How much sleep at 5-6 years?

[BhoysGirl]

we get around 10 hours a night from DS1 who's 5.5, and also just started school, usually 8pm-ish til 6am. This is what he's done for months, so I kind of figure it's his pattern. The whinginess I'm putting down to a) his nature and b) time at school where he spends 6 or so hours trying to behave as best as he can. He's exhausted when he comes home, but putting him to bed any earlier isn't yet working. I secretly think a child that sleeps from 7-7 is a myth made up by delusional sleep deprived parents although I am willing to concede that they maybe do exist, I just got a very short straw when it comes to children & sleep. It's early days yet with the whole school thing, another 12-13 years or so it will probably all be worked out

[Mildez]

My DD is the same age as your's. She will be 6 in April and just started Kinder this year. She goes to bed at 8pm and is usually asleep by 8.30pm. She sleeps until her older sister wakes her when she is getting ready for school at around 730am. During the school holidays she can sleep until 9am. If she goes to sleep at her own accord and wakes up without been woken she sleeps around 12hours.

[Chocaholic]

My 6 yo goes to bed around 8pm, asleep by 8.30pm. He will wake up at 6am, 6.30am at the latest.

When he started school, I found he was exhausted for the first few weeks, and once he got into the routine of school, he was fine.

[LimeSlice]

DD1 is in bed by 7pm, I try and make sure we do story time and everything no later than 6:45, always light out before 7:30.
She is up at 7am if I wake her, but will sometimes get herself up at 6-6:30. She gets about 10.5 hours on average I would think.

[onthefly]

There's no research to tell us how much kids need at any age, so you have to just be guided by her. Hopefully, if she needs more she'll start sleeping a bit longer in the morning and/or go to sleep sooner in the evening.

[Ca Plane Pour Moi]

Liebling (6) is usually asleep for 8pm and up about 7am (about 11 hours a night). This has been the case from about age 4 and will continue until he needs less sleep.

Sometimes he is asleep for 7.30 (rare: bedtime starts around 7pm), sometimes he's up until 9pm (with lights out at about 7.30). Some days he's up at 6am, other days sleeps in until 8.30. But he's rested and happy and learning, so I figure he's getting enough sleep for him. When he started school, the first few months had lights out at about 8pm and he was up at 6am. He slept in at weekends, bless him, that was just a little bit too little for him on a regular basis.

FWIW, Liebling is up in the night still, but he can go to sleep late, wake twice and be up early, or he can ask to go to bed, sleep through and lie in the next day. Depends on how much sleep he needs at that time.

[MrsFabuloso]

Thanks everyone. Maybe she is getting enough then. It might just be that school is wiping her out. Apparently she is an angel at school (thankfully!) and absolutely loves it, but when she comes home she's horrid! I have started giving her a bath on her own after she has her afternoon snack, to help her calm down and relax a bit before she interacts with her brothers, otherwise she's saying and doing horrible things to them and making them cry!

I can't make her sleep (God know's I have tried through the years!) and hopefully she will regulate herself to catch up and get enough.

[Floweryfields]

Perhaps make her bedtime a little later so that she sleeps later in the morning? So maybe a 7.30 bedtime and asleep by 8 then she might sleep through till 7ish the next morning. Worth a try?

[OceanPrincess]

... I secretly think a child that sleeps from 7-7 is a myth made up by delusional sleep deprived parents although I am willing to concede that they maybe do exist, I just got a very short straw when it comes to children & sleep...

Slightly OT - they do exist. My niece, coming up to 5, sleeps 7-7 every night, rarely wakes. Non-kinder days (4 out of 7) she has a nap. Anything from one hour to three. And still goes down at 7, and sleeps til 7.

I kid you not.

ETA - my kids, though genetically made from similar material, do not do this. My big two have only just gone down about 9.30pm after DS1 had a twenty minute nap in the car and DD decided if he wasn't sleeping, she wasn't sleeping either. And they will still be up in the morning at 6.30.

[MrsFabuloso]

You know, if it weren't for all of my stress over sleep since I've had kids, this parenting thing would be SO much bloody easier!!!!!

[sangie]

10.5 hours on average for DD who is 5.8yrs.

Don't get me started on DS though, he is a complete nightmare in the sleep department at the moment

[AwesomeFoursome]

My DS is 5 next week. He sleeps between 10 and 11 hours a night. School knocks him a bit too.