How much sleep do your kids get?

[Cammie]

I just finished reading NurtureShock and they had a very interesting chapter on sleep and the effects of sleep deprivation. One particularly interesting point was how the "typical teen" behavoirs of moodiness, sullenness, lack of interest, lack of focus, etc are all also typical signs of sleep deprivation. They discussed numerous studies done on the effects of starting high school one hour later and it was impressive! In one high school SAT scores JUMPED after one year of starting school one hour later.

 

So I was wondering...how much sleep do your kiddos get? We aim for an 8 pm bedtime for DD (9) and DS (4) but it usually stretches to about 8:30. DD gets up at 6 and DS gets up at 7:30 so they get about 10-11 hours per night.

[Mrs Mungo]

Youngest: Goes to bed at 8-8:30 pm and gets up on his own at 6:30-7 am

Middle: Goes to bed at 8:30 pm and gets up at 7-7:30 am

Eldest: Goes to bed at 9-9:30 and sleeps as long as I let her, she is up by 8 am unless it's a Saturday, then she can sleep until 9 am

[LauraGB]

Dd is light years ahead of ds. With that said, bedtime is 830-9pm, reading til 930 which is "lights out" time. Ds is always up by 7a, at the latest, and dd is a beast to arouse by 9am (which, btw is 30 minutes after the offical start of the school day).

[Parrothead]

We were bad and let dd stay up with us during the Christmas break. That really put a crimp in school last week because she was going to bed at 11pm and getting up at 10am. So she still needs 10-11 hours of sleep a night. And I'm happy to say she is back to bed at 9 now.

 

If only I could modify my sleep schedule.

[tdeveson]

Our ds (10.75) sleeps about 10 hours each night. He gets to bed around 10, and wakes up by himself (no alarm clock) around 8 or 8:30.

[Amy loves Bud]

About 10-11 hours. Bed at 10, up at 8 or 9.

[QueenCat]

Ds is 17, and needs about 10 hours.

[Melissa B]

dd12 & dd10 - 8 hours

dd6 & ds4 - 11 hours

[Lilymax]

We really don't keep a schedule most days, unless we have co-op or another appointment. So my kids have gotten used to waking on their own instead of with an alarm. (OH how I DO NOT miss those awful getting-ready-for-school mornings!!!) When left to their own devices, they almost always sleep right at 10 hours a night.

 

That never happened when they were in school. Even though we'd aim for an 8:00 bedtime to allow it to happen, they never fell asleep before 9 or later, and were always cranky in the mornings...and often, throughout the day.

 

They are much happier, easier kids now that they always get enough sleep. It's truly amazing what a difference it makes in their countenances!

[sbgrace]

I never wake my kids. One almost always sleeps about 12 hours. The other varies more but he gets up and does his own thing until his brother wakes and then I get up too.

[Peela]

I try to make sure they get plenty...for a long time it was 10-11 hours, but now that they are teens its not so easy. They want to stay up late and will sneak their ipods under the blankets to play on Facebook. On schooldays they have to get up at 7am, on non school days, 8am. We are just not into sleeping in.

But what I find is that if they have had several late nights and have a day with not much on, they will catch up with a nap during the day or an early night.

I have read 9 hours and 15 minutes for teens, and that seems to be about right. I keep track of whether they are getting enough. I definitely notice if they don't- my son in particular gets irritable. Well, more irritable than his normally irritable self, anyway.

[MaMa2005]

DS (4.5) gets 12-12.5 each night. While I put us in the 'strict' parenting arena with some compromises, the area of sleep is absolutely not compromised. I've done too much research about the ill effects of sleep deprivation in children.

 

We have made sure that DS's bedroom is just for sleeping, getting dressed, bedtime routine, etc. NO TOYS to distract. Lights out is lights out.

[TravelingChris]

Older dd (16.4) gets about nine but she has bouts of insomnia so sometimes its less. Younger dd (13) gets more. She normally sleeps about 10-11. SHe is not full grown.

[Chris in VA]

Ds 18 goes to public school. He goes to bed sometime before 11 (usually 10:30 finds him sacked out) and gets up at 6:30. So that's about, what, 7.5 hours or so? He sleeps in on weekends most of the time.

 

Dd9 goes to bed around 9 and gets up around 8 or 8:30--about 11 hours. I don't wake her.

 

Ds20's schedule as a college student is in the "plug my ears and sing LALALALA" because I don't want to know. He's sensible, tho--probably gets a good 8 hours. While home on Christmas break, he has to be at work at 9, so he has been waking around 8--which means he still is getting about 8-8.5 hours.

[elegantlion]

Ds goes to bed at 10, usually gets up by 7:30, so 9 1/2 hours.

[runamuk]

They go up to bed between 8 and 8:30. They talk for 30 minutes or so and then fall asleep. They're up between 7:30 and 8:30.

[Garga]

7yo gets 10 hours

4yo gets 10.5-11 hours

 

I've heard that teens need a lot of sleep. (I remember that I sure did when I was a teen.) My plan is to let my boys sleep a lot when they're teens. I might insist they get to bed by 10 or 11 if they're going to sleep a lot, but I will want them to sleep.

 

Sleep is important in this household! I get my 8.5-9 hours each night, too.

[Tree House Academy]

My kids have to be in bed by 8:30. Younger son (6) goes to sleep right away and gets up, without fail, around 7:30am (so 11 hours of sleep). Older son will lay in bed and read until 9:30 or 10pm and he is usually up by 8am (so about 10 hours of sleep). My kids have always been good sleepers.

 

They get it from me...if I don't have at least 8 hours of sleep, I am a BEAR.

Edited January 13, 2010 by Tree House Academy

[BikeBookBread]

Both girls (almost 6 and just 4) are in bed by 7:00 with the real goal of 6:45 (are asleep within 10 minutes). They get up at 6:50 (because that's when DH leaves for work on his bike, and they always want to say goodbye). If he didn't leave that early, I believe they would sleep in longer, because on days when he is off, they are up around 7:15.

 

No napping unfortunately, but they get a nominal 12 hours a day of sleep.

[Lolly]

Not really answering your question, but on the same topic...Teens DO need more sleep. The problem comes from WHEN they need the sleep. Their bodies naturally start wanting to stay up later and sleep in during the morning. Even when exhausted, they tend to not be able to go to sleep until around midnight. Then, they sleep until noon. This is how their body clocks are set. This is where the problem occurs. Not having access to entertainment doesn't really help like it can with a young child.

 

My kids sleep varies considerably (child to child/day to day) from about 5 hours a day to 12.

[Desert Rat]

For ds9 and ds6, the both get between 10 and 11 hours a night. Less than that and I get grumps.

[mathmom]

Bedtime for the girls is around 8:30. They all go to bed at the same time, but my 8 year old is up by 6 am, my 2 year old usually follows by 7:30, and my 6 year old drags to be up by 8.

 

My son was once a night owl, but he is recovering from mono. He is sleeping about 14 hours a day now, and this is an improvement!

[Mynyel]

My son gets about 10 hours, he goes right to sleep when he goes to bed, for the part.

My daughter? I have no idea, she goes to bed but she is up all hours reading. I can't tell you how many times I have taken anything and everything she can use for light out of her room. She has even used the glow of her alarm clock!

I would love to get them in bed by 9 and up by 8...if I do it will be by fighting tooth and nail.

 

:grouphug::grouphug:

[In the Rain]

My 8 yo sleeps about 10 hours. Roughly 9-7

My 5yo sleeps about 12 hours 8-8. Yesterday she slept 14 hours!

[6packofun]

As much as they need. My older kids (12+) choose their own bedtimes, wake on their own and learn from the poor choice to stay up until 1 a.m. when they know their body is going to wake them up at 8 or 9. LOL It's funny to hear the 13-15 year olds saying, "Man, I need to get to bed or I'm going to be DEAD tomorrow!" hehe

 

Our younger ones go to bed between 9 and 10 and wake up when they wake up.

[Tutor]

Ds6 & Ds9 - ~10 hours

Dd11 - 10+ hours

Dd13 - 8-10 hours

[luvbnhome2]

MY 8 yr old dd is good on 9 or 10 hours of sleep. My 12 yr old dd is a BEAR unless she sleeps 11-12 hours, and really needs 12+. She has been this way all of her life.

[Sputterduck]

12 hours. I love my kid. :p

[joannqn]

We head to bed sometime between 9:30 and 10pm. The older kids are allowed to stay up reading for a time. They usually turn the lights off around 10-10:30pm. They wake up around 8am-8:30am at the latest, on their own. I guess that's around 10 hours.

 

My 2 year old goes to bed around 9-9:30pm. If we are up, he usually passes out. He wakes up around 8am. He's required to take a name, which usually lasts 1-2 hours. That's around 12-13 hours.

 

My infant seems to need the least amount of sleep. :glare: Sometimes I'm still trying to get her to sleep at midnight and she wakes up right around 8:30, and she doesn't sleep very much during the day because every tiny change wakes her up. If I want her to sleep, I have to take her up upstairs to the darkened bedroom and stay the whole time.

[nmoira]

8yo -- 10 hours

5yo -- 11 hours

[Narrow Gate Academy]

Bed at 8-8:30. Up at 6:30-7:00. On average 10-11 hours a night.

[chaik76]

My oldest has a bedtime of eight to nine...but doesn't fall asleep until 1 or 2 in the morning. He usually wakes around ten or eleven.

 

My two-year old goes to bed at eight, wakes four or five times in the night and wakes up around eight am.