Putting your child to bed can be a very special time for both parents and children. It’s that time at the end of a day when you get to wind down together and should be something you look forward to, not something that is frustrating or stressful. Having a regular routine helps make it easier for you and your child. Come up with a familiar sequence of activities that helps your child relax and gives them a sense of security and comfort. Repeating that bedtime sequence night after night will make going to bed easier and habitual, your child knows that going to sleep comes next.
We asked some fellow parents how they prepare their children for bed and here are some of our favorite bedtime rituals:
- reading a book
- taking a bath
- talking about your child’s favorite moment of the day
- giving thanks
- having your child tell you a story
- playing a game
- cuddling together
- tucking your child in
- saying prayers together
- singing a lullaby
- listening to music
What about you – how do you spend those last few moments at the end of the day with your child? What is your favorite bedtime ritual?
when my girls were aged between 1 and 2, our favourite bedtime ritual was playing with a musical toy. The musical toy had two magenetic spinning dancers on it that you can
take off and put back. When the music plays, they spin, ‘dance’. I would take
them off, and then Sofia and Isabel would correct me and showed me that these
dancers had to be on the dance floor. It’s was a fun game and it took
coordination skills for them to place the magnetic dancers perfectly on the
musical toy. I still cherish the moments, lying on the floor with the girls and
listening to the music and seeing them chase the dancers which i hid or just
displaced.
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What they love now most is listening to COCO, a digital music player, playing
Giraffe’s Can’t Dance, by Giles Andreae. It’s wonderful story of a Giraffe who made fun off at the annual animal dance because he looks silly when he dances.
We first all lie together and once the annual dance in the story starts, the
girls get up and perform all the dances (ChaCha, Tango, Scottish Reel, Waltz,
etc) that the animals do. We then talk about the moral of the story (of course there’s a happy ending) and afterwards, they happily go to bed. It’s really great. Hans, father of two girls.