Sleep!

In light of back to school routines underway and knowing how exhausted I have felt each afternoon, this week's post is devoted to sleep. Some of you may have recently seen this sleep chart for children based on wake up times. 

It was posted by a kindergarten teacher from Wisconsin on social media and went viral within a few days.  It also created a bit of controversy from parents that find it difficult to get their children to bed because of their work schedule, their child's extra-curricular schedule or a child that is resistant to early bedtimes. This table, while a bit more variable, is from the Centers for Disease Control and is consistent with a multitude of medical and sleep organizations. 

Age	Recommended Amount of Sleep
Newborns	16–18 hours a day
Preschool-aged children	11–12 hours a day
School-aged children	At least 10 hours a day
Teens	9–10 hours a day
Adults (including the elderly)	7–8 hours a day

We certainly see the effects at school in children that are consistently sleep deprived. Namely, they are less able to regulate their emotions, cope when things become difficult and stay focused on their work. Check out this article on the importance of sleep relating to our overall health and well-being.
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/sdd/why

So how do we make the sleep happen?
For those of you with babies and pre-school aged children, Rebecca Micchi, a sleep expert based in Seattle, provides a blog with tips and advice on sleep. http://rebeccamichi.com/learn/blog/

For parents of elementary aged children, the National Sleep Foundation has created a website for kids focused on the importance of sleep. If a power struggle ensues at bedtime, letting your child explore this website (ideally, earlier in the day or evening) might help them take responsibility for their own sleep habits and routines.
http://www.sleepforkids.org/index.html

And for those of you with adolescents and teenagers, check out this report that was part of a PBS Frontline special on the teenage brain.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/teenbrain/from/sleep.html

Middle school parents, I hope to see you at Back to School Night next Thursday evening.

Here's to getting our proper amount of sleep!


zzzzzzzzz.....