How to wake up a toddler?

Question

I have tried a wet handtowel on the face.....
tickling.....
strip covers and clothing.....
setting one of those loud bell alarm clocks that you have to crank up....

and my 2 & 3 year old toddlers still don't want to get up out of bed.
Is their something else I can try or do to motivate my youngsters?

I've even tried using a loud whistle...

Unfortunatly, we have to go to work. They go to daycare. They sleep until 6:30 am.

Answer 1

My children are the same age. I dress my 2yo and have my 3yo dress himself. What I’ve found works best is I wake him up & pull him out of bed and into my room. I let him have a few minutes to get himself together but then I start harping on him to get dressed and tell him that if he doesn’t get dressed he will be going to daycare in his jammies (which I’ve discovered he really doesn’t like). And if that doesn’t get him moving, then I just take him in his jammies. He’s in my room, so I’m getting dressed & ready while repeatedly telling him to get dressed.

Then I go get my 2yo out of bed and get her dressed (while she’s still half sleeping) and by then if he’s not dressed, he’s going in his jammies.

They like brushing their teeth and are always game for that, so that gets them moving.

Then I start telling them about “mommy’s schedule” and if we are behind schedule, I’ll make sure that they hear about it in the car on the way to daycare. If we’re on schedule, then we’ll laugh & talk & sing songs.

To get them to hustle out to the car, the rule is whoever’s at the car first gets to pick their car seat. Fortunately, they both like to sit in the same car seat so this works really well.

Answer 2

I have to get mine (age 2) up at 6:15 and it can be a chore. My husband is in the police academy right now, and I drive an hour for work each way, so it's difficult. She sleeps pretty soundly. I just go in her room and try a gentle shake and , "hey baby girl, wake up." If that doesn't work, and it never does, I start opening and shutting drawers somewhat loudly when I get her clothes and just keep talking to her. Then, I knell down beside her bed. She's a very sociable child, so I start talking to her about how fun it will be to go play with the kids while mommy is at work. It takes about 10 minutes, and I get a few, whiney "no mommy"'s, but it works eventually. One or two noises won't do it. I just have to keep talking a little loudly.

Answer 3

Babies need sleep they grow when they sleep. why do you want ot wake the child you could prevent the development. Your two year old will need at least 12 hours of undisturbed sleep at night along with a least a 1-4 hour nap through the day. You can always read books about how much sleep babies need. You may be surprised to find out your toddler is sleeping normal amounts.

Answer 4

There some more lovable way to wake up a toddler!! Would you want to get up if someone would do that to you!! Nice getting a wet cloth in you face. How about getting a radio alarm where you can put in Cd's to wake him up, and use Cd's with his favorite music. Walk into his room and start singing along and give him a hug holding him while he wakes up. If you don't think you have time for that, you will have to get up even earlier. Kids require work too and he needs time to wake up, just as most of us do.
Don't rush and yell in the morning, because they need to go to daycare and you need to be at work on time. You both decided to have kids, but they don't have to go, you want them to go. The average toddler needs at least 12 hours of sleep and most 2 yrs old need a nap in the afternoon. I agree with Shay saying that they have their rythm and you can't expect them to live up to your schedule. When becoming parents you have to adapt your lives to their schedule and they not to yours.

Answer 5

What time do they go to bed? It sounds like they need to go to bed earlier so they will want to get up instead of staying in bed longer.... Is there something planned during the day that they would want to get up? like are you meeting for a play date? If so tell them when you are trying to get them up, get them excited for the day to come! Are they taking naps during the day... even if its for an hour or so, 2 -3 year olds need 10-12 hours of sleep per day so do 8-10 hours at night and 2 hour nap times. Hopefully this helps!!!

Answer 6

Sounds like you might want to review their bedtime schedules. Perhaps moving up dinner, bath, books and bed will help them get up earlier. My son is in bed by 8 and gets up 6:30-7. I've also found that no TV at night is best for my son to calm down and get ready for sleep. Good luck

Answer 7

If my daughter does not wake up when I turn on the light, I just take her out and dress and change her etc, she will be awake by the time we get to the car..
But I totally agree with all the other answers that if they are having such a hard time waking up they need to go to bed earlier.

Answer 8

Maybe you could try it in a nicer way so that when they do wake up they are excited to see you. You could go in there singing and open the blinds to let the sunshine in and make it a happy experience rather than a loud bell. You could also wake them up gently with opening the blinds and talking to them.. then give them a few minutes to wake up and go back try again and maybe pick them up and hold them for a while until they wake up, maybe turn on a song they like or sing to them! Good luck :)

Answer 9

Put them to bed EARLY! 2-3 year old need 12-14 hours of sleep per night, i read it on the internet somewhere whenever i was concerned about my daughter sleeping in so late...

Answer 10

Well--maybe just let them sleep...If they are both that tired then they probably need the rest...Have you tried getting them to bed earlier?...do they take enough naps?..maybe it is something they are eating?....tell their pediatrician about this...I don't think that young children nedd to gt fixed into adult schedules..they are toddlers--let them go with their natural rhythms of sleep---When children are sleeping, they are growing...so let them get the rest they need--Also--check to see if they are getting overstimulated before sleeping or after sleeping--this may make them want to sleep more--to avoid the excitation--it could be excessive tv watching--yes the cartoons are cute--but too much is not okay and can drain young children..or it could be the environment--are they areound noisy, excitable relatives or siblings?..If so--try letting them sleep in peacful, non stimulating environments--where they can maximize their resting time--rooms that are quiet--if it is noisy where you live or there are many people, try playing soothing music in the background...

Again, I don't think you should try to "motivate" your kids--they don't need artificial motivations they are working on natural body rhythms--if they sleep enough and in peaceful circumstances--they will wake up when they need to--if they have to get up for preschool--just make them sleep even earlier in the evening..

Good Luck:)