All parents have questions. I hope to be a resource for parents who are looking for some answers.
Here is one mom's question and my response:
What would be the best way to go about changing my almost 21
month old's schedule? Or, would that not be wise to do? He wakes up around 8 or 8:30 am, takes a nap from 2-4 pm and goes to bed around 8 or 9 pm. It would be nice if he could nap from 12:30-2:30 so he could attend a local coop preschool
that starts at 3:30. Is there a way to change his sleep schedule, and if so, what would be the optimal way to do this?
Sometimes children's schedules are more easy to adjust than others, depending on factors such as temperament and sensitivity to sleep. If you are happy with the nighttime schedule, changing switching the naptime may impact the evening and morning schedule. You have to weigh the pros and cons, but you can try and slowly adjust the schedule. If it has a negative impact on the nightime sleep you may want to rethink changing the naptime.
The best way to adjust a child's sleeptime (whether it is their bedtime, waketime or naptime) is to do so slowly. Start by adjusting the sleeptime by 10 minutes each day until you reach the desired time. It takes a week or more to make this adjustment, but it allows your child's body to slowly adjust to the time and increases the chance of a successful transition. If you want to make any adjustments to your child's sleeptime, you may want to take advantage of daylight savings (Sunday March 11th), since you will need to make an adjustment to their sleeptimes anyway. If your child is sleeping well now, you want to carefully assess the reason for making any changes and whether it is worth the potential impact on the amount of sleep a child is getting; the child's bedtime or wake time, or maintaining their current nap.
Whenever your child is going through a transition, you want to limit any other changes. Keep the rest of your routine as consistent, calm and predictable as possible. Make sure you give your child enough time to get outside and be active as well as ample time to transition to sleeptime. You may need to extend the bedtime and naptime routines to help prepare him for sleep. Also if there is a lot of resistence, you may want to consider increasing his motivation with a reward system.
For more tips on helping children sleep, visit The American Academy of Pediatrics website: www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/toddler/pages/Bedtime-Trouble.aspx
If you want answers to your parenting questions, send me an email kerrie@parentcoachsf.com. I will respond to your question (anonymously) in an upcoming blog or newsletter.
Good luck and happy sleeping!
Here is one mom's question and my response:
What would be the best way to go about changing my almost 21
month old's schedule? Or, would that not be wise to do? He wakes up around 8 or 8:30 am, takes a nap from 2-4 pm and goes to bed around 8 or 9 pm. It would be nice if he could nap from 12:30-2:30 so he could attend a local coop preschool
that starts at 3:30. Is there a way to change his sleep schedule, and if so, what would be the optimal way to do this?
Sometimes children's schedules are more easy to adjust than others, depending on factors such as temperament and sensitivity to sleep. If you are happy with the nighttime schedule, changing switching the naptime may impact the evening and morning schedule. You have to weigh the pros and cons, but you can try and slowly adjust the schedule. If it has a negative impact on the nightime sleep you may want to rethink changing the naptime.
The best way to adjust a child's sleeptime (whether it is their bedtime, waketime or naptime) is to do so slowly. Start by adjusting the sleeptime by 10 minutes each day until you reach the desired time. It takes a week or more to make this adjustment, but it allows your child's body to slowly adjust to the time and increases the chance of a successful transition. If you want to make any adjustments to your child's sleeptime, you may want to take advantage of daylight savings (Sunday March 11th), since you will need to make an adjustment to their sleeptimes anyway. If your child is sleeping well now, you want to carefully assess the reason for making any changes and whether it is worth the potential impact on the amount of sleep a child is getting; the child's bedtime or wake time, or maintaining their current nap.
Whenever your child is going through a transition, you want to limit any other changes. Keep the rest of your routine as consistent, calm and predictable as possible. Make sure you give your child enough time to get outside and be active as well as ample time to transition to sleeptime. You may need to extend the bedtime and naptime routines to help prepare him for sleep. Also if there is a lot of resistence, you may want to consider increasing his motivation with a reward system.
For more tips on helping children sleep, visit The American Academy of Pediatrics website: www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/toddler/pages/Bedtime-Trouble.aspx
If you want answers to your parenting questions, send me an email kerrie@parentcoachsf.com. I will respond to your question (anonymously) in an upcoming blog or newsletter.
Good luck and happy sleeping!
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