Toddlers
As toddlers grow more active and independent, bedtime may become a challenge.
Sleep patterns often change, and children may try new strategies to avoid bedtime!
Setting up a routine and making bedtime rules are important for parents at this stage.
- Set up a bedtime routine that you can stick with every night. Activities
that often help calm toddlers include: stories; quiet music; familiar songs; or other quiet activities.
- Be sure your toddler is put in bed awake and does not fall asleep touching
you. Falling asleep in body contact makes a habit that is enough to wake a child up at
night to get some more!
- Prepare your child for the transition to bed. Let your toddler know a few
minutes before that bedtime is coming. This gives your child time to finish playing and get
used to the idea of bedtime.
- Let your toddler slip into sleep. Use soft music, a bath, cuddles, or a story
to help your child relax and get ready for sleep.
- Let your child have a cuddle object. A comforting object like a stuffed animal
or a blanket can help with sleep.
- Use a soft night-light for comfort. Darkness can be scary for toddlers.
- Make sure daytime naps are not interfering with nighttime sleep. Be sure your
child is awake by 3:00 in the afternoon.
- Decide on a plan of action. If your toddler's protests become a problem, talk to
her doctor or childcare provider. Ask them to help you make a plan to help her go to bed. Parents
and caregivers need to agree to the plan and use the same strategies. Give the plan 3 weeks to
work and remember that things may get worse before they get better as your child tests your plan.
Adapted from Healthy Steps. Edited and Compiled by the Center for Promotion of Child Development Through Primary Care 2011