Whats a reasonable time for my 2 year old son (3 in a week) to go to bed?

Question

He sometimes has a nap (30/60mins) in the afternoon but not often and he usually goes to bed between 8pm & 9pm, getting up around 6/6.30am. Some friends say this is far too late for a young child to go to bed and he shouldn't be getting up til about 7/7.30pm???
I thought I was doing alright with him in this routine!

Answer 1

I learned a while back not too care what other people thought about my mothering skills. Everyone has different idea of how a child should be raised. Even Doctors give different answers the the same questions. My child is 3 and she goes to bed between 10 and 11. I can hear every one gasp but If I put her to bed any earlier then 10 she is awake by 2 in the morning. Trust me I've tried everything. She hasn't taken a nap since she was a little over 1 she is up by 9 am at the latest She is happy. All kids are different there is no text book child and I for sure would not want one. Just do whats right for you and your family.

Answer 2

7-8 pm. If he goes down now between 8-9, that's a big window of time. It should be a 15 minute window. He should have a bath at 6:30 or 7, books (between 1 and 3), and in bed with the lights out. He should be getting 12 hours of sleep, so if he goes down at 7 he should sleep until 7. Some kids do need less sleep, so don't be too concerned. Make sure his room is really dark--the darker it is in the morning, the more likely he is to sleep in. Also, make sure that he's not waking because he hears someone else moving around in the house. Put a box fan or a white noise machine in his room so he doesn't hear other noises. Position his bed so he can't see the light from under his door, if possible, or when you or your hubby gets up in the morning, put a towel down on the floor in front of the crack so your son doesn't see the light shine in.

Answer 3

no later than 7pm. He should sleep until 7am and he shouldn't be taking naps during the day anymore. Sometimes if they go to bed too late they don't sleep as long even though this sounds illogical to us. Get a good routine in place - tea at 5/5:30, bath at 6pm, milk at 6:30 then a story in bed and sleep time at 7. You can change this to 8pm when they get to age 3/4 if they then start waking early again.

Answer 4

My 3 3 hundred and sixty 5 days previous daughter is a similar way. She has been thoroughly dry in the process the day for some 3 hundred and sixty 5 days and a a million/2 now. We took her out of diapers at night approximately 3 months in the past and saved it up for a month. She could be dry some nights and moist others, and prefer your son it would not wake her. there have been even some nights while she could be moist two times! interior the top we gave up and placed her in pull-ups. Now we compliment her while she has a dry pull-up yet do no longer make a fuss while she would not. Its no longer some thing she will help, so there is not any ingredient in utilizing a decal chart or something (which we did for sunlight hours). My daughter sleeps so heavily that no longer something wakes her, so i assume we would desire to attend till her bladder can final 12 hours each and every night. Your son sounds a similar, i would not rush it. He won't be happy to pass back to nappies so pull-united statesmust be the respond.

Answer 5

My son will be 2 in about 2 months and he goes to bed about 7:30/8pm and gets up at 7am and still takes a 2 hour nap during the day! I agree with all the other comments that if this works for you, then keep doing what you are doing. As long as your son doesn't seem tired, or crabby, then I think he may be getting enough sleep. Kids adapt to whatever your routine is, so if you decide to put him down earlier, he may resist at first, but soon, it will be accepted as routine, as long as you stick with it and remain consistent. That is the key. don;t give in, or they will learn that you can be swayed, and then you will be in a constant struggle. Good luck.

Answer 6

Hi if his routine works then it ok.

Really it should be going to bed between 6.30pm and 7.30pm and waking around 7.30am.

My daughter is 3 in Jan next year and this is her routine. It changes but only slightly. She naps sometimes about 1hr 3 times per week in the day.

Its only gonna be an issue when he starts school, as hes gonna be knackered come tea time if he's been up since 6am and busy all day in school usually running round mad like little boys do!!

Answer 7

The schedule you have is great for now... it's doesn't so much matter what time he goes to bed as long as he is getting enough sleep and it is working for you.

That being said, in a year or two he will be starting kindergarten and will be needing a slightly different schedule since he won't be getting a nap (if it's full day.)

As a kindergarten teacher, I can tell you that the most important thing is routine, but it is also important that kids be getting enough sleep so they can learn properly at school. I would start adapting your routine now so that he can get 9 or 10 hours of sleep and get up for school. Children who aren't getting enough sleep do not perform as well at school and are more likely to cause trouble cause they're cranky.

You have time until kindergarten, though, so stick with what works for you...

Answer 8

My little girl has been going to bed at 7:30-8pm and getting up at 8am since she was about 18 months. She hasn't had a nap in the afternoon since about this age either.
If you and your son are happy with these times, there's no reason to change. Loads of children get up around that time, so I don't know who you've been talking to because all my friends tell me I don't know how lucky I am to have her sleep so well.

Answer 9

I think that sounds fine.

Our kids never had a bedtime earlier than 8:00, and they were well-rested. If you put him down at 7 or 7:30, be prepared to get up every morning before dawn, because that's what would likely happen.

Remember, every person has their own ideas of what kids should or should not do. The only thing you need to concern yourself with is whether it is good for YOUR child, and whether it works well for YOUR family.

My kids would have balked at the idea of going to bed before it was night-time (remotely dark outside), even at that age.


You know what's scary? There are people saying that he needs 9-10 hours of sleep, so you will need to adjust his schedule at some point. Assuming the latest bedtime you mention (nine) and the earliest wake-up time (six), that's nine hours. What needs to be adjusted?

Answer 10

Yes, you're doing alright. Children are not machines, they don't all function the same way. My daughter was regularly put to bed at 7pm but never fell asleep before 10pm and then she'd wake up at 5 or 6am, no problem, and that was without a nap during the day!!! We were the most tired parents in the world for years, lol.

Do what works for you and your kid, not what the norm is.