Sleep and Child Development

Sleep is a very integral part of children’s development. In fact, lack of having enough sleep affects children worse than it affects adults. For newborn babies, their natural daily routine should consist of sleeping, waking, feeding, sleeping again. For growing kids, they should sleep at least eight hours a day including having their siestas. However, in these days of e-existence; internet, ipad, ipod, video games, play stations, etc most babies and growing kids hardly get the required hours of sleep. Sleep deprivation could affect a child’s mental development. This could, therefore, affect their academic development eventually. These are some tips that could help in ensuring that our children get their sleep:

•     Make a habit of cleaning their teeth at night, close to their sleeping time; this action will automatically translate the message to them that it is time to sleep
•       Establish a sleep routine as early as possible; for new born babies, they will naturally feel the urge to sleep after feeding, but where they don’t, you could   rock them to sleep or sing some lullaby to them
•             It is advised that you don’t keep a television in the children’s room
•             Make sure the kids are appropriately dressed for the weather
•             Dim the light or turn it off completely
•             You could also play a lullaby that will have an effect on sending them to sleep