Human beings spend a third of our lives sleeping, and although traditionally the main function of sleep has been to allow the brain to “rest” and “disconnect” after the activity carried out during the day, it is now known to be a process of great mental and bodily activity, essential for learning.
In fact, sleep plays a fundamentally important role in a child’s development, and has implications for social, behavioral and emotional adjustment, as well as overall cognitive performance.
We consolidate information while we sleep
Recent research has shown that inadequate sleep in quantity and/or quality can not only affect the behavior and mood of the sufferer, but can also alter their cognitive functions (acting to the detriment of attentional functions, vigilance and memory functions).
Therefore, in order to optimize the teaching and learning process, it is essential for the child to be awake and attentive in the classroom. And for this, they must be able to sleep the recommended hours according to their age; not only to be active, but also to consolidate the information received during the day at night.
Guidelines for improving sleep in children
Given that maintaining an adequate sleep hygiene contributes to proper learning, below we outline a series of tips that may be useful to improve the quality of sleep in children and adolescents.
- Create stable bedtime routines.
- Keep bedtime and wake-up times as stable and regular as possible.
- Avoid very long naps and/or naps that end after 5 pm.
- Do not turn sleep into a punishment
- Encourage regular physical activity, avoiding late in the day.
- The morning light that reaches the eyes in the morning favors an earlier onset of sleep at night.
- An ambient temperature of between 19 and 22ºC and a quiet environment favors sleep.
- The use of new technologies (tablets, computers, video games, cell phones, etc.) should end at least 2 hours before the start of sleep routines.
- It is advisable to separate bedtime from the last food intake by at least 30 minutes.
- Child Neurology specialists recommend avoiding the intake of exciting/stimulating drinks (colas, invigorating commercial preparations, tea, coffee, etc.) after midday.