How to Establish a Bedtime Routine for Children
Establishing a bedtime routine for your child helps instill healthy sleep habits. The hours leading up to bedtime provide quality time while helping your kid wind down and prepare for a peaceful, restful night's sleep. Develop a routine as early as possible -- even when your baby is only around 2 months old -- and remain consistent. Consistency and the comforting qualities of the routine are more important than the exact activities. Of course, the routine will change over the years to remain age appropriate, but it should continue and revolve around the same guiding principles.
Instructions
Decide on a bedtime, make sure your child knows it once she's old enough to understand and stick to it. Children of different ages need different amounts of sleep, and some get part of their rest by taking naps. Others, however, get it all overnight. Determine an appropriate bedtime for your child with some research and consideration of her napping habits and what time she has to wake up in the morning. Begin the bedtime routine shortly after dinner. Ideally, it's a multistep process over the course of a few hours. You don't necessarily have to be actively involved in every minute between dinner ending and bedtime, but your child should have a schedule of activities to fill this time, and you should at least be physically present through most of it to keep things on track. Play with your child in a way that incorporates physical activity at the beginning of the bedtime routine. Physical play helps tire your child. Switch to a more low-key, relaxing form of interaction after some physical activity. Play a board game, chat, sing, listen to some mellow music, read a book together or otherwise "chill out" while spending quality time together. Give your child a bath or have her take one if she's old enough to do it on her own. Your child needs to get clean anyway, and, since it's a soothing activity, it's a good one for shortly before bed. Schedule other basic necessities, like tooth brushing, going to the bathroom and changing into pajamas, into this time leading up to bed, as well. Accompany your child to bed at bedtime. Hug and kiss him, tuck him in, and otherwise help him feel secure and happy. Feeling safe in bed is a big part of falling asleep readily and sleeping peacefully. See to it that your child's bedroom is comfortable, quiet and mostly dark at bedtime.
