How tired does school make your children

[Angelface5]

Just wanting to know how tired your children get from being at school?
Do they come home so tired that they hardly do anything once home and have tears.
Only asking as been told from friends how tired their children are and my dd is due to start sept and wanting to know what I have ahead of me.

Mine were very tired out by school, and in fact still had naps in nursery year so I put them in mornings only and paid for childcare in the pm.

In reception year, they were frequently wiped out by 4pm so we had a very calm quiet routine after school and slowly built on it as their stamina grew.
My ds(9) can still be shattered after school depending what he's done during the day. I keep his playdates and activities to a minimum still.

Dd1 napped until she went to school, and first half term came home, slept, had tea, then bath and back to bed. It was exhausting for her.

I would expect most children to be very tired in the first term of YR, but they will show it in different ways (meltdowns, bouncing off walls, sleeping etc) depending on what they're like and also what you do with them after school.

Not at all sadly.

DD used to do breakfast club from 8am then afterschool club till 6pm, in the summer that was followed by best part of an hour in the park and then a 40 minute bus ride home and was still going strong, and rarely in bed before 10.30pm. She now only does 9am - 3.30pm but everything else is the same.

I'm the one who is exhausted.

She's now in Y1 and I had hoped that the more formal structure might tire her out a bit more, but it hasn't.

Personally, I think it totally depends on the individual child. DD's not hyper-active or anything like that, at home in the evenings she's spends hours colouring or quietly playing with Lego or other toys, she just doesn't get tired and doesn't appear to need more than 7-8 hours sleep - she's never whingy or falling asleep during the day. I think she's probably not the norm though.

I had no concept of children who got over-tired or who suffered due to a late bedtime till I stayed with my sister for a week. I think that is perhaps more common.

She did go to a primary school nursery which was full-time, 9am - 3.20pm from when she was 3.5 years and none of the children had problems with the long day after the first term. There were bean-bags in the corner if any of them felt like a nap. Reception had the bean-bags too.

Children who need to be in bed by 7pm, will probably find it pretty exhausting for the first term, but they do all cope and schools are very used to the little ones getting tired.

Mine went from full days at a private nursery to short school days so they weren't tired at all.

I found the biggest leap was from infants to juniors when the workload was more mentally tiring.

DS is one of the eldest in his year, and has never been too bad tiredness wise. He needs a chance to sit like a zombie in front of the TV for a bit, and a snack after school, or we have tears, even now in Y2. Once he's had a bit of down time he is raring to go again though. I do notice he gets more tired as the term goes on though.

DD went to day nursery, 4 days a week 8am-5.30pm.

Come school - she was shattered when collected and wingy when we collected her from a childminder.

I know of some children falling asleep in school.

After Christmas she had more energy and normally managed well. We even could send her to a sports club one afternoon.

Neither of my DDs were remotely tired! I knew of other children who were in bed at just after 6 but it was a struggle to get mine into bed by 8. Napping was unheard of unless they were a bit ill! Children are all different and you probably already know if yours is an active child or not.

One of mine is an August birthday and joined after school clubs (music and movement and swimming) in Reception! Other one did dance lessons from Y1, and swimming. They also regularly played with other children after school. Their after school commitments grew and grew as they got older. DD1 did 11 GCSEs (9 at A*) whilst doing 12 additional activities at school. She cannot let anything drop!

Mine are 10 and 11. At the start of term they are just fine. However, towards the end as a result of homework and sports fixtures as well as school, they are exhausted. They are on the go 7 days a week, often until pretty late at night. They work longer hours than many adults.

When they were 4 though, they were a bit tired for the first term and then adjusted.

Not at all! DD2 was a tired before Xmas because she was still having naps from time to time at 4. DD1 always needed 1 to 3 hours in the park after school to release more energy. She is much better now in Y5 (she is reading a lot though). She calmed down around Y3.

My youngest gets up about 8:15 to be in school for 9:00. In bed by 9:00pm. He is not tired after school.

Our oldest needed much more sleep, more like thirteen hours and would fall asleep on the way home for the first year.

Mine isn't that tired - I do think she needs her sleep so try to get her in bed by 7 but it's a struggle. I need to wake her for school and sometimes takes 5 minutes but once she's up no yawning etc. Year 1. It's very variable.

My DS was very tired but this was expected as he was still napping most days , he continued to nap at school most days too. He was a very sleepy child up til around yr 4 when he suddenly needed less sleep, though he still gets 11 hours a night and he's 12. He was in bed by 6 in yr r and I woke him at 6:45 am. DD was less tired, in yr r she got tired, but no where near as my h as DD and managed a 7 o clock bedtime and play dates or park after school.

Mine started Reception this year. He was more tired for the first couple of weeks and actually went to sleep before 8pm. Since October though he's been fine at the end of the school day most days.

He usually has a bit of a chill and a snack when he gets home but it fine going swimming on a Monday evening without lots of tears or upset. He generally doesn't go to sleep till 8.30ish.

It completely varies and seems impossible to predict. DD is old for her year, had been in nursery from 8am - 6pm three days a week and had a pretty busy time involving ballet, gymnastics etc on the other week days, hadn't napped since her second birthday, went to bed at 8pm & woke up at 6.30am before she started school. Nonetheless, she has been completely wiped out by it. Bedtime is now 7pm & we still have to wake her most mornings despite not getting up until 7.15am; we cancelled all after school activities, including playdates, trips to the supermarket or park etc, last term as she was just too exhausted to manage more than coming home, eating & watching TV or, on a good day, doing some colouring or playing a board game. There have been tears & tantrums most days. The first week of the Christmas holidays was also tough as she was so exhausted from last term. I was amazed. This term has been a bit better but then we are only in week three!

DS is August born and in YR. His school do long days (8.15-3.45 for everyone). He does something after school 3 days a week (science club, play date, tennis lesson) and has been fine. Is asleep by 8pm and wakes by himself at 6am.

Other children in his class have been really tired though.

I think it is very individual.

DS1 is a June born and started reception this year. He went from full days in nursery (730-500) to a breakfast club from 8 to end of school day at 315, chlldminder then home around 530. Snack at pick up is essential, and we've always had quiet time after tea.

The first term he was really tired from a school day, especially towards the end of the week, when meltdowns were more common. He started sleeping 12h+ a night the first few weeks or napped at weekends again (he did 11h tops in the summer). That said the tiredness was more in the first half term. I only started after school play dates after half term, and am now thinking he may be able to cope with an activity one day after school.

None of my 3 were remotely tired in reception. Even my youngest who's summer born. My older two are 8 and 10 now and they do get tired towards half term/end of term but they work pretty hard at their age so it's understandable. The fact that reception was very much about learning through play meant that mine really didn't get that tired at all.