Sleeping with parents
Some children find it difficult to learn to sleep in their own room, or bed. Parents may solve the problem in various ways. They may, for example, allow the child to sleep with them in their bed, or they may develop some special arrangement where one of the parents shares a bed with the child, or sleeps in an extra bed placed in the child’s room.
Such special arrangements tend to become burdensome to parents with time, and may not serve the best interest of the child either. In such cases, it is worthwhile to think about how to help the child learn the skill of falling asleep in their own bed.
Being able to fall asleep in one’s own bed is a skill that all children need to acquire sooner or later. If the child has not yet learned this skill, and is no longer a baby, it may be time for them to learn the skill.
Justify
Explain the child why you want them to learn to sleep in their own bed. You may say, for example: “We will all sleep better. We, your parents, will sleep better, and you too will sleep better. When we sleep better, we will all be in a better mood in the morning. When you learn to sleep in your own bed, you can say yes to your friends who invite you to sleep over at their place, and also, it will become possible for you to ask your friends to come and sleep over at our place.”
There are many benefits of children sleeping in their own bed, not only for the parents but also for the children. In order for children to be motivated to learn the skill of sleeping in one’s own bed, it’s important for them to recognize those benefits.
Explain the child why you want him to learn to sleep in his own bed. You may say, for example: “We will all sleep better. We, your parents, will sleep better, and you too will sleep better. When we sleep better, we will all be in a better mood in the morning.
Collaboration
Ensure that the other adults in your family agree with you that it’s time for the child to learn to sleep in their own bed. It’s easier to motivate children to learn a skill when all the adults who care about the child, and love the child, agree that this is an important skill for the child to learn.
Practicing the skill
To motivate the child to learn the skill of sleeping in their own bed, use the steps of Kids’ Skills. These include praising the child for successes, asking the child to choose an imaginary supporter, or a cuddly toy helper, planning how to celebrate once the child has learned the skill, asking other family members to participate by supporting the child, etc. Kids’ Skills helps you do all this in a way that is a fun and rewarding for the child.
Consider placing a calendar on the wall, where you post a sticker (or some other sign) for every night the child succeeds in falling asleep in their own bed. You can plan to celebrate with the child when the child has succeeded in collecting given number of such falling-asleep-in-my-own-bed stickers.
Synopsis
Falling asleep in one’s own bed is a skill that children can learn if they haven’t already learned it. Help the child understand why it is an important skill to learn, make sure the other adults in your family support the child in learning the skills, and make use of Kids’ Skills to ensure that learning the skill is a pleasant and rewarding experience for the child.
This article is owned by: Kids’Skills http://www.kidsskillsapp.com/
