As my children get older I notice they like to sleep in more. My daughter has always been an early riser. She would set her alarm two hours earlier than she really needs to. She had this specific routine that she went through every morning.
Well the past two weeks I have been noticing a change. It started off with turning on the snooze button and lying in bed for just a few minutes. Then it turned into setting the alarm an hour earlier instead of two hours. My once prompt, always on time and organized little girl has turned into a teenager who definitely needs her sleep.
My morning is a bit hectic first driving my oldest son to his high school and then coming back to pick up my younger two and taking them to their school. Well this morning it was my 5th grader who came out first. That never happens. I asked him where his sister was and he said that she just woke up. She had apparently fallen back asleep just before I left to drive my oldest to school.
I had to laugh as she came stumbling out of the front door, shoes and socks in hand and her hair all disheveled. She only had time to grab a fruit roll-up for lunch so I told her to get a hot lunch. Yes, she is definitely having a harder time getting up in the morning.
Teenagers need at least 8 ½ to 9 hours of sleep. I remember a few years back there was talk in my city about starting high school later in the day. They found that when teenagers got more sleep, they were better able to focus in school. Well that change never happened but I do believe there may be something to that.
Teens usually like to stay up late and sleep in. As parents we need to be monitoring their sleeping habits and make sure that they are getting adequate sleep.
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