What time do your child go to bed?

5 and 12, 9.30pm on a school night, 10-10.30pm non school nights.

It's late but they get enough sleep, easy to wake and not grumpy, they're also ND

DS2 (5.5 in year 1) goes to bed at 8.30 and wakes around 6.45

DS1 (9 in year 5) goes to bed around 9.30-10 and wakes around 7-7.15. He's always struggled to switch off at night. A yoto player has helped a bit - to listen to documentaries.

I don't believe it to be quite frank. If you have black out blinds and a consistent routine the sleep/wake pattern changes. There's many countries where children go to sleep and get up later; western children are just as able to adjust.

Not true, larks do exist. Its not just about light exposure its your whole metabolic clock & circadian rhythms, the timing at which you eat meals etc. I tried everything to keep my eldest up later and waking later, it never worked. On holiday as jetlag shifted he would revert to waking at 6am wherever we went.

DD 6: 7.40pm and usually asleep by 8pm. Same at weekends give or take.
Wakes up anywhere between 6am and 7am. Typically usually only sleeps in on a Monday morning and I have to wake her at 7.10 😅

DS has always been happy to go to sleep at about 8pm, that was from 2 days old...He's 8 now and we've moved it back a bit. He goes to bed at 8.30pm, we read and then he's asleep by 9pm.
DD is 1 and goes to sleep any time between 7pm and 9pm, depending on how much she has slept at nursery.
Both kids get woken up at 6.30am, to be at school/nursery by 7.30am.
That's during the week.

On the weekend, DS would stay up all night if I let him. DD sticks by the same bedtimes she has during the week. Again, depends on her nap. If we are out, however, she hates going to sleep and she either falls asleep once we are in the car on our way back or she takes the time to calm back down or be all chatty... and then just goes to sleep whenever we get home. She'd also happily party all night, given the chance...

Both of mine go to bed at 7 (7 and 4 y old). They fall asleep between 7.05-7.30 depending how tired they are ans get up at 6.30 as we need ro be out by 7.

I think it can depend on what they are doing before/ after school. SAHM here, so no before or after-school care and a short walk and the children have it really easy, youngest is 5 and only does 1 club, the rest of the time she’s home chilling. Up by 7/7.30 and asleep by 8.30 ish.

She has other friends that have to be out at childcare by 7.30, and are in afterschool care until 5/6, sometimes with a long walk home if with a childminder and lots of children to socialise with, so naturally they are more tired. Or they have lots of activities, like gymnastics, swimming etc

I don’t think I ever managed to get my children to bed for this hallowed 7 pm bedtime that so many wax lyrical about when they were small. Maybe in the weeks immediately following dropping their final nap at preschool age but it soon reverted to later.

Mine are now 11 and 16 and have very early starts for secondary school - the 11 yr is actually going to bed earlier than he has for years (about 9) and the 16 chooses to go to bed at 9.30/10 because she likes her sleep!

I know you weren’t asking about teens but may as well tell you now I’m here!

One of mine was asleep 6pm-7.45am for the whole of reception, alas the others never needed much sleep.

Dd is 4 and in reception, she tends to go up at 7.30 and in bed around 8. She wakes around 7. I think people would rather have a child sleep 7pm-6 am than 8pm- 7am even though it’s the same amount of sleep, I’m not sure why. Obviously some dc need to get up at 6 am in which case the 7pm bedtime would be needed. Anyway, dd seems fine, walks nearly a mile to and from school without (much) compliant and doesn’t complain of tiredness.

DD1 will be 6 in December and goes down to bed at 7pm. But falls asleep anytime between then and 8pm depending on how tired she is. She listens to her tonies box to fall asleep.

she wakes up anytime between 6am and 7am

Early for my DC! They do have a medical condition where they require (and want) more sleep than your average person, so they have a bath anytime between 5.30-6.30 depending how exhausted they are, and then 20 mins of stories - their whole bedtime routine from bath to sleep takes about 40-60 mins, but 7.30 is usually the latest they are down, it’s normally 6.45 and can be as early as 6.15! They sleep til about 7.30/8, but get woken earlier during the school week. I think anything past 8pm is getting quite late for a young child, but everyone is different and has different sleep needs, if they’re happy and functioning well then who’s to say that’s wrong!

Ha, my own DS must be a figment of my imagination, then!

At that age we were probably starting the bedtime routine around 7pm with an aim to be actually asleep by 8pm so as long as she is not struggling to wake up in the morning it’s fine.
My youngest is 10 now and she is usually asleep by 9pm and wakes up naturally around 7am

My daughter is 5 and goes to bed between 7-7.30

Not believing it doesn't mean it's not true. I know children in other countries where children have later bedtimes who still need to go to bed earlier because they wake up early. Living in a country which tends to stay up later hasn't stopped them being early rises.

I don't believe it to be quite frank. If you have black out blinds and a consistent routine the sleep/wake pattern changes. There's many countries where children go to sleep and get up later; western children are just as able to adjust.

I agree BUT some children are just very early risers, irrespective of when they go to bed. So getting them to bed at 7 is ensuring they get enough sleep.

I don’t think it’s that late, to be honest. It’s weird because if she was going to bed at 7 and up at 6, it’s the same amount of sleep. I would say 8 is the latest I’d ‘allow’, though.

DD 6 is asleep by 7/7.30ish. She can stay up on a Friday OR a Saturday (not both) until 8.30/9ish, but she still wakes up at 6.30 in the morning either way!

This is quite a useful tool- seems about right to me. <a class="break-all" href="https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=kids-first.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/bedtime.png&tbnid=4dO-BAdVDe1UbM&vet=1&imgrefurl=kids-first.com.au/parent-guide-recommended-sleep-times-for-children/&docid=zkrGTdxX8TAkYM&w=585&h=636&source=sh/x/im/m1/2&kgs=5b72afc7a53ce03a&shem=isst&ucbcb=1" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://share.google/images/KzJusyayhz3LOT9rX

They are all different DS never slept more than 10.5-11 hrs a night. Dd would happily do 12.5-13 hrs from about 11m.

DD goes to bed around 8:30 and we read together until 9-9:30. It depends how much sleep they need.

I know a lot of Mums who religiously have their kids tucked up and lights out at 7pm every night and then are baffled as to why they're always up at 5am.

That's not for me.

DS4 goes at 8 and DD6 goes at 9, some people say it’s too late but that’s just when they get tired. I could put them to bed earlier but honestly I just can’t be bothered to fight over it and they get enough sleep. I also vividly remember being forced to go to bed when I wasn’t tired and I always hated it.

You’ll find they’re all different, and it’ll all depend on what your day is like too.

Mine, 5.5 goes up at 8, asleep for 8:30. But they sleep until 7:00/7:15 as we don’t have to leave the house until 8:30.

Another friend has a son the same age who is in bed asleep for 7:30 but they’re all up at 6:15 to get ready for breakfast club and then commuting to work.

As long as they’re not shattered it’s what works best for your kid!