How to prepare you children for the clocks changing

With the clock change rapidly approaching, depending on the time of year, parents are either looking forward to a lie in (which let’s face it isn’t really going to happen), or dreading how long the day really is going to feel with little ones up an hour earlier than usual. But it is ok, I have some tips on how to prepare your children for the clocks changing.

All you need is a little help from some experienced mummies and Sam the Lamb, Popitha have  some tips on how to prepare for the clocks changing.

Tip 1 – Get Prepared

By reading this you can tick this box. You are thinking ahead about how to go about this. Here are some essential preparation tips that you’re probably already doing, but if you’re not, there is still time!

Tip 2 – Start a Week Early – That’s About Now!

Some children or babies will not adjust to the time change overnight like adults can. So it’s a good idea to start your preparations a week early. Here’s what one mummy does;

• Start by setting bedtime back ten minutes each day. So if their usual bedtime is 7pm, on the first day change it to 7.10pm. Each day bedtime will be another ten minutes later until on the last day it is one hour later. They then should be ready for their new bedtime.
• If you are putting them to bed ten minutes later, Don’t forget to wake your childrenearlier in the morning to help to keep their body clocks on schedule.

In fact,  it’s important to shift their whole routine forward, including meals and playtime. The same strategy applies when turning the clocks back; Start shifting your child’s routine by 10-15 minutes later than usual to make up for the time difference.

Tip 3 – Go With The Flow

For toddlers and older children, you may not need to change anything at all. (We did this last year when the twins were just 1 and it worked). Just put them to bed either as usual, or one hour later than normal and rely on their body clock to wake them after the usual amount of sleep.

Tip 4 – Allow For The Adjustment

Either way, you may need to allow for some adjustment to the new time. If your baby does wake an hour early, despite your best efforts, then the only thing you can do is go with the flow. Bedtimes and wake times usually sort themselves out after a couple of days.

Tip 5 – Start Teaching Your Child the Time With ‘Sam the Lamb’

This sounds like the impossible if you have toddlers, but it’s not. The earlier you start to introduce new concepts, the quicker they adapt. We are just starting to introduce a colour clock to the twins so that they understand the difference between night and day and they are just 2. This is in preparation for the clocks changing, and the move to big girls beds!

We were introduced to the Zazu Sleeptrainer – Sam The Lamb  by Cheeky Rascals, an online shop that sells wonderful products to for fill all of your parent, baby and toddlers need. Sam the Sleep Trainer is the perfect companion to teach you Little One when its time to get up and when they should be asleep! – Not only does Sam’s clock change colour, but Sam’s eyes will open and close at set times to signify when it’s time to sleep and when it’s time to wake up. It can be set for different times or for set number of minutes for naps. Clear and bright colour changing screen to help young children develop a sleep routine.

Sam was love at first sight. The twins immediately engaged with Sam and connected with the character. We are finding at the moment, the best indicator for them are Sam’s eyes. They understand that when Sam is sleeping, they should be too!

For older children, it has a clock face on it so when it comes to teaching children about the big hand and the little hand on the clock it makes it a breeze for both you and your little one. There are online manuals to demonstrate how to set Sam up. This is easy to follow.

Age recommendation: As of 2-2.5 years. Depending on development of child.

If you would like to purchase Sam the Lamb, they are £39.99 and available from Cheeky Rascals.

**We were gifted Sam the Lamb for the purpose of the article, but all of the thoughts and opinions are Popitha’s.

GO ON, PIN IT!