Bedtimes

[Redruby82]

Just wondering what time you send your teenagers to bed? My eldest dd is 15 and currently doing gcse assessments. I take her phone at 10pm but she can read past that if she would like. My ds is 13 and I take his phone at 9.30. They have got used to it now but complain as their friends are allowed to keep their phones all night. Am I being unreasonable?

DS13 has screen time set so that his phone automatically kicks him out at 9pm on weeknights and midnight at weekends. It comes back on at 7am.

No phone in bedroom overnight either.

He goes to bed between 9.40-10 on a school night and at weekends his Xbox goes off at 10pm but he's allowed to watch tv until midnight, but rarely makes it past 11 though!

I've just been reading a similar thread and now I feel like I'm being too strict! This is a fairly new rule in our house and I feel it's made a massive difference to our morning routine though! No more shouting arguments in the morning!

Ds14 phone set to shut down at 930. Bed at 10. He normally reads til 1030. He’s up at 7.

I work for a school and it’s a pretty common rule here that parents take the child’s phone at night. It wasn’t in my last school and in both it takes a fairly confident child to not be fazed by it - most will talk about having FOMO.

We insist on them putting phones on charge in main living room at Mon to Fri (a little bit later on a weekend) so they can go to bed sleep and rest undisturbed. They both get up early for school otherwise they are too grumpy for school and not in a fit state to learn.
Some kids seem to be on their phones until the early hours.

We let DS keep his phone in his room, when he was 15, all night his texts were buzzing, he was fast asleep ! We put it downstairs after that.

I take DD 15”s phone every night at 10 ish, she is working really hard for her exams (you know the ones they aren’t having . She never complains because we have always done it.

I wish someone would take my phone (then I wouldn’t be on mumsnet so late!)

Phones are in the kitchen on charge in our house and they are going off all night! I just think some of their friends must be surviving on a few hours sleep a night! Mine just wouldn't function!

Oh yes! The exams that they aren't doing! That's a whole other story!!

DD is 13 and her phone automatically switches off at 9pm and she's in her room by 9.30/10ish, asleep by 10.30ish. Absolutely no phones ever on or in bedrooms overnight, including mine and DP's. Think your rules sound quite reasonable.

@SocraticJunkieWannabe

DD is 13 and her phone automatically switches off at 9pm and she's in her room by 9.30/10ish, asleep by 10.30ish. Absolutely no phones ever on or in bedrooms overnight, including mine and DP's. Think your rules sound quite reasonable.

Thank you! It's hard when they say "it's not fair, all our friends are allowed"

Y7 DC, phone off and out of bedroom at 8pm. Expected to be settled by 9pm. Screentime limits are on 8pm until 7am so even if it gets left in the bedroom, it's pretty useless -because- -DC- - can't- -be- -bothered- -to- -find- -hacks- .

Y11 DC, phone and laptop off and out of bedroom 10pm ish, settled by 10.30pm on school nights.

There were protests from the eldest at one point but since realising no-one had to know it was parent-driven, they've told friends that they switch their phone off at Xpm so not to expect a reply until the morning. Once Y11 is finished, we'll probably not bother with a switch-off time but the expectation will remain that phones are switched off and out of bedrooms overnight, just as mine and DH's are.

Strike out fail!

14 yo bed at 10, phone handed over
12 yo bed at 9.30. Her phone is usually missing/not charged she'd not use it overnight so less policing of that one!

Weekends usually a little later but phone still handed over (unless I fall asleep first which isn't unusual!)

DD13 (Y8) goes to bed at 8 on a school night. 9/930 at the weekend depending on what we are doing.
Her phone is left downstairs to charge every night.
Not fussed if I am mean! She tends to be asleep by 830/9 so obviously needs the sleep. Alarm goes off at 7.

Phones were left downstairs until after GCSEs in this house ... then they had free reign, with differing results!!

If they cannot think of a more original response than a claim about their friends, then even more reason to take phones.

My son, year 10, is allowed his phone until 9.45 on school nights and then he puts it on charge downstairs. He then reads in bed until 10.15ish.
At weekends, he's allowed it until 11pm. I would do later but he never sleeps in so he'd just be tired and grumpy. I would never let him have his phone overnight as he has no self control whatsoever.
We get lots of moaning and apparently all his friends are allowed theirs much later blah, blah, blah

DS13 goes to bed at 10, but stops screens etc around 9.30 when he showers and has a vat bowl of cereal. No phones in bedrooms, we have a charging shelf for all the iPads and phones etc overnight.

I have weird kids!!!!! They both have their phone in their rooms and I set no limits. BUT my kids are not particularly bothered about screens they are both performance mad so they literally both sing and dance all day. They don't have tv or a playstation/Xbox but both have a smartphone. The only time they really use them though is in the evening. Both are exhausted by 10pm and both normally take themselves off to bed they have their phones for alarms but I honestly believe they are not on them all night as they know that they function better with sleep. They are 12 and 14. My main problem with mine is as they don't spend much time on the screens they are are often downstairs belting out showtunes and choreographing dances in our family room. We have had to say that we would like them up in their rooms by 9pm so we can have a bit of downtime. In the first lockdown we suggested getting them both a TV just so they would have something to do upstairs of an evening but both said no!!! I have friends who can't get their kids off XBox - I think having a child quietly in their room with headphones on sounds like heaven!!!!

We don't have xbox/PlayStation either! I hate them! My neighbours kids are on theirs all day and night if allowed and the rare times we do see them outside they walk around like zombies! Mine have tv's in their rooms but would probably only watch it maybe once or twice a wk.