Naps and Toddlers

If you rely on your child's naps to catch up on your sleep or attend to other responsibilities, there's some bad news for you—some really bad news, in fact! At some point during your toddler's second year of life, he'll go from taking two naps a day to one; and at some point during his third year of life, he'll give up that nap, too.

While your child is still taking naps, encourage him to nap in his bed or in his crib so that he's able to make the connection between naptime and sleep. It's not a good idea to allow him to nap on the run (for example, to simply fall asleep in the middle of the floor while he's playing with his blocks). He'll find it easier to wind down if you take him to the room in the house that he's learned to associate with sleep.

Most toddlers go through a difficult period each time they're ready to give up one of their naps. They may be wide awake at naptime, but extremely sleepy—and grumpy—by late afternoon. You may find it helpful to encourage your toddler to enjoy a quiet activity around the time when he used to take his nap and schedule a more active activity for late afternoon so that he'll be less inclined to fall asleep on the spot. (Note: Steer clear of activities that require a trip by car, as that will almost certainly cause an overtired toddler to doze off.)

Sometimes it's the parent rather than the toddler who decides the time has come to get rid of that afternoon nap. If you find that your toddler's daytime nap is interfering with the length of time he spends sleeping at night, you might want to pull the plug on that nap sooner rather than later. (Of course, some parents find quite the opposite to be true: A daytime nap helps to keep their child calm and happy, something that may help promote better sleep at night. You may have to experiment a little to find out what works best for your toddler. To nap or not to nap? That is the question!)