Sleep restores strength and helps to assimilate information received during wakefulness. Scientists have proven that proper sleep strengthens health, increases the child's physical and mental activity. You need to know what it is, the right dream.
The benefits of sleep
While sleep duration is considered the main metric, it actually varies a lot. The reason lies not only in the age of the child.
Of course, newborns sleep much more than schoolchildren. However, the duration of sleep depends on the stages of the child's mental development: in some, information about the world is absorbed and the need for sleep decreases. On others, its assimilation takes place - and the duration of sleep increases. School holidays are tied to these periods. Therefore, if your child sleeps an hour and a half more than usual during the holidays, this is normal.
The quality of sleep is strongly influenced by the first 30–40 minutes, regardless of age. A common mistake of young mothers is to wait for the baby to fall asleep, wait 20 minutes and try to put the baby in the crib. It was then that he opens his eyes with a mute question on his face.
For children, in the first half hour of sleep, the silence around is important. Noise insulation in Soviet-built houses, especially panel ones, is unimportant. And the closed door to the TV room is not enough for proper sleep.
The most important thing is the weather in the house
And the weather, the microclimate, and the emotional sphere - everything matters. Drafts, heat or cold in the bedroom are sure companions of poor sleep and illness. The optimum temperature in the bedroom is +18 … +19 degrees. At temperatures below +17 degrees, the body makes efforts to heat; if the temperature in the bedroom is +22, the body is forced to constantly cool down and normal sleep does not occur. Sleep is improved by a moderately soft bed, a low pillow and a light blanket.
Active games, computer work and lessons should be completed 2 hours before bedtime. The gap between dinner and bedtime should be more than 2 hours. The remaining time can be devoted to monotonous activities, smooth communication, because experiences not only interfere with falling asleep.
Sleep has several phases. Attention should be paid to the phases of REM and slow sleep. The latter is a kind of "digestion" of information, and the first is the assimilation, accumulation of life experience. Thinking repeats what is important from what was perceived during the day in the form of images, compares. Children's findings are emerging that influence decades of adulthood at the subconscious level. And experiences before bedtime greatly change both the images and subsequent conclusions.
The foregoing is more related to night sleep. The daytime has a number of features. So, some children do not perceive the afternoon nap at all. These children have a different temperament, the need for sleep is lowered, which is completely normal. Trying to get them to sleep after dinner will backfire.
Sleep rules
It is necessary to monitor the temperature in the bedroom, ventilate the room before going to bed. At any age, active games and overeating at night should be avoided before bed. It is also important to be quiet during the first 30-40 minutes of falling asleep.
By following simple guidelines, you can help your child get good sleep and develop quickly.
