Getting Child's Sleep Schedule Back on Track for School

CLEVELAND - If your kids are heading back to school this month, now is a good time to start getting their sleep schedule back on track. 

“I know it's still summertime and we don't want to think about school starting again yet, but it's time to start preparing so you're set up for success. It's best to go nice and easy, slow and steady when you're building up that sleep pattern,” advised Brian Chen, MD, sleep specialist at Cleveland Clinic.

Dr. Chen said it can be tough for a child to suddenly change their sleep schedule, which is why it’s good to ease into that transition. 

He recommends first figuring out how many hours of sleep they need and then factoring in what time they have to get up in the morning.

So, for example, if they require about nine hours of sleep and have to be up by seven for school, their bedtime would be around 10 p.m.

Dr. Chen notes that if your child stays up really late right now, it’s best to scale back by an hour each week until school starts. 

He also suggests having a relaxing wind-down routine.

“It helps to have good sleep hygiene, and those include good habits, such as turning off your screens, decreasing the amount of sunlight or artificial light that you're exposed to, especially in those last two hours or so before you intend to fall asleep. The other part is making sure you're not eating or having a strenuous kind of exercise in those last couple of hours as well. Your body should be relaxing so that your brain can start to relax as well,” he said.

Dr. Chen adds that good quality sleep isn’t just important for school but for your child’s overall health. 

It can impact everything from their mood to their immune system.