprivation

“How much sleep does your child need?” Parent Center, August 2011.
http://www.babycenter.com/o_how-much-sleep-does-your-child-need_64915.bc