Tips To Implement An Early Bed Time

While all of this sounds good in theory, your kids may not be a fan of an early bedtime (especially if they are used to staying up late.) So, be sure to follow some of these helpful tips:

Bump Up Their Bedtimes Slowly, start to bump up their bedtime by 15 minute increments. At first, they aren’t likely to notice the change. But, by the time they get to bed significantly earlier, they’ll be used to the time change.
Wake Them Up Early on Purpose Some kids need a bit of a nudge to get up and going-especially school aged children. If you wake them around 6 am, they will be more tired toward the end of the day and will be ready to turn in earlier. Plus, going to bed and rising early just promotes healthier habits and produces more productive individuals in society later in life.
Go Screen-Free Many kids have a difficult time falling asleep early because they get over stimulated with the television, computer, or other electronic devices. Make it a point to cut out screen time after 5:30 p.m. In fact, it has been proven that just two hours of screen time right before bed is enough to lower levels of melatonin which in turn decreases your ability to fall asleep. Curl up with a good book or a board game instead!
Increase Their Activity Level Take a walk as a family after dinner. Sign your child up for a physical sport after school. Allow your toddler to have an evening play date-do something that truly tires your kids out so they are ready to hit the sack sooner and will be able to fall asleep with ease.
Say No To Sugar Sugar certainly peps kids up. And, this is the last thing you want before implementing an early bed time. Go sugar-free around and after dinner. Don’t forget to watch their afternoon snacks too! Remember that it may not be traditional desserts like brownies and ice cream that are keeping your child up- it may be the cereal that they are having as a bedtime snack before bed.
Great a Routine Most of the time this is the hardest part for parents-the process of actually getting your child and you’re entire family (including you, mom and dad!) on a new routine. Remember- it takes 21 days to form a habit. It most likely will be a struggle at first but if you can power through the first 21 days you will have a healthier and much happier child.
Track Their Sleep If you are seeing that your child is having trouble getting a full night’s rest or is having meltdowns during the the day, try tracking their sleep and making notes of their daily routines. Chances are tweaking your routine and the knowledge of how restful their nights are will be incredibly helpful.

The bottom line is that when your child goes to bed early, their physical, social, and emotional health is impacted in a positive way. So, what are you waiting for?