Kids and sleep

It can sometimes be a battle to get your child to sleep each night. With two daughters, aged 3 years and 16 months, I get to experience this most nights of the week. It's almost like they gang up on us. One night the oldest falls asleep and our younger daughter is awake and then the next night they switch. But new research stresses the importance of sleep in all children. Studies suggest kids who don't get a full night's sleep are at risk of being overweight and also have trouble concentrating throughout the day.

Here are some of the common mistakes parents make when putting their children to sleep.

Trying avoiding:

1) Lying in child's bed Parents should avoid lying down with their child at bedtime. Children should learn to fall asleep on their own. If they don't, they'll wake up in the night and won't be able to fall back asleep without you nearby.

2) Forcing kids to stay put Don't force your older kids to lie in bed and stare at the ceiling if they aren't tired. Older children can learn to soothe themselves to sleep if they get up and read a book for example.

3) Enforcing strict bed time Another thing to remember is some children just can't fall asleep at 7pm every night. Maybe falling asleep at 8:15 is more natural for them. See what the natural rhythm is for your child, and adjust their bedtime accordingly.

4) Not having a set routine Kids with a set nightly ritual tend to sleep better than kids that don't. They'll get used to a particular routine, whether it's taking a bath, telling a story or read a book - and this lulls them to sleep.

Sleep experts recommend infants get 14 to 15 hours of total sleep per day. Toddlers need 12 to 14 hours of total sleep and preschoolers (age 3 to 5 years old) should be getting 11 to 12 hours a day. Reminder that this is total time of sleep per day, and includes napping.