Back to School: Northamptonshire sleep expert shares tips of getting children prepared to return to school

A local Sleep Consultant and Sleep Expert based in Northamptonshire is sharing her best tips around support your children on their return to school in September.

We hear all parents cheering as the beginning of a new term at school approaches.Well done to you for making it through!

It can be so hard juggling the school holidays and can be just as hard getting back into the swing of things for school again but Sam has shared some of her top tips to support you along the way.

"There's one thing we all seem to forget about when it comes to self care and the impact it can have on our day to day lives and that is SLEEP!"

The impact of sleep can be detrimental on so many elements of our lives and this is no different for children. Sleep has so many benefits from improving our health, helping brain development, regulating our moods, better immune systems, increased alertment and so much more.

But sometimes the negative effects of poor sleep can be seen and for children returning to school you want to make sure they are on their A game! Sleep can have an impact on their attendance and their overall performance. The effects of poor sleep can cause headaches, lethargy and ultimately contribute to periods of absence and illness. The attention span of students can also be poor and this can impact behaviour.

Here are my top tips for you before school starts:

If your child has had later bedtimes over the holidays, the chances are that their body has got used to this, this in turn means that the circadian rhythm (body clock) will be telling your child that they are not ready for sleep at the earlier bedtime that is put back in place for the return to school.

What can you do?

• Firstly start with the later bedtime. Work with the time your child is naturally falling to sleep and then gradually shift it back every couple of days by around 10 or 15 minutes.This is a much more natural process that the body can work with otherwise it can also be stressful and frustrating for everyone involved when your child can’t fall to sleep!
• Check their bedroom or sleep space is condusive to sleep and start raining in that TV or tablet time, particularly in the 30 mins before bed.
• Talk to your child about why sleep in important and the impact it has and implement a structured bedtime routine lasting around 40 mins.

When school has started:

• When they are back at school, you may notice they become more tired and irritable due to the change in routine so factor in those early nights to recoup some of that sleep they need.

How much sleep should my child be getting?

Children aged 3-5 require around 10.5-13 hours of sleep at night.

Adolescents require around 8.5-9 hours of sleep at night.

If sleep is important to you and you know things are not how they should be then Sam can help.

www.sleepsolutionswithsam.co.uk