During the school year most kids follow a schedule and have a routine. When summer vacation starts all that is thrown out the window. Now that kids are heading back to school it is time to get them back on track. The CDC recommends that kids between the ages of 13 and 18 should be getting 8-10 hours of a sleep a night. According to a study done by the CDC, almost 70% of high school students are sleep deprived.
As puberty sets in, the sleep hormone melatonin starts to be released later in the day. This is why when children are young they are more prone to wake up early but as they age they start to turn into night owls, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. Try a few of these techniques to help improve your students sleep, which can in turn help improve their academic performance and as well as their mood!
Weekends are for sleeping in right? Wrong! Try waking your kids within an hour of their usual wake time. Sticking to routine even on the weekends can help their bodies stay adjusted to waking up early during the school week. Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City says the "rule of thumb is every hour your teen sleeps in on the weekend it will take a day for the body to adjust."
Try to get your teen to go to bed earlier. Even just and extra 30 minutes of sleep adds up. It might be hard to get your student to adjust to this schedule but if they fall asleep earlier 7 days a week that can add 3.5 hours of sleep time into their schedule. Every bit counts when trying to cure that sleep deficit.
Parents should want to be good role models too! Set a good example by turning off the television in the living room and go to your bedroom. If you can do this an hour before bedtime the whole house will be shut down and quiet. This will help set the tone for everyone to fall asleep earlier.
Many sleep experts recommend not keeping TVs in the bedroom. You should be doing all activities like scrolling through social media, watching TV and even homework in a different room of the house. This way your brain correlates your bedroom with sleep. This can help relaxation kick in quicker.
Set yourself up for successful sleep. You can help your body sleep longer and deeper by keeping the room cool. The temperature should be between 60 and 67 degrees Fahrenheit. Cut off any blue light electronics and turn off your alerts on your phone. This will decrease the temptation of getting on your phone or continuing to watch videos which can prolong your wake cycle. If you don't use your phone as an alarm clock, you can even charge it outside of the bedroom.
Read the full story at CNN.com