Typical sleep behaviour (6) – preschoolers 3 to 5 years
Typical sleep behaviour (6) – preschoolers 3 to 5 years
In your language:
For translated fact sheets go to
Information in community languages
.
Preschooler sleep patterns and behaviours (3 to 5 years)
Preschoolers aged between 3 and 5 years sleep between 10 to 13 hours in a 24-hour period.
The number of day-time naps will gradually reduce and stop by the time your preschooler starts school.
Preschoolers and night-time fears
Many preschoolers experience nightmares and night terrors. This can make getting to sleep more difficult. It means preschoolers may also wake more frequently overnight and call out to you.
Your child may seek comfort from these
night-time fears
by getting into bed with you.
It depends on individual families as to whether this is a concern or not.
Settling your preschooler at 3 to 5 years
By understanding your preschooler and learning their cues, you will be able to support a positive sleep pattern.
Some
things you can do to develop positive sleep behaviour include
:
recognising and responding to
tired signs
using positive and consistent
bedtime routines
bedtime fading
– tries to reduce night waking. It uses your child’s natural tendency to sleep for the right length of time (called sleep homeostasis) by delaying bedtime by 15 minutes each night in order to reduce the time your preschooler spends sleeping
reward charts
– are tools for changing your child’s behaviour and may include wall posters or apps. They demonstrate positive behaviour or a goal that your preschooler needs to achieve
cot-to-bed transition
– if you notice your preschooler is attempting to climb out of their cot, it might be time to move them to a bed. This usually takes place between 2 to 3 ½ years but can be as early as 18 months.
Create a positive sleep environment for your preschooler
It is important that your preschooler feels secure and loved. You can do this by responding to them in a warm and positive way.
Positive interactions from people shows your preschooler that they are important and are valued by adults.
By understanding and communicating with your preschooler you will learn their cues as they grow and develop. This will help to support positive relationships and sleep patterns.
If you are having difficulties, it can be helpful to track when and how long your preschooler’s sleeps each day, for a week or so. This can give you a clear idea of what might be going on.
If you’ve tried the above strategies for one to two weeks, and you are still concerned about your toddler’s sleep, talk to your family’s maternal and child health nurse, your doctor or call the Maternal and Child Health Line on Tel.
13 22 29
.
Preschoolers and night-time bedwetting
Night-time
bedwetting
is a common issue experienced by preschoolers as they are likely to no longer wear nappies overnight.
Bedwetting may also cause increased waking overnight.
There are several different causes of bedwetting, including:
some children sleep deeply and do not wake up when their bladders are full
some children produce larger than usual amounts of urine at night, and they do not wake up in time to go to the toilet
some children have small bladders, which means they are more likely to wet the bed at night
bedwetting often runs in families. If parents wet the bed as a child, their children may also be more likely to wet the bed
children with
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
are more likely to wet the bed.
Remember, bedwetting is part of your child’s physical and emotional development and most children will stop bed wetting as they get older.
Information in community languages
This fact sheet is available for download in the following community languages:
Easy English - How preschoolers sleep 3 to 5 years
docx
250.55 KB
Arabic - ورقۀ معلومات 6: رفتار خاص خواب: طفل پیش از سن مکتب 3 تا 5 ساله (Typical sleep behaviour (6) preschoolers 3 to 5 years)
docx
242.63 KB
Burmese - အချက်အလက်မှတ်တမ်း 6 - ပုံမှန်အိပ်စက်ခြင်းဆိုင်ရာ အပြုအမူ - မူကြိုကလေးငယ်များ 3–5 နှစ် (Typical sleep behaviour (6) preschoolers 3 to 5 years)
doc
275.5 KB
Dari - صحيفة المعلومات 6، سلوك النوم المعتاد: الأطفال في مرحلة ما قبل المدرسة من عمر 3-5 سنوات (Typical sleep behaviour (6) preschoolers 3 to 5 years)
docx
242.33 KB
Khmer - សន្លឹកព័ត៌មានទី៦៖ ឥរិយាបទគេងជាធម្មតា៖ ក្មេងដែលត្រៀមចូលសាលាអាយុ៣-៥ឆ្នាំ (Typical sleep behaviour (6) preschoolers 3 to 5 years)
docx
252.93 KB
Persian - برگه اطلاع رسانی 6: رفتارهای معمول خواب: کودکان پیش دبستانی 3 تا 5 ساله (Typical sleep behaviour (6) preschoolers 3 to 5 years)
docx
241.1 KB
Punjabi - ਤੱਥਸ਼ੀਟ 6: ਨੀਂਦ ਦੇ ਖਾਸ ਵਿਵਹਾਰ: ਸਕੂਲ ਸ਼ੁਰੂ ਕਰਨ ਵਾਲੇ 3-5 ਸਾਲ (Typical sleep behaviour (6) preschoolers 3 to 5 years)
docx
244.83 KB
Simplified Chinese - 信息说明书6：典型睡眠行为：3–5岁学龄前儿童 (Typical sleep behaviour (6) preschoolers 3 to 5 years)
docx
239.2 KB
Spanish - Hoja informativa 6: Conducta habitual del sueño en niños de 3 a 5 años en edad preescolar (Typical sleep behaviour (6) preschoolers 3 to 5 years)
docx
239.51 KB
Vietnamese - Tờ thông tin 6: Hành vi ngủ đặc trưng - trẻ mẫu giáo từ 3 đến 5 tuổi (Typical sleep behaviour (6) preschoolers 3 to 5 years)
docx
240.99 KB
Maternal and child health nurse visits are important
Victorian parents have free access to the
Maternal and Child Health Service
, which is a great support after your baby is born.
Specially trained maternal and child health will work with your family to help you care for your child until they are ready to start school.
As part of this service, you will visit a maternal and child health nurse in your local area at 10 key ages and stages in your child’s development. These visits are important because they you an opportunity to identify and address any issues and concerns early in your child’s development.
Visits take place:
following discharge from hospital (
home visit
)
2 weeks
4 weeks
8 weeks
4 months
8 months
1 year
18 months
2 years
3 and a half years
Families can access the service at other times by telephone or through a centre visit.
Where to get help
Your local maternal and child health
service
External Link
Your GP (doctor)
Maternal and Child Health Line
Tel.
13 22 29
– available 24 hours a day for the cost of a local call throughout Victoria
Mercy Health O’Connell Family
Centre
External Link
, Canterbury Tel.
(03) 8416 7600
Mercy Health Woi-wurrung-yagila-wulumperi Whittlesea Early Parenting
Centre
External Link
, South Morang Tel.
(03) 9407 6820
Queen Elizabeth Centre
(QEC)
External Link
Tel.
(03) 9549 2777
Tweddle Child and Family Health
Service
External Link
, Footscray and Werribee Tel.
(03) 9689 1577
Aboriginal Health Service
(VAHS)
External Link
Tel.
03 9419 3000
Parentline
Tel.
13 22 89
Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS
National)
External Link
Tel.
131 450
– available (24 hours, 7 days) for callers who speak other languages
National Relay
Service
External Link
(24 hours, 7 days) – Speak and listen Tel.
1300 555 727
, TTY Tel.
133 677
, SMS relay Tel.
0423 677 767
. Captioned, internet and video relay calls are also available through this service.
NURSE-ON-CALL
Tel.
1300 60 60 24
– for expert health advice 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
Kidsafe
Victoria
External Link
Tel.
(03) 9036 2306