How Sleep Helps Us Learn
Your brain has a complex set of maintenance tasks to do each night when you drift off to dreamland. There are physical tasks that involve cleaning up chemical residue of your day’s work thinking, but there are also memory tasks: sleeping, especially the type of sleeping where you dream, is necessary for you to absorb, remember, and be able to use new information. Without sleep, all these functions are inhibited.
The Best School Accessory
Beyond the brain recovery necessary to process everything they’re learning in school, there’s another reason to make sure your kids have the best mattress to support their sleep. Children are growing at a rapid rate, and the hormones your body uses to regulate that growth are only released during sleep. Do you have a youngster who would love to be taller? Tell them they need to get more rest!
Tips For Better Sleep For Kids
With the hectic pace of a modern kid’s life, it can be difficult to decide where to fit sleep in around homework, after-school activities, and family time. As we’ve seen, however, sleep is worth prioritizing: lack of sleep can lead to poor grades, poor growth, and even depression. So how can you help your child prioritize sleep?
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Make sure the bedroom is dark, cool, and that it contains a quality mattress. Kids often use a mattress that has been handed down or that has seen better days, but kids need a good bed just as much as adults do and can suffer from insomnia on an old, worn-out mattress.
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Avoid screens 1-2 hours before bedtime, and don’t allow cell phones or computers in the bedroom. These enticing devices can keep kids awake long after their bodies are begging for rest.
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Have a set bedtime, and a soothing pre-bed routine. Routines aren’t just for toddlers: a set of actions (shower, brush teeth, read for 10 minutes, lights out, for example) can help any kid’s body know when it’s time for rest.
A lot about modern life is complex, but sometimes the solutions are simple. In the quest for better grades and happier kids, the step of getting more sleep might just be all you need.
Sources:
How Sleep Makes You Smarter – www.dailygood.org
Good, Sound Sleep For Your Child – www.WebMd.com