These signs your toddler is ready to give up naps may surprise you! See if your toddler is getting ready to give up their naptime, and how much sleep they should really be getting.
When my oldest daughter was ready to give up her nap, I was really sad!
Naptime was time for both of us to recharge and regroup before finishing out the day. It was my time to clean the house, put myself together, and even work on this blog! But she was definitely showing signs that nap time was ending for a few weeks before it actually happened.
According to this article, 94% of children stop napping by age 5. From my experience among friends and family, age three tends to be the sweet spot for stopping naps. Mind you, this is from a very small sample size, but it’s what I’ve found to be the norm amongst my mom friends.
My daughter was just about 3 years old when she gave up her nap. It was hard to let it go, but the struggle at bedtime wasn’t worth it anymore!
As long as your toddler is getting enough sleep at night, they may not need the daytime nap. Depending on the age of your child, between 12-13 hours seems to be the general rule for how much sleep your child needs.
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5 signs your toddler is ready to give up naps
- Nap time becomes a struggle
Another glass of water? One more kiss and hug? A restless, energetic toddler? It may be time to give up the nap.
If you spend the majority of your child’s naptime convincing them it’s time to sleep, it may be time to say goodbye to your midday rest. Instead, a quiet time activity may be better.
- Bed time starts taking longer and longer
One of the biggest thing we noticed when my daughter was ready to give up nap was that bedtime became torture.
There were nights that I was falling asleep before she was! If you notice that bedtime is taking longer and longer and with more and more struggle, they might be ready to give up their nap.
With my daughter, it took about a week of getting rid of the nap to get a consistent bedtime routine established. We learned to start our bedtime routine around 7:45PM, so that she was asleep and in bed by 8:15PM. If she stays up any later than that, she gets a second wind and will be up until 10 o’clock!
That’s not good for anyone. Now at 7:45, we brush teeth, read a few books and say goodnight. She’ll sleep for between 11-13 hours at that point, giving both of us a much needed rest.
- Procrastination around nap time and bedtime
Toddlers are expert procrastinators! Their little minds and bodies just go, go, go!
If you notice your toddler coming up with very creative reasons to be awake, it may be a sign your toddler is ready to give up naps.
One particular instance comes to mind when I think of this in my own family. My 3 year old daughter decided she absolutely could not go to bed without her nails painted! When my husband and I heard some rustling upstairs at about 10PM, we sprinted to see what was going on. Sure enough, she got into the nail polish!
Sure enough, my OPI Lincoln Park After Dark nail polish was all over my white carpet. My pregnant self definitely shed a few tears as we helped her back to bed. Thankfully, since we dropped the nap and moved up bedtime we haven’t had any more nail polish fiascos!
- They’re waking up way too early
According to SleepFoundation.org, toddlers need about 11-14 hours of sleep per day while preschool-aged children need about 10-13 hours each day.
So if you are napping and putting your child down to bed early, that may mean they’re up before the sun!
As your child prepares to drop the nap, they may start sleeping less at night. Once the nap is gone and their body adjusts, they will hopefully start sleeping until the morning.
Alarm clocks for toddlers like this one may be helpful. When the light turns green, your child will know it’s OK to get up.
- Their energy holds steady through the day
Though your child once started rubbing their eyes by 12pm, eventually their energy will hold steady throughout the day. When this happens, it’s a pretty sure sign they are ready to forgo nap time.
Many children still benefit from a sort of “rest” time that doesn’t involve falling asleep. Keep reading for more ideas of what that might look like!
Introducing “quiet time” instead of a nap
For my 3 year old, we still do a quiet time during the afternoon. If we don’t take a little downtime, we both get cranky.
During downtime, my daughter is expected to play or have a little screen time independently. She is allowed to pick out one of our favorite activity bins, or she can pick a show to watch on TV.
Typically, her quiet time lasts about an hour or so. After then, she wants a snack and a little one on one attention while her little sister naps.
To make our quiet time successful, we allow her lots of choices. She can pick a room she’d like to be in, a snack, drink, and either an activity or a TV show. That way she feels like she has control over it and is much more likely to cooperate.
On days we are avoiding screen time, we choose one of these screen free activities. I’ll also let her do one of her favorite no-mess art activities if she’s feeling up for it!
If your toddler is ready to give up naps, definitely try a quiet time! While it takes some adjusting, it will definitely help both of you rest and recharge.
When did your toddler give up naps? What signs did they show that they were ready?
