Sleep for a 3.5 year old??? - Parenting Issues Message Board

Sue04 · 11-20-2008, 07:42 AM

Hi there,
My daughter is 3.5 years old and has recently decided that taking a nap during the day isn't her cup of tea. She is waking up other kids at Daycare etc. She typically goes to bed (now that it gets darker earlier) about 8-ish and is getting up about 6:15AM and then won't nap at Daycare. All of the other kids at Daycare (2 of them the same age as her) still nap with no trouble at all, NOT mine!!! She is up and around and playing. Any suggestions? How much sleep should a 3.5 year old get in the course of 24 hours? Any help is very much appreciated!!!

rudiraven · 11-20-2008, 02:59 PM

All kiddos are different. My oldest took naps throughout kindergarten, however, my youngest never took naps

. I would even lay down with him and I'd fall asleep and he was up. She just doesn't require the sleep right now. If she's disturbing the other kids at daycare you can explain to her that she doesn't have to sleep but it is "quiet time" and she needs to lay down and look at a book or something. Just wait until she gets older.......you won't be able to get her out of bed! Making up for lost sleep I suppose. Take care

Sue04 · 11-21-2008, 11:11 AM

Thank you so much. She just has these meltdowns about 4-5 pm in the afternoon if she doesn't nap which indicates to me she still needs her time to sleep. But I do feel she has a very active mind also. Maybe this is just a "phase" too?

sem627 · 11-21-2008, 03:00 PM

My second child stopped napping before she turned three. At first, she also had meltdowns in the early evening. Eventually her body got used to it and she was fine. Maybe a little whinny, but she'd get a second wind and be fine until bedtime. Bedtime became much easier and earlier because she was exhausted by the time she got there. She was asleep before her head hit the pillow. I actually preferred that she didn't nap because of that. There were times when she would fall asleep in the car as we went to go pick up my older daughter at school. It was only for about 5-10 minutes, but it was just enough to take the edge off and avoid the meltdowns later on.

Every child is different and she just may be done napping. Many kiddos are at that age. You can require a quiet time like the other poster suggested. The daycare provider needs to be firm that she remains in one spot and keeps quiet for the other children. Let her have a book, some soft music, puzzles, maybe a notepad and crayons, etc. Good Luck.

Belly Kelly · 12-04-2008, 04:37 PM

I say skip the nap and put her to bed much earlier - like 7 p.m. She can still get plenty of rest in the 24 hour period. It is very common for children to give up naps at this age.