BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — If your kids spent the summer staying up late and sleeping in, sleep experts say now is the perfect time to start getting them into a back-to-school routine.
With most schools in Western New York starting classes in about two weeks, sleep expert Kelli Wixom from Silver Moon Sleep Consulting said it's the perfect time to start adjusting schedules.
Wixom recommends bumping bedtime up about 15 minutes each night for a couple of weeks until you're back to the timeframe kids need for school. She also said you need to wake them up 15-20 minutes earlier as well.
"They should be getting nine to eleven hours of sleep each night," Wixom explained. "The 11 would be for the younger age, then as they get closer to 10, it would be closer to nine hours at night."
She also said when it comes to bedtime, consistency is key. Parents should make sure the bedtime routine doesn't include screens. Wixom suggested a warm shower, then some reading and wind-down/cuddle time.
In addition, parents of kindergartners should be ready for the first couple weeks of school to be extra hard on their little ones, because so many of them have never had a full day of school before.
