Summer Bed Times?

Question

what do you think summer bed times for 7, 10,and11 y/os are okay. is it overprotective to have bedtimes for summer when there is no school to wake up for. (no camp either)

Since they are different ages i think they deserve different bedtimes.

Answer 1

I have a 9 year old and a 6 year old. When they do not have camp or anything, I don't set a bedtime. When they do, it's 8:30-9:00.

Answer 2

Look at it this way, if they are home during the day, when do you want them to be awake. Kids ages 6 to 9 need about 10 hours of sleep a night. Your 11 yr old needs about 8 to 9.5 hours of sleep at night. Early bedtime such as 8:00 means a child up in the morning. My mom always told me growing up, that i should not be up at the end of the news which most start at ten. No bedtime can cause you to lose some control. If they have problems sleeping, make sure they arent eating sugar snacks or drinking tea at least a 2 hours before bedtime. I believe sending them to bed early isn't good but a bedtime is needed.

Answer 3

Take the time they wake up and add two hours. If your 7 year old is up everyday at 6, have him in bed by 8. As we all know, in bed by 8 usually means asleep by 9:00/9:30. This way you are protecting their 8 to 10 hours of sleep!

If you find they are waking up SUPER early because of an early bedtime, let them stay up a little later (think 30 minutes at a time) until they are sleeping to a reasonable hour.

Also, I don't think it is overprotective, I think it is responsible to give them bedtimes. Just because they don't have school to attend to doesn't mean they don't need sleep to help them grow and get through the day!

Answer 4

Children should have a set bedtime no matter what season it is. Not only do children need 8-10 hours of sleep each night but they also rely on the routine. My eight year old goes to bed at 8pm during the school year even on weekends and 9 pm during the summer. Because we do not fluctuate the bed time for the weekends during the school year we have no battles in the summer. She is happy to have the 1 hour extention but she still takes her bath at 7:30 just like during the school year and then she can stay up and watch TV with us or sit out on the porch and read a book or some other relaxing activity. As for children having seperate bed times, sure it may cause a conflict but older children should be allowed to stay up longer than younger children. I would explain that the younger ones need more sleep, and promise them that they are not missing out on any "special" fun by going to bed earlier than their siblings. It boils down to you need to do what is best for your children even though it may not always be what makes them the happiest.

Answer 5

First of all, good luck with setting different bedtimes. As one of three kids, and the oldest, having a different bed time was a nightmare since the little ones would throw fits that I got to stay up.

Personally, I would judge based on their maturity in the matter. But something like 9-10pm seems reasonable. I had that bedtime for several years.

Anyways, it is a good idea to keep the kids on a regular schedule of sleep no matter the time of year. Studies have shown that a regular sleep cycle leads to healthier adults and sleep habits. Your body is accustomed to receiving a specific sleep cycle and the more you can enforce that, the better both their mental and physical development will be when they are older.

Good luck!

Answer 6

I don't think it's "over-protective". It's responsible parenting. My kids have bedtimes even in the summer because they require a minimum number of hours of sleep in order to be pleasant human beings and they don't sleep in. Because they wake up very early no matter how late they go to bed, we have approx. the same bedtime as during the school year. If I knew they'd sleep in and get a full night's sleep, I'd let them stay up later. We are more flexible with doing evening activities in the summer than during the school year, but overall we maintain much the same evening/morning routine.

I won't offer specific times because I don't know your kids. Some kids do OK on 10 hrs of sleep and others need 12 hrs or even 14 hrs. Personally, I think it's a rare kid that can function optimally on 8hrs...even teens tend to sleep more than that becuase they are growing! But if your kids are happy and cooperative during the day and wake up easily on their own, then they are probably getting enough sleep. If you don't care when they wake up in the morning, then do whatever works for your family. The only suggestion I would make is to start getting them back on a school sleeping schedule about 2-3 weeks before they go back to school.

Answer 7

I agree with the different bed times for different age levels. I let my kids stay up about 1 hour later in summer unless we are doing something special. We also are not as strict with the bedtime routine at night. I let the day and how tired they are set the standard. Disney has some great movies on that start at 8pm and I let my 7 yr old stay up to watch the whole movie.

Answer 8

My daughter still has summer program for the summer, so she's still getting up at 6:30. She's usually in bed by 8, although I've let her stay up until 8:30 or 9 as a reward for good behavior. I think it's summer, so she deserves a little fun, and I relax the rules a little. I'm also working on teaching her why she needs her sleep :) She's only 5 1/2, though.

Answer 9

First of all, what works best for your family is the best answer. The time should be based on the needs of the child as well. They are still children and need at least 10 hours of sleep a night. What time do you want them to get up? I have 3 children, and I want them all up by 8, so bed time at the latest is 1000. I let our eldest have quiet reading time a half hour later than her younger brothers. So, they are all in bed at 9:30, and the elder can read until 10. This is negotiable for special occasions, and events. Good Luck!!

Answer 10

My 8 year old has an 8pm bedtime during school times, but in the summer we all agreed that 10pm is bedtime. Every year he can have an extra 30 minutes. He rarely ever can stay up that late anyway!