Naptime in children is quite crucial for their development. There are several known benefits of naptime in children including:
- Mood elevation.
Naptime reduces a child’s bad mood and keeps them happier and less irritable.
- Attention
Sleep increases a child’s attention span which in turn makes it easier for them to learn and grasp various concepts.
- Reduce fatigue.
Children may be fatigued from their regular play time. It is important for them to take naps to reduce the tire that comes with play and activity throughout the day.
- Fitness and physical growth.
It is said that children that do not take naps seriously account to a percentage of obese children, therefore naps are quite beneficial in the physical development of children.
With the above benefits, it is important to make sure naps are taken sternly. Some of the tricks and tips to ensure children take their naps are:
- Suitable environment.
In order for a child to be in a state of sleeping, there needs to be a suitable environment. This could be darkness in the room, a quiet time or dimming the lights that will enable the child to go to sleep.
- Engage them in tiring activity.
Give the child tasks that will tire them to a point that they would need to take a nap. It can be a game that requires a lot of running around. By the time the child is done playing, they are too tired and easy to go to sleep.
- Have a schedule.
It is important to have a nap time schedule that is followed every day. This means a certain specified time for naps, the same bed et cetera. This includes weekends and vacation days as well.
- Let the child cry it all out.
Sometimes the child could be tired and therefore be irritable and moody, this can make them cry and make a fuss. A trick that could work would be to let them cry it out until the child falls asleep.
- Routines before naps.
Relaxing routines are also helpful when it comes to naps. A gentle massage or a swinging chair makes a big difference.
- Cut down naps.
A reason the child may not like taking a nap could be that they take too many naps. For instance, if they were used to taking two naps, reduce them to one.
- Sleep training.
This is where you cultivate a culture of independence by letting the child sleep by themselves without any assistance.
- Tackle separation anxiety.
Separation anxiety in children may make it even difficult for a child to take their nap. It can be solved by giving the child reassurance of coming back to get them.
- Feeding
This works mostly for infants where you feed them until they become drowsy enough to take their nap.
- Creating a lull environment.
Such an environment can be created by use of soothing music, a lullaby, calm and relaxing sounds that will make it easier for the child to sleep.
