What’s Your School Holiday Sleep Routine?

School will soon be out for summer, which means lots of time hopefully enjoying new things as a family. Whether you’ve got some day trips scheduled in or even visits to family and friends, chances are you’re usual bedroom routine will come unstuck at some point. The Huffington Post recently published an article detailing 7 Ways to Keep A Sleep Routine in the School Holidays. If you missed it the premise of the piece is that it’s important to fight nature and the will of the kids in order to keep a bedtime routine in place. This is of course easier said than done, even with helpful hints and tips. So where do you stand on the topic? Do you

Reasons to stick with structure

All the excitement of the summer break tends to make for very tired children, even if they’re not so keen on going to bed a their usual time. While you can’t use the argument that they will be too tired for school the next day they may well be too tired to get up for any activities you have planned or may be a little grumpy if they do. Encouraging children to be excited about the fun you have lined up is therefore a great way to persuade them to stick to a routine if that’s what you’d prefer. Of course the most obvious reason for trying not to deviate too much from the usual bedtime is that doing so can mean a real struggle to get it back in place by term time. There’s also a good chance that Mummies and daddies might miss out on valuable time as a couple if the kids want to stay up late.

Reasons to loosen off

Animals change their sleep routines during the warmer summer season so it’s only natural that little ones want to follow suit, right? And, there’s just a small chance that if they go to bed a little later they’ll lie in a little later, and longer in bed can be a really amazing treat for the sleep deprived parents among us. Then of course there’s practicality, sometimes travel to and from theme parks or the seaside don’t leave enough time for the full shebang when it comes to dinner, bath and bed but a day spent running around more than necessitates a dip in the bath. In short, sticking to a routine just isn’t always possible. What approach will you be taking to bedtime over the school holidays? Do you loosen things off a little then rein it in as school term approaches? Perhaps you have a few nights each week when the children know they go to bed a little later? We’d love to hear what works for you.