Age versus bedtime

[Anonymous]

Your kids wake up early, that's the issue. What time does school start? Do they need to be up at 6:30 am, or is this a habit from when they were younger you've reinforced with early bedtimes?

My kid has been sleeping 9pm to 7:45 or 8am since K. It allows us to have family dinner together and leaves time for activities that last until 6:30 or 7 twice a week, with a shower after. She can get ready for school in 20 minutes (it's just breakfast, get dressed, brush teeth).

I'd way rather have time with her in the evening than at 6:30 in the morning. That's when I workout and shower. It's my time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In my family, sleep is more important than kindergarten sports. So we don’t do leagues with evening games on weeknights. Not worth it, and not the value I want to model. We value (1) emotional calm and (2) education, both of which require adequate sleep for my kids.

I mean... it's INSANE that you need to point this out, and that others need to argue FOR sleep!

Some posters on here are crazy. This is how you shorten your kids' lifepans, people. Maybe you don't care. But that's what you're doing.

Relax. Some people have kids who don't wake up at the a$$-crack of dawn. My kid can get home from an activity at 7:30, bathe, have a snack, read a book, and do lights out by 9. And then sleep 10.5 hours, wake up at 7:30 am, and feel well rested.

Unless you have a kid who needs 14 hours of sleep (in which case maybe speak to a doctor), there's no reason why a 9pm bedtime must mean sleep deprivation. Especially in the summer when it's light so late. Do you think 8 yr olds in Maine are going to bed at 7pm in July? They have daylight until 10pm there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:In my family, sleep is more important than kindergarten sports. So we don’t do leagues with evening games on weeknights. Not worth it, and not the value I want to model. We value (1) emotional calm and (2) education, both of which require adequate sleep for my kids.

+1

Kiddie sports games during weeknights? Only homeschoolers can pull that off because they can wake up at 9 every day. Nothing wrong with that, but that is not compatible with a traditional school schedule where you need to wake up much earlier. Young kids need sleep.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:In my family, sleep is more important than kindergarten sports. So we don’t do leagues with evening games on weeknights. Not worth it, and not the value I want to model. We value (1) emotional calm and (2) education, both of which require adequate sleep for my kids.

+1

Kiddie sports games during weeknights? Only homeschoolers can pull that off because they can wake up at 9 every day. Nothing wrong with that, but that is not compatible with a traditional school schedule where you need to wake up much earlier. Young kids need sleep.

My kids’ elementary school starts at 9:00. They’re usually in bed by 8 and asleep by 8:30 and wake up on their own at 7:30. We could easily push bedtime to 9:00 and they could get the same amount of sleep and be plenty ready for school. If they went to bed at 7:30, they’d be up at 6:30 ready to go. I’d much prefer a 6:30 game than one at 4:00 where I have to take off work to be there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Your kids wake up early, that's the issue. What time does school start? Do they need to be up at 6:30 am, or is this a habit from when they were younger you've reinforced with early bedtimes?

My kid has been sleeping 9pm to 7:45 or 8am since K. It allows us to have family dinner together and leaves time for activities that last until 6:30 or 7 twice a week, with a shower after. She can get ready for school in 20 minutes (it's just breakfast, get dressed, brush teeth).

I'd way rather have time with her in the evening than at 6:30 in the morning. That's when I workout and shower. It's my time.

What's for breakfast? I don't think there's a way my kid could eat a whole breakfast, clear his place, go upstairs, brush teeth, change clothes, and come down to get lunch/snack/drink into his backpack and put shoes on... all in 20 minutes! He does take the bus so he needs to be outside at 8.

[Anonymous]

I think you’re doing bed too early. My kids are 5 and 7 and they finish up the bedtime routine at 8:30 or so and drift by 9 at the earliest.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We used to eat dinner at 5:30 and aim to be reading bedtime story by 6:30. But with elementary school and sports schedules, we are often eating at 7 and in bed closer to 8. Sometimes he doesn’t sleep right away. Is he getting enough sleep? Wake up is at 7am or a little earlier.

I’m surprised that the teams near us catering to 6-7 year olds are scheduling games at 6:30. That seems so late for kindergarten players.

I don’t get why you aren’t eating before sports.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We used to eat dinner at 5:30 and aim to be reading bedtime story by 6:30. But with elementary school and sports schedules, we are often eating at 7 and in bed closer to 8. Sometimes he doesn’t sleep right away. Is he getting enough sleep? Wake up is at 7am or a little earlier.

I’m surprised that the teams near us catering to 6-7 year olds are scheduling games at 6:30. That seems so late for kindergarten players.

Nuts

+1 There is no justifiable reason to have a kid in bed before 9:00pm or sunset.

All the elementary kids I teach say they’re tired all the time and can not focus on class. It’s not nuts to have kids go to bed earlier. Honestly, it’s no wonder we have discipline problems at school. Parents who think 9pm is appropriate bedtime for a 6 year old is probably letting their 10/11 year old stay up until 11pm. They can’t focus!!!

What time does your school start? If the kids have to get up before about 7:30 to get to school then the school schedule needs to change.

DP - My kid's school starts at 8:00. We live close by, so don't need to be out the door until 7:45, but definitelywaking up before 7:00. The other school option starts at 8:30 but is farther away.
I'm not sure what you mean by "school schedule needs to change," are you suggesting all schools start and end later? How would that work with busses?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is one reason (of several) my kid doesn't play team sports. Even at age 10 she needs 10-11 hours of sleep or we all feel it the next day. Plus homework, instrument practice, family dinner.
That doesn't mean she's not active. Pick an athletic activity that works for your schedule, because the team practices only get later and later.

Bum

[Anonymous]

This is very much kid dependent and depends on their sleep needs and wake up time. I’ve realized my now 8 year old’s circadian rhythm is set in stone, and no amount of routines or effort can make her fall asleep earlier than her body wants to. She falls asleep at 8:45 for half of the year, then switches to 9:45 with spring daylight savings. Then back to 8:45 after daylight savings in the fall. She wakes up on her own and isn’t tired or cranky, so I don’t fight it anymore and let her go to bed late this time of year.

So on late activity nights, she gets home from school at 3:30, eats an early dinner, gets home from the activity by 7:45, has a snack and shower, and is in bed around 8:30 and lights out and instantly asleep by 9:45. Wakes up sometime between 6:30-7:30 and is out of the door for school by 8:30. That’s been her schedule for the last year or two, despite me trying to force an earlier bedtime when she was a year or two younger.

That works for her now, but that doesn’t mean it works for every kid at every age. If your kid is melting down before bedtime, has to be woken up every morning, or doesn’t have enough energy to get through the day, then they need more sleep.

The bigger issue with late activities to me is the lack of family meals when practice is right in the middle of dinner time. Eating together is important for us, so that’s actually what makes us restrict the number of weeknight activities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We used to eat dinner at 5:30 and aim to be reading bedtime story by 6:30. But with elementary school and sports schedules, we are often eating at 7 and in bed closer to 8. Sometimes he doesn’t sleep right away. Is he getting enough sleep? Wake up is at 7am or a little earlier.

I’m surprised that the teams near us catering to 6-7 year olds are scheduling games at 6:30. That seems so late for kindergarten players.

Nuts

+1 There is no justifiable reason to have a kid in bed before 9:00pm or sunset.

All the elementary kids I teach say they’re tired all the time and can not focus on class. It’s not nuts to have kids go to bed earlier. Honestly, it’s no wonder we have discipline problems at school. Parents who think 9pm is appropriate bedtime for a 6 year old is probably letting their 10/11 year old stay up until 11pm. They can’t focus!!!

What time does your school start? If the kids have to get up before about 7:30 to get to school then the school schedule needs to change.

DP - My kid's school starts at 8:00. We live close by, so don't need to be out the door until 7:45, but definitelywaking up before 7:00. The other school option starts at 8:30 but is farther away.
I'm not sure what you mean by "school schedule needs to change," are you suggesting all schools start and end later? How would that work with busses?

I wish we started at 8! My kids bus arrives at 7am, so up at 6:15. It’s challenging with evening practices that even only go until 6 because we try to enforce an 8pm bedtime (1st grader).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is very much kid dependent and depends on their sleep needs and wake up time. I’ve realized my now 8 year old’s circadian rhythm is set in stone, and no amount of routines or effort can make her fall asleep earlier than her body wants to. She falls asleep at 8:45 for half of the year, then switches to 9:45 with spring daylight savings. Then back to 8:45 after daylight savings in the fall. She wakes up on her own and isn’t tired or cranky, so I don’t fight it anymore and let her go to bed late this time of year.

So on late activity nights, she gets home from school at 3:30, eats an early dinner, gets home from the activity by 7:45, has a snack and shower, and is in bed around 8:30 and lights out and instantly asleep by 9:45. Wakes up sometime between 6:30-7:30 and is out of the door for school by 8:30. That’s been her schedule for the last year or two, despite me trying to force an earlier bedtime when she was a year or two younger.

That works for her now, but that doesn’t mean it works for every kid at every age. If your kid is melting down before bedtime, has to be woken up every morning, or doesn’t have enough energy to get through the day, then they need more sleep.

The bigger issue with late activities to me is the lack of family meals when practice is right in the middle of dinner time. Eating together is important for us, so that’s actually what makes us restrict the number of weeknight activities.

+1 on the sleep needs and wakeup time and it being very kid dependent. Some kids won't wake up later no matter how late you keep them up. My nephew is in college and all through high school never really slept in like a typical teen - in elementary he was usually up before 6. 2 of my 3 kids are early risers, but thankfully not that early. My youngest has a later rhythm and always has, but because of siblings maybe not as late as they naturally would.

As far as eating together and weeknight activities, our kids are now old enough that we can do the "dinner at 4:30 or 9" thing that many sports families have to do.

[Anonymous]

All kids are difference, kids age 6-12 need 9-12 hours of sleep. My 7 year old sleeps 9 to 7 and would laugh at us if we tried to put him to bed earlier, but every kids are not all the same.

https://www.healthychildren.org/English/healthy-living/sleep/Pages/healthy-sleep-habits-how-many-hours-does-your-child-need.aspx

[Anonymous]

Is he hard to wake and get going in the morning?
Is he cranky or not paying attention in school?
Is he sleeping in on the weekend?

My 6 year old gets about 11 hours of sleep

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:6:30 story time is insanity

OP

6:30 story time was during preschool. And the first couple weeks when kindergarten was exhausting. But I still think going to bed at 8:30, 9 or even later is too late for this age

Unless your kids are able to sleep in, but mine has to get up at 7 or a little after.

That's how much mine sleeps. Homeschooled so I don't wake him in the morning. But he was always on the lower end for sleep needs, he almost killed me as a baby with his 15 minute catnaps.