Springing Forward: Tips for Helping Your Child Adjust to Daylight Savings Time

At one time or another, sleep proves to be a challenging issue for most families. Even when our babies have turned into big kids who finally sleep through (most) nights, events like Daylight Savings Time can interfere with regular routines and make parents miserable.

While there's no magic formula for making it through a time change smoothly, there are a few things you can do to make it easier on your family. The following tips can help both kids and adults to adjust.

Know the date.

If you're like me, Daylight Savings has a habit of sneaking up on you. But if you know in advance when it will happen — this year, it takes place on Sunday, March 9 — it's easier to formulate a plan.

Make the transition gradually.

Kids will probably have a difficult time falling asleep when bedtime suddenly arrives an hour earlier than they're used to. The best way to counteract this is to gradually inch bedtime back in 10-15 minute increments in the days leading up to the time change.

Keep naps consistent.

Infants and toddlers should continue to nap at the same time each day. (For example, if nap is at 2 p.m. before the time change, it should be at 2 p.m. after the time change.) A consistent nap schedule can help children to get their evening sleep routines back on track.

Set the mood.

Even adults will agree that it's hard to fall asleep when daylight is still streaming in through the window. Consider investing in room darkening blinds or shades to help your child feel like nighttime has truly fallen. Also make sure that your child is getting enough exercise during the day, and avoid stimulating activities like TV and video games before bed.

Give it time.

We turn the clocks forward every spring for a reason — so that we have more time to enjoy daylight during the warmer months of the year. But the added sunshine comes at a price; we have to help our kids kids adjust to the time changes that make this extra daylight possible.

The biggest trick we can employ? Give them time. After a few potentially difficult nights (and maybe a couple rough mornings), their internal clocks will start to adjust. And pretty soon, the extra summer sunlight will make it all worthwhile.