The alarm goes off.
Your child groans, pulls the blanket over their head, and insists they’re not getting up.
Sound familiar?
After weeks of later bedtimes, sleeping in, family vacations, and relaxed summer schedules, those early school mornings can feel like a rude awakening—for kids and parents.
The good news? You don’t have to wait until the night before school starts to get everyone back on track.
A few small changes now can make those first weeks of school smoother for the whole family.
It’s easy to treat sleep as just another part of the schedule to manage, but it’s actually a key part of your child’s health.
The American Academy of Pediatrics endorses the American Academy of Sleep Medicine’s guidelines that children ages six to 12 get nine to 12 hours of sleep each night, while teenagers ages 13 to 18 need eight to 10 hours.
Falling short isn’t just about a child being tired or cranky the next day. Regularly missing those sleep recommendations can affect attention, memory, mood, behavior, and a child’s ability to manage emotions and stay focused in the classroom.
“We don’t say ‘get good sleep’ just because,” says Dr. Gabrina Dixon, a pediatric hospitalist at Children’s National Hospital. “It really helps kids learn, and it helps them function throughout the day.”
Rest is part of being ready. Getting enough sleep helps children show up for school with the energy, focus, and emotional regulation they need to handle the challenges of a new school year.
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A child’s sleep schedule doesn’t change overnight. Instead of moving bedtime hours earlier all at once, experts recommend making gradual adjustments.
Try moving your child’s bedtime and wake-up time earlier by about 15 to 30 minutes every few days until they are closer to their school-year schedule.
Consistent sleep helps support children’s attention, behavior, learning, emotional regulation, and overall health.
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Many parents focus on bedtime, but wake-up time plays an important role in resetting your child’s internal clock.
Even if your child goes to sleep earlier, sleeping until noon every day can make it harder for their body to adjust to school mornings.
Start practicing the school-day wake-up time before the first day. Opening curtains, getting natural light, eating breakfast, and moving around in the morning can help signal to the body that it’s time to start the day.
A good bedtime routine is about more than saying, “Go to bed.”
Children often sleep better when they know what comes next. A predictable routine helps their bodies and brains begin transitioning from the activity of the day to rest.
For many families, the evening routine also includes the practical steps that make mornings smoother:
Detangling, moisturizing, protecting hairstyles, or wrapping hair before bed can take time and planning, especially on busy school nights. Building those steps into the evening schedule can help prevent rushed mornings and make bedtime feel less stressful.
The goal isn’t to create a perfect bedtime routine. It’s to create one your family can actually follow.
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Phones, tablets, video games, and television can make it harder for children to wind down before sleep.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends creating healthy media habits, including setting boundaries around screen use and keeping devices out of bedrooms when possible. For older children and teens, that may mean agreeing on a realistic device cutoff time rather than expecting a sudden ban on technology.
Try creating a screen-free wind-down period before bedtime. Replace scrolling or gaming with calming activities like:
A smoother morning often starts the night before.
Small steps can make a big difference:
For older children and teens, encourage them to take ownership of these routines. Learning how to prepare for the next day is part of becoming more independent.
A child who isn’t getting enough rest may not say, “I’m tired.” Instead, parents may notice:
Sometimes the problem isn’t simply a later bedtime. Frequent nightmares, sleepwalking, night terrors, loud snoring, pauses in breathing during sleep, or ongoing difficulty falling asleep may signal an underlying sleep issue that deserves medical attention.
Children who don’t get enough sleep may seem irritable, distracted, or unmotivated when the real issue is that their bodies need more rest. Sleep is one of the foundations that helps children show up ready to learn, participate, and manage the challenges of a new school year.
If sleep problems continue after you’ve re-established a consistent bedtime routine—or if your child regularly struggles to fall asleep, stay asleep, snores heavily, or seems unusually tired during the day—talk with your pediatrician.
A pediatrician can help identify possible causes, evaluate whether another medical condition may be affecting your child’s sleep, recommend healthy sleep strategies, or refer your family to a pediatric sleep specialist if additional testing or treatment is needed.
If you’re concerned about your child’s sleep, consider asking:
RELATED: 6 Questions Black Parents Should Ask Their Pediatrician
Don’t wait until the night before school starts. Try one small change tonight:
✔ Move bedtime 15 minutes earlier
✔ Wake your child up closer to their school-day schedule
✔ Turn off screens before bedtime
✔ Pack backpacks before bed
✔ Pick out clothes for the morning
✔ Create a simple wind-down routine
✔ Let your child know the goal is feeling rested—not being perfect
A successful school year doesn’t start with the first bell. It starts with the habits that help children arrive ready to learn.
Every family’s routine will look different. The goal isn’t perfection—it’s creating habits that help your child feel supported, rested, and prepared for the year ahead.
Resetting your child’s sleep schedule now can make those first school mornings less stressful and help your child feel more confident, focused, and ready to take on the day.
Because sometimes the best back-to-school preparation happens the night before.
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