OK...we have a 7 y/o and a 9 y/o. Their bedtime(on school nights) is usually 8 PM. We get up at 630AM. Recently we tried letting them stay up until 9 PM and OMG--horrible time getting them up and getting them moving! On the weekends and holidays they do stay up later but they also get to sleep later.

The rest of the neighborhood allows their kids up until 10-11 PM (we know this because they are outside playing until that time.) Now, I realize that all kids are different and need different amounts of sleep. But, are we just being too hard by making our kids go to bed by 8 (830 at the latest). And yes, they go to sleep within 10-15 min. of "lites out".

What time do you put your kids to bed and how old are they?

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I know how you feel but my kids are more like your kids then the others in your neighborhood.

9yo - lights out at 8:30
12yo - lights out at 8:45

Both have to get up at 6am for school.

9:00 lights out during the summer. Yes, we will still have bedtime during the summer. I feel like we are the only ones that do this but it really does work best for our family who all seem to thrive on routine. Even with a 9:00 bedtime, oldest can sleep until 8:00 am! Little one is usually up by 7:00.

My son is 6 1/2 and my Daughter is 4 next month. They both go to bed around 9 and up at 7. We used to do 8-8:30 but gradually it got later. My DD sometimes passes out before we bring her up. I dont like putting them to bed so late, It leaves us no grownup time.

I honestly think my son needs more sleep than he is getting, but he fights it. I would stick with the earlier time if it works for you. Its better for them too.

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Jill
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Mom to Joey (8) and Gianna (6)

My ds goes to bed at 7:30am and gets up at 6:30am. He is 6. My dd goes to bed at 9:30pm and gets up at 6am. She is 14.

This is a good guide for how much sleep kids need. I'd say most kids don't get as much as they need. How Much Sleep Do Children Need?

Holly

Ps-- My kids are usually asleep within minutes of their heads hitting the pillows! LOL I wish I could do that!

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My kids, 5 and almost 4 are both in bed around 7:30 every night except for when we have baseball. All summer, even on weekends! They get up at the crack of dawn, DD especially around 6:00 - 6:30 and DS around 7:00, they are my alarm clock.

We have tried letting them stay up and hope they sleep in, but it doesn't work, they are just crankier and STILL get up early.

I like that they go to bed so early, DH and I get to chat before he goes to bed and I still get almost 5 hours to myself at night since I stay up until after midnight.


ETA DD passes out usually, but DS takes about 15 minutes to fall asleep.

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4 yo & 7 yo in bed @ 830. (4 yo gets a nap during the day @ daycare)
12 yo @ 845. He's SOOOOO grumpy w/o a ton a of sleep.

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DD now hits the bed around 11 pm, but doesn't fall asleep until about midnight. (she is 16 now). However... since we homeschool, she doesn't have to follow a certain schedule...so she usually sleeps until noon or 1 pm.

I guess teenagers need more sleep (at least that is what our doc said). Thinking back to when I was her age, I would have loved to get that much sleep!!

I remember going to bed around 11 pm but getting up at 5 so I could go to the bus stop by 6:15am.

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All 4 of mine have bedtimes @ 7:30 give or take the extra 15 mins to get them to settled down enough to sleep. All 4 get up at between 5:50 and 6:00.. Kids are 11,8,7,4. My 11 yo has to be out the door no later than 7:05 to get the bus and the other 3 I take to school and they have to be there between 7:30 and 7:45.

On weekends they are allow to stay up till 8-8:30
In the Summer and vacation time from school its also 8-8:30

You have NEVER ever seen such a grumpy little 4 year old while trying to get her dressed for school when she has not had a good night sleep the night b4. It's like trying to get the DEVIL himself dressed
My little boy with Aspie, If he doesn't get at least 8 hrs of sleep he is very hard to get moving. He will do NOTHING not even put his shoes on if he has had less than 8 hrs of sleep.

Hence why DH gets the kids up and ready for school.

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Mine are 16 and 12 they go to bed at 9:30. They are allowed to read til 10 - 10:30. Usually 12 y/o is out shortly after he lays down. They get up at 6:45 and leave for school at 7:20. They don't actually have to be there til 8. We live right across the street from the school but they choose to go in early to "socialize". Otherwise, they could sleep another 30 minutes.

Weekends/Summer, they stay up til whenever. Usually they are both asleep by midnight. They get up whenever they wake.

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My 7th grader has a 9:30 bedtime on school nights. He often chooses to go to bed at 9 if he is feeling tired. He occasionally asks to stay up until 10 if there is a show he really wants to watch. He gets up with the help of an alarm at 6:15 and leaves the house at 7:15. He has no set bedtime on the weekends. When he has sleepovers, they sometimes make it to 3-4am! Mostly though, he goes to bed by 10:30 or 11pm on the weekends and may sleep for 12 hours.

My HS junior has no bedtime enforced by me. He is an honor roll student carrying a heavy course load and a part time job, so I believe he has earned the right to set his bed time as long as he is managing his workload with good results. Occasionally, I have to holler at him to get to bed on weeknights when he stays up past 11pm. He gets up at 6:45am on weekdays. He can also sleep for 12 or more hours when he has the chance.....


When they were little they had an 8 or 8:30 bedtime....I have always been in awe of parents who are able to get their kids to bed by 7:30...wow!

cj/

During the school year bedtime is at 9 for my 12 yo and 9 yo. The 9 yo falls asleep within minutes. The 12 yo is still up reading at 11. They both get up between 6 and 6:30. In the summer they can stay up as late as I do (usually by 10 no later than 11)

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My 11 year old usually goes to bed between 9 and 9:30, and she is up by 6:45. That time schedule seems to work fine for us. She has friends who play softball and most of their games don't end until about 8:30, so if its an away game they don't even get home until 9. It gets even more difficult when they get in High School and they do sports. They often don't get home until 9:30 or 10!

My kids go to bed at 8pm, and there are kids still playing around here. The other evening, a friend of my son knocked on the door at 8:15 to see if he could play. This kid is 8 and lives on the other end of our neighborhood! My son isn't even allowed to ride his bike that far alone yet.

My kids are 7 and almost 9. (August baby) When school starts back in August, we may try an 8:30 bedtime, but I don't know if it will work. My 7 yr old DD could do it with no problems because she doesn't require as much sleep as DS.

Bedtime @ 8:00 for my 5 and 8 year old. They've done very well with this routine and are ready for bed at that time. Bus comes @ 6:45, so they must be up by 6 a.m. to get everything done. Also, our pediatrician says 10 hours of sleep per night is most beneficial for them at this age.

Like other posters noted, neighborhood kids run wild until 10 or 11 at night, then parents wonder why their kids are so tired in the morning. I actually have one neighbor who takes deodorant to her child's room on school mornings and applies it to his underarms while he's still sleeping because "he just can't wake up." I can't wait to see what she does when he's 21!

8pm for 9 year old <more like 8:30>
9 for 13 year old who I usually let stay up later cause he's usually helping me with something or finishing up his chores

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At their ages NOW
11 year old & 7 year old.....They go to their rooms by 9:00, BUT are allowed to stay in bed and watch TV as long as they remain quiet. They usually fall asleep by 9:30 at the latest. HOWEVER on Monday nights they are allowed to stay up til 11 p,m to watch WWE Wrestling with the understanding that grades stay up, there is NO fuss in the morning, etc. They have both been doing the Monday venture for about 2years without any problem. We actually watch it as a family, so it's a treat for everyone.

When they were younger, lights and TV out at 9 and they always fell asleep immediately.

I think I have always been lucky with them as far as sleep goes.

Now, my 3 year old is a different story. IN the winter months, she will fall asleep by 7 pm and sleep until woken up in the morning which is usually about 7 am...... IN the summer months, she falls asleep when she is tired, sometimes, she will walk into the room, climb in bed and snoozing as early as 7. BUT sometimes she will hang in there until 10 pm. She DOES still take a nap during the day, sometimes an hour sometimes 3 hours, so I guess that's why she fluctuates with bedtime, it really depends on how much sleep she has gotten at naptime. I admit that I am lenient with her, because my boys were on a strict routine at her age....she is spoiled

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my 5 year old goes to bed between 9 - 9:30, and wakes at 8am. on weekends, i'll let him stay up until 11.

he was never a sleeper, even as a baby!

I really can't contribute since my son is only 5.5 months old. He goes to sleep anywhere from 7pm to 9pm depending on his feeding schedule. I have to get him up arond 6am so DH can take him to my Moms while I am at work too.

It is harder now it seems since it is still light out at 8pm or even 9pm to get kids to go to sleep early. I hated going to bed that early when I was young..... I could hear the other kids still playing outside.

It seems like 8pm is the norm for the school aged kids in my neighborhood. The streets are pretty clear by that time.

You have to do what is best for your family and your child.

I sometimes feel like we make our (youngest) kids go to bed earlier than our friends, but it's obvious to me they still need it. Our 7 yr old twins have a 7:30 pm bedtime during the school year (they get up at 6:15 am) and our almost 12 yr old has a 10 pm bedtime (he gets up at 7:15 am).

The twins sometimes complain, but when we have tried letting them stay up till maybe 8, the next morning they are cranky, whiny and tired. They generally fall asleep quickly after they are tucked in.

During the summer, I'm going to enforce bedtime of between 8:30 and 9 pm for the 7 yr olds. I know it's summer, but they won't sleep any later in the mornings and I cannot handle whiny, crabby children at 7 am! As for our oldest.... he'll probably stay up till 11 pm (in the summer) and sleep until who knows when????!!?

Suzanne

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This sounds like my kids! My tweenager needs more sleep then the little one at this point but he always gets up at 8:00 on days off... his own *rule* he has made for himself! Even as an infant, he always was at his best if he woke up right at 8:00. Something about his biorythms maybe???

Here is what works for us...

My boys are 16 and just about 13. They head to bed on a school nights 9 and they can read, watch tv do whatever besides video games until 9:30, then it is lights out.

I would say that I am a little too strict but most nights my kids turn their lights off early and sometimes even fall asleep before 9:30. They both sleep until I wake them up at 6:30.

During the summer I tend to head them in the direction of bed at 10 unless we are doing something. They can stay up for a bit if they want but I go to bed and they need to be quiet.


Darlene

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When we are home they head up around 7:00, but are permitted to read as long as they'd like. My youngest (6) is usually asleep by 7:30. Middle girls (7and 8) are asleep by 8:00. The oldest we are having "issues" with. She LOVES to read and will read an entire book every night. I like to her to put her book down at nine...she will go to sleep if I make her, otherwise she reads until 10:00-10:30...then is grumpy in the AM. They get up around 6:45am.

Gymnastics/karate night they get to bed around 7:45.

Summer bedtime: 8:00pm.

7yr old goes at 7pm. Can read till 7:30p

10yr old goes at 8p and reads till 8:45p

During the summer too. We don't break from routine much. Even when we go on vacation they are both in bed by 8pm.

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DD is 11 and her bedtime is at 10:00pm. She plays softball though and most of their games don't start until either 7:00 or 8:30pm, so on softball nights bedtime is later. Softball practice starts at 7:30pm. So some nights she get to beds later than 10:00pm. the 8:30 start games don't end until 10:00, away games later. About 5-6 days out of the week is consumed with softball, either games or team practice or individual practice. She does go right to sleep during softball season, when not playing softball, she still goes to bed at 10:00, but lays awake until 11:00 or 12:00. She gets up at 7:00am.

13,10 and 5 goe to bed(in their bedroom,stays up a bit later) by 8.00pm.
if cranky in the morning,I warn them that bedtome will be 30 mn earlier.and that stoppped their whining.
13 year old get s up at 5.30 am (bus at 6.30)
10 year old up at 6.40am(bus at 7.25am)
5 year old ,no school yet ,so sh eis up whenever she feels like it,7am,10am....

My DS 10 and DD 8 both stay up until 9 or 10. No set bed time. They both get up for school at 7. And they get up on their own at 7. My Oldest DS is 17 and he stays up as late as he wants on school nights. He knows he has to get up at 6:45 so I leave the bedtime up to him.

In the summer they all can stay up as late as they want and get up whenever they want.

Jen

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My kids are almost 4, 2-1/2, and 16 months. They are all in bed between 7-7:30. If I let them stay up later, they wake up earlier and crabbier!!! The oldest wakes up around 6:30-7 a.m. and the younger two about 7:30, and they all take naps during the day (1 hour for the oldest, 2-1/2 hours for the younger two). If they don't get naps, the are CRABBY! I have friends who keep their 3 year old up until 11 so he will sleep in until 8, I personally need some alone time with DH and some kid free time to myself!

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