Teaching Your Child to Take Great Naps
Is it naptime yet?! I know I’m not the only one who has felt that way! Sleep is literally FOOD for the BRAIN. Why is it that we have no problem telling our children that they can’t eat 12 cookies for dinner, but we have trouble setting boundaries when it comes to sleep?
Let’s talk naps, or lack thereof. Maybe you have a great napper who has high sleep needs, loves routine and lives by the clock. Maybe you have a child whose naps are all over the place or who often stays awake all day, does not nap at all and completely crashes at dinner time, then is wired at 8:30pm!
I work with families all over this spectrum, and one thing is always very apparent; sleep begets sleep. Meaning, the better a child naps, the better they typically sleep at night. Keeping a baby or child that biologically still needs to nap, awake all day, is not doing them or you any favors. Of course we all have days where activities do not work well with routine, but we don’t want this to become our norm.
Let’s talk about some ways you can help guide your child to become a great napper, and usually as a result, a great sleeper at night too.
Routine- No surprise here! Children thrive off of predictability. Try and put yourself in their shoes. Kids do not have much control over their day, but whether your child goes with the flow, is high spirited, or somewhere in between, they still love to know what is going to happen next within their day. Once children get around 5 months old, providing them with consistent naps is key to consolidated night time sleep. Try to keep nap time within 30 minutes of variation from day to day. For example, depending on the age, if your child likes to nap around 9am, try and stay as true to that as your day allows.
Wake up before 8am- Although there are some exceptions, young children typically do not “sleep in.” Sleep is not equally restorative around the clock, there are certain times of the day where sleep particularily restorative. If your child sleeps until 9am or 10am, this is likely intruding on their daytime sleep. Rarely will I see a child sleep this late, take consistent naps, and go to bed at a decent hour. We can’t expect children to make up for their lack of daytime sleep by sleeping huge amounts of time at night (over 11-12 hours) therefore, in order to preserve daytime sleep, wake up your child and start the day! They might not be happy at first but after a few days of combining this with appropriate nap times (shown below), things are often back on course quickly.
Sleep Environment- Set the mood! What does that look like?
Wind down a little before nap time, and if your child is of age for screen time, minimizing screen time. We can’t expect a child to relax immediately after their brain is being stimulated.
Offer a cool nap space, ideally between 68-72 degrees.
Utilize black out curtains or light filtering curtains. If you’ve read other blog posts of mine you’ve probably seen me discuss how light inhibits melatonin production. Melatonin is necessary for sleep.
Use white noise! You’re never too old to use a white noise machine.
Use Biologically Appropriate Times- Use nature to your advantage! This is probably one of the most important things you can do. As I stated above, sleep is not equal around the clock, meaning there are certain times of the day where a child’s body is more receptive to sleep. This changes as we age. Work WITH your child’s circadian rythm as opposed to against it. A biologically based sleep routine will have “sleep windows” that look as such;
3 nap a day routine: 8:30/9am, 12/1pm, and sometime around 3:30-5pm (depending on prior naps).
2 nap a day routine: 8:30/9am and 12/1pm.
1 nap a day routine: 12/1pm.
Prior to a 3 nap routine (newborns to ~4 months) sleep is typically randomized. There might be a later evening nap, a small amount of wake time, followed by bedtime.
Most children fit within these ranges. If your child is far outside of these ranges and sleeps well, great! If you’re struggling with naps, implement these times into your day. For some children, missing their sleep wave by even just 15 minutes can make a the difference between a good nap and a not so great nap.
To see a breakdown of how many hours your child should be sleeping, check out my post titled How Much Sleep Does My Child Need?
Wishing you successful naps and lots of sleep!
xoxo