AIBU to expect 6 year old to be asleep before 10pm? And without trashing his room?!

[LolaCrapola]

These light evenings are a nightmare...DS (6 yrs) is taken upstairs at 7.30 each night, bath, teeth, bedtime stories...bed.....but for a few weeks now he has been opening curtains and playing in his room and not actually falling asleep til sometime between 9-11pm, it's exhausting...we didn't mind so much to start with...he was quietly playing in his room....but he's been up colouring and all sorts.

Tonight we took the colouring stuff away and told him he has to sleep.... He has trashed his room instead....books, clothes, toys all over the floor....

I am at the end of my tether ...what on earth can we do to get him to sleep?

[Wolfiefan]

Tire him out after school?
Black out linings on curtains,
My 6 year old keeps getting up tonight!

[Artandco]

Too early?

My 6 year old goes into bed around 9pm. Sometimes he reads until 9.30pm if needed. NHS says a 6 year old needs 10 hrs 45mins sleep ideally. So 9pm-8am is still over that.

We have no toys in the bedroom though. Just books and soft teddies. Can you remove the toys and craft? I don't think mine would sleep if he could draw all night

[bingandflop]

Having very similar problem it absolutely sucks and I've spent the last half hour in tears over it. My 5yo spends all day bursting into tears over nothing as she's so exhausted, looks knackered but absolutely will not go to sleep at bedtime. I hope you find an answer, if so pass it my way!

[WhyCantIuseTheNameIWant]

Bigandflop

My 3 year old is the same...

Roll on darker nights!

[GreenSand]

My just 7 year old has just dropped off.
He will be up around 6 tomorrow, entirely at his own waking. Holidays here, so no need to get up at all.
So that's about 9 hrs sleep, and he's been pushing that way for a bit.

What time is he up in the mornings? I've given up on evenings, and over the summer holidays at least, will be relaxing bedtime. Worth a try??

How is his reading?? We've just got him a Kindle, which keeps him quietly in bed for half an hour or so, and strict instructions to stay in bed til 6 and no tv til 7.

[hiccupgirl]

Personally I'd give back the colouring and let him do quiet activities till he falls asleep if that was working. Or find another wind down quiet routine aiming for him to be asleep by 9.30ish if that's around the time he normally falls asleep.

My 6 yr old goes up at 7.30ish but doesn't fall asleep till 9pm. He's up by 6.30am without fail so normally has around 9.5 hrs sleep. I can't get him to sleep more than that - if he does fall asleep earlier, he's up at 6am instead.

[Elismum669]

My 4 year old has been the same have found a star chart with reward has worked (2 successful nights) 7 green dots = scooting to nursery next day

[Wolfiefan]

9pm?! Yikes.
My DD will be up at 7am. I don't expect her to be asleep at 7. But 9pm is far too late for her.

[EveOnline2016]

Dd is the same. Really driving me up the wall.

[elQuintoConyo]

7.30? Crikey that's early! I missed: what time does he get up? Does he need to go to bed so early? Is he Peppa Pig?

[arethereanyleftatall]

What we do in our house for our 5&7 year old is 7pm ish - tidy rooms/stories/teeth/cuddles. 8pm we leave. I don't go back in to their rooms, don't get involved with what they're up to. 5yr old falls asleep at 8 (or at least she doesn't put her light back on), 7yr old often reads/colours/writes but turns her own light off around 9. That's fine. If they come out of their room for the toilet, we don't engage.

Trashing his room is unacceptable. I wouldn't tolerate that.

[Ironmanrocks]

My ds used to be a good sleeper .... blackout blinds, no toys - just books and cuddlies....he has started complaining recently that he can't sleep and has been a real monkey. My neighbour suggested a warm bedtime drink of milk and honey with his story. That coupled with no pj's and a thinner duvet (he's been really hot) has worked well. A slow wind down. Then when he's in bed I stroke him a little and sing lullabies for 5 mins. Relaxed sleepy boy! I've also put his bedtime a bit later. Fingers crossed it will keep working! Good luck!

[TweeterandtheMonkeyman]

My six year old potters till about 9 - it's definitely these light evenings - and she's up at 6.30 every day. I let her have paper and pencils , just no felt tips!! Or scissors!! speaking from bitter experience

[sirfredfredgeorge]

you should be able to expect him not to trash his room, but if you banish him to it long before the time he needs to go to sleep without providing the tools to entertain himself, then I can understand why he does.

12 hours sleep for a 6 year old is very much at the high end of the range of normal, it's not surprising he doesn't actually need that much.

[LolaCrapola]

Thanks for all the replies...he has to get up at 7am and we always have to wake him and he's not the most compliant in the mornings because he's still tired which was why we were taking him upstairs so early.

Tonight we took him to the park till 8.30 and he went to bed just after 9 which still seems late to me buy hey ho...he seems to be quiet up there...he's just soooooo very different to his brother who had a lovely bedtime routine and slept like the proverbial baby!