Summer’s end can be bittersweet. And while your kids may be excited to start the new school year, buy school supplies and see their friends, the battle to get them back on an earlier sleep schedule has only just begun.
"Up to 70% of school-aged children do not get sufficient sleep," says Virginia Skiba, M.D., a sleep specialist at Henry Ford Health. "Sleep is vital to our physical and mental health and well-being, and prioritizing sleep is key to success in school."
Helping Your Child Get Enough Sleep For The Start Of School
You don’t have to lose sleep over your child’s soon-to-be cranky morning wake-up routine. You just need to know how to play it – and when to begin changing things up. Here, Dr. Skiba shares six things you can do to make getting your kids on a back-to-school sleep schedule as easy as counting sheep:
1. Start early enough.
Begin making adjustments at least two weeks before school starts by shifting your child’s going to bed and waking up times. Make it a gradual process – changing the times in 15 or 30-minute intervals. This helps make the transition to earlier mornings less jarring.
2. Set screentime limits.
To make the wind down process easier, turn off all electronics (that means TV, computers, tablets and phones) at least one to two hours before lights out. This decreases the amount of stimulation and bright lights they’re exposed to before bedtime.
3. Change up mealtimes.
Your kids shouldn’t eat within two to four hours of going to sleep to avoid digestive issues like acid reflux. Additionally, eating late actually pushes the body's biological clock to stay up later. While you can still enjoy summer barbeques and campfire s'mores, just make sure meals and treats are enjoyed early enough before bed.
Pediatrics At Henry Ford
4. Get moving.
Exercise in the morning and afternoons has been shown to improve sleep at night. Just don’t let your kids do their running around before bed – exercise should stop three to four hours before they hit the hay to avoid overstimulation.
5. Minimize caffeine intake.
Caffeinated beverages can disrupt sleep if kids drink them as much as eight hours before bedtime. Don’t let your kids have coffee drinks? Don’t forget about the lesser-known foods and drinks that can cause a caffeine buzz, like energizing sports drinks and chocolate.
6. Be consistent.
Once you start making these adjustments, stick with them. Not being consistent with bedtimes and wake-up times will undo the sleep progress you’ve already made.
Keeping Sleep Consistent All Year Long
While many school districts are shifting to later start times to allow students more time to sleep, still be mindful of extracurricular activities to keep good sleep practices intact. It’s common for kids to be over-scheduled, jumping from one activity to the next. By the time they get home from sports practice or play rehearsal, eat dinner and do their homework, they may have already short-changed their slumber.
Fatigue can cause mental fogginess, lack of focus and trouble learning – definitely not the best way to kick off the new school year, or any time of year for that matter. Be sure to keep up with healthy sleep practices throughout the year.
Reviewed by Dr. Virginia Skiba, a sleep medicine specialist who sees patients at Henry Ford Medical Centers in Grosse Pointe, Detroit and Sterling Heights.
