Is your pre-schooler’s nap starting to unravel? Is it taking them longer and longer to fall asleep, or is their nap getting shorter and shorter in length? Are they singing, chatting, and getting up and down instead of sleeping? Or are they napping well on some days, but resisting bedtime and taking ages to fall asleep after lights out?
If any of these scenarios sounds familiar, and if your child is at least three years of age, there’s a good chance that they’re transitioning from nap time to quiet time.
Like all other nap transitions, the shift from napping to no naps doesn’t happen overnight. Children typically transition gradually over the course of a few months. Many children drop naps sequentially. They’ll need to nap four or five days a week for a few weeks, then three or four days a week, then two or three days a week, and so on until finally they no longer need to sleep during the day at all. During, and even after the transition, children often need a slightly earlier bedtime to compensate for less sleep during the day.
If you’re wondering how to help your child through this “some days I need a nap and some days I don’t” phase (and if you want to hold on to that hour or two of down time even when your child is done napping for good) then quiet time is the solution.
Read the full article here.
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