What are the signs that your toddler is ready to (sadly) give up naptime and just do quiet time....?
Do you shut the bedroom door so he/she cannot come downstairs, or do you let them roam the house as long as they're quiet?
Ok, so my boy is turning 3 in December. A great sleeper, but its getting him to go to sleep at night that is getting more and more frustrating! He is sometimes still playing in his room (he has a nightlight so its not too dark, a couple of books and a toy nothing else, but he opens and closes his closet doors/drawers for fun). But you know, I just leave him, hoping eventually he will fall asleep, and he usually does.
In the afternoon he sometimes is too worked up for a nap (between 2pm-4pm). When I do get him to go to sleep, its getting tougher to wake him up. I have to go in every 15 min to gently wake him, open curtains to let the light in, put music on, pat his back, tell him to wake up... I sometimes have to do this at least 3 times, and by that time its near 5pm and then I have trouble getting him to go to sleep at night. (no sugar before bed either.. its just him, being playful)
I tried moving his nap to 1-3pm... not always easy as our schedule does not always allow that and I want to be consistent when it comes to his sleep routine. I tried having him nap for one hour only.. he seems ok sometimes and other times the crankiest little monster.. wanting to go back to sleep - LOL!
My daughter is 5 and we still do naps at least one day on the weekend. She has gone through phases where she would fight taking naps, but she still needs them. I always explain to her that she doesn't have to sleep, but she needs to lie quietly and rest for a while. She always ends up falling asleep. Her behavior is sooo much better when she's well rested so we'll continue taking naps until her body doesn't need them anymore.
In my opinion your nap time is way too late in the day. Try paying him down, or doing very quiet activities after lunch, like reading or watching a quiet video. Hopefully he'll transition to earlier naps and they will have much less influence over his bedtime routine.
No to the roaming or shutting them in their room. They are too young to be subjected to that. Once the kids are asleep in their beds they should be able to stay asleep most nights. Staying in their room and helping them drop off on those problem nights in the parents job.
The bedtime routine should be one of relaxing activities, a nice warm bath with some play, a snack, teeth brushing, all kinds of activities that are focused on calming the child to prepare for sleep.
Take note of what child care teachers do for kids having a hard time falling asleep. We would sit by their cots, pat them on the back gently, play soft music like ocean waves or a gentle rain storm, have the room at least semi dark, use a quiet voice when telling the to lay back down, etc....
Ah, dropping naptimes. With my kids the signs were fighting hard at nap time. If I did finally get them to take a nap then they would be up really late at night. At first we went down to naps a few times a week, and then stopped altogether. For quiet time I found that getting them new CD's from the library or books on CD is a good way to make sure they stay in their room. Also making sure they have a few toys or maybe something to color with. The good news is, now you won't be so beholden to naptime!!
J.
Quiet time at my house is:
- in the afternoon
- the house is quiet
- we are all having quite time.... me included.
- my kids are not kept in their rooms nor door closed on them. They can do anything in the house they want, IF they are quiet.
To me, this is what quiet time it. It is quiet. It is not about being kept in a certain room.
- my kids can do that and be quiet. It is the routine
I will even lay on the sofa and the kids are quiet.
OR they nap too. My son is 5 and he will still nap. And even if he naps, in the afternoon, he can still go to bed at night just fine and at a normal hour. By 8:00-8:30pm.
Quiet time is just a time during the day, where everyone... can key down and rest.
And do independent things. Quietly. And use low voices and no horse-play. Nothing turned on.
That is quiet time, for me, at my house.
And per my kids.
i dunno..my son is 5 and still takes naps on the weekends...not ALL the time, but i always know, if we've been busy and he'll take one, or we've been lazy hanging around the house, and he hasn't done enough to need a nap. they have naptime at preschool every day too. i wouldn't give up on naps just yet...take him to the zoo or a pumpkin patch and let him go crazy then i bet if you get him back home by 1 or 2 he will take one :) and no, i don't let him roam the house. if i know he won't take a nap, either he is in his room playing quietly (for "quiet time"), or he lays in bed with me and watches a movie quietly while I sleep! :) our nap times are ALWAYS fifteen-thirty minutes after lunch, no exceptions. if he sleeps past 3 he is a grouch to wake up AND he doesn't want to go back to bed at bedtime. just how we do it...good luck!
I think the sign is that they don't sleep, they just lay there, which, in my opinion, is what quiet time is all about. They stay on the bed and read or play quietly - no roaming around the house.
Hmm, In daycare the schedule would be..
eat lunch at about 11:30..
Start cleaning up and then nap or Quiet time. Stay on the bed and either look at books or play quietly with toys.12:00 - 1:30 or 2:00.. No coming out of the room.
What time does he get up in the morning? You may want to make sure he wakes up at 7:00 so you all can start your day.. Breakfast, play time, run errands, lunch, nap.. playtime another errand. he plays while you get dinner ready, Quite play (optional) bath and bed by 7:30 or 8:00.
My son turned 3 in June, we stopped naps about 2 months ago. He had always gone to bed early, around 7:30 and would wake up around 7 and take a 1 1/2-3 hr nap in the afternoon. Then he suddenly started staying up later and later and it was really hard getting him to go to sleep at night. He was staying up til 9 or sometimes 10 and that does not work for me!! So, I cut out his nap and he goes right to bed around 7-7:30 again. Two days a week he has preschool in the afternoon and the other days I try to have him play quietly in his room with the door closed while his little sister naps, or sometimes I put a movie on for him.
