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Bedtime Routines That Are Most Effective For Kids

A girl asleep hugging a teddy bear.

Grownups are all too familiar with the importance of rest for one’s body and soul. Whenever
offered some, they will take it as the nicest little perk life can provide us with. But children
are new to this world and always want to stay awake just a bit longer to explore. But to develop
properly, they must get enough sleep. Unfortunately, they are too young to put rest on their
priority list. So it’s up to parents to find ways to ease them into the proper sleep schedule that
will benefit their health. With that in mind, here are the bedtime routines that are most effective
for kids.

A Warm Bath Followed By A Warm Cup Of Milk

If you want to be scientific about it, showering 3 hours before bedtime enhances the natural
processes that lead to falling asleep. Namely, the body cools down as the time for bed
approaches. And showering at a certain time helps that. In the case of children, it is not much
different. Regular showering at the end of the day also helps them build personal hygiene habits that are among the important skills every child needs to acquire. The warm water will help relax their muscles and prepare them for comfy sheets and even more comfortable pillows.


After the shower, you can offer your kid a cup of warm milk. This soothing liquid adored by
millions has been proven to help kids and adults alike fall asleep for generations. And here’s a
fun fact about it. By giving a warm glass of it to your child regularly before bed, you will be
creating a healthy sleeping potion for them for the future. Adults that have been given warm milk
before bed as children unconsciously associate it with warmth and sleepiness in their adult years.
A cool trick, right?

A person bathing a child as part of the bedtime routine.
Give your child a nice bath a few hours before bed, which will speed up the natural processes of falling asleep.

A Bedtime Storytime

A child’s imagination has great potential and constantly seeks stimulation. That is why children
like stories. Besides, children love it when you focus your full attention on them, which you
certainly will by reading a story to them. Or tell them one you just made up, whichever works
better for you. As kids are not keen on going to bed, they will accept it more eagerly if they
know that bed is the place where you hear some beautiful tales. Those excerpts from the fairy
tale will fire up their imagination to develop the most amazing dreams.


Reading to your child before bed is not only one of the best bedtime routines but also an
excellent opportunity to introduce them to learning new things the fun way. You can read fun
facts
about different types of animals or about other countries. That way, they would be learning
and falling asleep at the same time.

A woman and a little girl covered in a blanket are reading a story.
One of the most effective bedtime routines includes reading your child a story that will inspire nice dreams.

A Pre-sleep Massage

One study conducted a few years ago concluded that massaging a child for about 15 minutes as part of
the bedtime routine leads to it being more relaxed and falling asleep faster. Well, this is
probably not only true about children but let’s focus on them for the moment. If your child feels
restless and uninterested in sleeping, try this technique, it should work quite fine. Of course, we
are not talking about the actual muscle-squeezing, aggressive massage. It should be more like
scratching and cuddling, but it serves the same purpose.

A Relaxing Game

Some kids need gradual transitioning from hyperactive running around to falling asleep. To
achieve this, you can encourage a half hour of relaxing playing that includes board games or
something else that is sedentary.

Parents can also participate in this and take the opportunity to chat with the kid along the way.
If significant changes are coming, such as moving, this may be the perfect opportunity to gently
break the news to the child. That way, when the time comes to pack your kid’s room and get it
ready for transfer
, it will be a less stressful experience. The child will be prepared for it.

A boy playing chess.
Active children can transition to sleeping by engaging in more relaxing activities that do not involve too much running around.

Turn Off Electronic Devices

Unfortunately, our children have become somewhat addicted to electronic devices of various
types. That comes with many consequences for their development, of which rarely any are
positive. In the context of falling asleep, staring at phones, tablets, TVs, and computers is hugely
detrimental.
Introducing the period without these can make your child fall asleep much faster
and more soundly. How to do that? Well, one option is to lead by example. You can’t expect
your child to peacefully accept a no-phone period while you are staring at your phone at that
time.

Always remember that children learn from us even when we are not telling them what to do. For
them, we are the teachers of life, and we do everything right. Therefore, if a mom is on her
phone all day and holds it in her hand before falling asleep, the kid thinks that is exactly what
one should be doing. So, for the benefit of your children’s healthy sleep routine, control your
urge to indulge in the electronic device world.

Listen To A Lullaby

Finally, one should never underestimate the simple old ways that have been effective for
centuries. For children (and adults alike, as a matter of fact), certain lulling melodies act as
relaxants that make them dreamy fairly quickly. You can sing if you can, and that is something
kids love. But a recorded melody will do as well. Furthermore, this technique is easy to perform.
It will bond you with your child and promote sweet dreams.

Final Thoughts

As you can see, the point of all these bedtime routines that are most effective for kids is to make
them relaxed enough to enter the world of sleep the best way possible. Your child will quickly
get used to it,
and falling asleep on time will be a breeze. So good luck with it, and good night!