What Are Your 3 1/2 - 4 Yr Old Sleep Schedules

Each of my children were different my first didn't take a nap after age 2, but my second took one until kindergarten. Isay if he needs one give him one. Maybe not a real long one because he goes to bed early, but a little one.

Ooooh. 12 hours for a pre-schooler should be plenty. Despite that a nap might be great way for him to get some extra "mental" rest mid-day. Is he otherwise healthy? Eating OK? Is he getting solid sleep - No sleep waking or night terrors?

My 4 year old needs less sleep than his big brother did/does. Right now, he gets 10 hours at night and 1 to 1 1/2 at pre-school during naptime. I am pretty sure most other 4 years olds are running on less sleep than this so your little guy still being tired on 12 hours has me a teeny bit worried.

I think every child is different and needs varying amounts of sleep depending on how they are feeling. He may have not slept well during the night (even if you didn't hear him). We all have restless sleep every once in a while and we all have more tired days than usual. My daughter is 4 and does some days with naps and some days without..I watch her behavior throughout the late am and early afternoon for signs of tiredness. If there is any excesssive whining or obvious rubbing of the eyes, nap time it is! (even though a fair amout of protesting is done on her behalf) She much more tolerable if she naps those days. Sometimes I also find a light snack will help her make it through that afternoon slump. I am guessing he just needs more sleep for now..maybe he's going through a growth spurt and learning quite a bit. Sleeping is our body's way of refueling. I personally love to sleep and of course, like most of us, don't get enough of it! Best of luck to you!

I have a 4 yr old girl and she goes to bed during the week around 8:30 or 9pm and I have to wake her at about 6am. She takes a nap after lunch for about 2-3 hours. on the weekends she still goes to bed about the same time maybe a little later depending and she sleeps until about 7am. Again, after lunch she takes a good 2-3 hour nap. If we do not take that nap she is pretty crabby.

I havea 4 1/2 year old. Bedtime is 8pm and she's usually up around 6:30/7am. Some days she will absolutely not nap, but I have her either laying down in her bed or just having quiet time while her brother (2 1/2yrs) is napping. I pretty much play it by ear with my 4 yr old on whether or not she naps in the afternoon. My oldest (6 1/2 yrs) didn't start not needing a nap until she was about 5. She started Kindergarten and then didn't get naps during the day, but would come home fairly tired. Sometimes would just fall asleep after sitting on the couch for less than 5 minutes! Base it on your child...not what everyone else tells you to do.

my daughter just turned 4. She sleeps from 8:30 til about 7:30 and takes a nap for 1 1/2 to 2 hours several times a week but not daily. However on days she does not nap she may go to bed earlier because she is cranky or I often have her "rest" for her usual nap time which basically means she has to stay laying down in her bed not playing so that if she needs sleep she can fall asleep. Her sisters schedule was about the same at that age.. maybe slightly longer naps (she requires more sleep then her sister or older brother) I was not home with my son at that age so I am not sure what is daily sleep schedule was. But I would say about the same amount of time total.
Your little guy gets more sleep then mine (although I always get tired mid afternoon too)... is this a new thing. Not sure what your weather is like there but I told my doctor about being more tired in the winter and she said it is from lower levels of vitamin D so I take a supplement now in the winter months to help. I have noticed it in my kids too so when we go in for a check up next week I am gonna ask her about the kids and Vitamin D.Talk to your Doctor it may be something simple like that or it may be something more serious.
Hope this helps :)

My son is 3 1/2, and he sleeps from 9pm to 8am. He does not nap, but at least once or twice a week he does fall asleep at home for a couch nap. Those nights he is up until 10pm as he's not tired.

So, he can go without napping but not forever. He's a great sleeper at night.

My boy turned 4 in August. He is not usually taking a nap any more (they don't put them down at school at this age) but on weekends I can usually get him to sleep an hour. Some days he's more tired than others. But he started not needing his nap, or having it become later in the afternoon than normal when he turned 4.

Go with the flow. When he seems more tired put him down, else put him to bed a half hour earlier at night.

My daughter took a nap almost every day until she started all day Kindergarten. They still had quiet time after lunch. Her bedtime was about 8:30. I would encourage a nap, and then use your judgement, bedtime may be slightly later.

My son is 3 1/2. He will be 4 in April. He usually goes to bed at 8 p.m. and we get him up at 6:30 to do his treatments and physical therapy. He does take naps during the day. The naps are usually from 1 to 3 hours depending on the day and what's going on.

J. Johnson

my 4 year old sleeps from 8pm to 6:30am and naps from 1pm-2:30pm. somedays he doesn't nap, but he's not allowed out of bed until i get him.

and like your son, the days he is without a nap, his behavior spirals downward very quickly. something we have found that helps him settle down is giving him room time toward the end of the day. (30 minutes in his room to play or read.)

we need that nap time just as much as they do!

If I remember right...4 year olds should get about 11-13 hours of sleep. Your son already gets about 12 hours but if he's still tired, maybe he needs a short nap or quiet time in the afternoon. My son is around the same age. I put him down for nap/quiet time everyday but he goes to bed at 8:00 and is often up at 6:00 or 6:30 with our alarm so he only gets about 10 hours at night. Some days he just plays for awhile at naptime and others he sleeps for several hours. He often skips his nap for a day or two and then has a long one (2 hours or more) but he always has some quiet time in his room.

My son is 4 and still naps most days. He goes to bed at about 8pm and gets up between 7-8am. He has a "quiet time" in his room for about an hour on the days he is not really that tired (i.e. we haven't had an active morning), but most days, he still goes to sleep during that time for about 1 1/2 hours.

My daughter turned 4 at the end of September. Sometimes she still needs a nap, other times she doesn't. Mostly it depends on her activity level. I give her "quiet time" every day. She gets to pick 2 books and has to stay in her room (lights off, door closed) unless she has to go to the bathroom. This gives her time to decompress and sleep if she needs it. Somehow calling it "quiet time" instead of "Naptime" seems less objectionable to her, and she doesn't fight it as much. I used to put her down for quiet time around 1- 1:30, and she still goes down for nap at 1:30 when she is at daycare (but usually she's up at 6 AM on those days). Most of the time she doesn't go down until 2 or 2:30. When she was 3 1/2 she slept almost every day. Now it's more like every 2-3 days. On the days that we skip nap to do something else (like errands), she usually gets tired by 3:30 or 4- but by 7 for sure. She goes to bed around 8- 8:15, and she usually wakes up around 7:30. It works very well for us. I hope that helps!

(Sorry about the edit- I got up to answer the phone, and she decided to "help" me!)

Every kid is different. My almost 4 yr old (in Feb.) refuses to nap anymore. This Fall she would still nap a few days a week. Now she just has quiet time since she won't nap.

If your son still needs a nap and will nap, give him a nap. If he has problems going to sleep at bedtime with a nap. You may want to shorten his nap or have him nap the days when he looks like he needs one.