How to Tell If Your Toddler is Getting Enough Sleep

1. Does he wake up crabby, whiny, or crying after naps or in the morning?
2. Does he begin to be emotional, difficult or sensitive a half hour or more before bedtime?
3. Does he fall asleep on short car or stroller rides?
4. Do you sometimes have to wake him up in the morning because he isn't waking up in time for you to go somewhere?
5. Does your child seem aggressive or hyper active during the day?
5. Does your child seem sluggish or "out of it" during waking hours?

If you answered "yes" to any of the above questions, your toddler may not be receiving enough sleep.

How much sleep do children need?
As your child grows from infancy, he needs less sleep. A newborn may sleep up to twenty hours per day, an infant needs about 16 hours a day, including naps, and a toddler should sleep around 14 hours per day, including naps. For a child aged 2 or 3, this translates into twelve hours of sleep at night and a two hour nap during the day. For your information, preschool children should get about 12 hours of sleep per night, elementary children, 11, and middle school children, 10.

How important is sleep?
Getting a healthy amount of sleep is critical for the well-being of your child. Constant sleep deprivation may lead to serious behavioral problems, and even developmental and emotional delays. Adequate sleep is essential for proper functioning. This is not to say that if you need to wake your child up early a couple of days a week to go to daycare that you are damaging his development, but it is a caution that interrupting your child's sleep needs on a regular basis could be detrimental to his intellectual and emotional growth.

What can I do about it?
Take notice of your child's sleeping habits. Does he fall asleep in less than 10 minutes at night, and you have to wake him up in the morning? If this is the case, you should move up your child's bedtime. 8:00 PM is a very reasonable time to put your child to bed. Allowing him to stay up until 9:00 or 10:00 is unnecessary perhaps irresponsible.

If your child wakes up from naps whining, do not go to his room immediately. Often, children who wake up crying will go back to sleep on their own if left alone. Well-meaning parents tend to go to their child's room at the first sounds of wakefulness, but this may deprive the child of necessary sleep.

If you determine your child is sleep-deprived, you may need to alter your family's schedule. For instance, most toddlers nap between 1 and 3 PM. If you are usually out shopping or at meetings at this time, your child's nap may be reduced to twenty disturbed minutes in the car. Rearrange your schedule to facilitate the sleep needs of your child.

It is extremely important that your child receive a healthy amount of sleep each day. Often, problems that are thought of as "behavioral" issues are really problems caused by a lack of sleep. Evaluate your child's habits and routines to see if you need to make some changes for the good of your family.