Newswise – Elementary schools are full of sleepy students who are tootired to learn because of lost sleep, due to nightly battleswiththeir parents over bedtimes or staying up late to watchtheir favorite TV shows. A survey of almost 200 fifthgraders found that the majority of them regularly experiencesleepdeprivation and feel tired during the day. Nearly half saidthey had trouble waking up in the morning on school days.It’s the same effect as if they changed time zones every day.
Researcher Denise Amschler says sleep “plays a key role inthe prevention of disease and injury, stability of moodand the ability to learn?Elementary school-aged childrenrequire an average of 10 to 11 hours of sleep each night,and most aren’t getting it.”
Almost half of all students reported arguing with theirparents at least twice a week about bedtimes. About a thirdsaid they often stayed up late without their parents’permission. TVs and computers in kids’ rooms are part of theproblem. Late bedtimes might even be a major cause of thehigh rate of ADHD diagnosis that is causing so many kids tobe drugged with Ritalin.
Art credit: http://www.freeimages.co.uk
Early bedtimes for kids?that’s just good old-fashioned common sense!
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