TOLEDO, Ohio — If you have children, chances are they've been staying up later than they usually do during the school year.
Many students in northwest Ohio go back to school next week, so experts say now is the time to start adjusting those bed times.
"Summer comes and you only have so much time with them and that. Staying up late is a norm." Local mom and teacher, Taylor Fletcher said.
Fletcher is soaking in the final days of summer break with her daughter, but she knows a new school year is coming fast, so she's begun the process of moving up bed time.
"We are just now starting to, 'We're going to get in the bath at 7, instead of 8:30,'" said Fletcher.
Director of Promedica Sleep Labs, Heather Sheehy said that's exactly what families should be doing, as a new school year approaches.
Sheehy said kids need nine to 10 hours of sleep a night.
"Parents need to think, 'when do I need to get my family up in the morning?' I have to get my family up at 6 to 6:30, to get everybody out the door. Then I really need to get everybody in bed by 8," explained Sheehy.
So depending on how late your kids have been staying up, Sheehy said you might want to start sliding up that bedtime, in time for the first day of school.
"If we start now, 15 minutes, 20 minutes every night start backing up their bedtime, it's going to be extremely helpful. Get them used to coming to bed a little bit sooner," Sheehy said.
Sheehy said that also means you should start getting them up earlier too.
Sheehy added that it's important kids get the right amount of sleep, because if they don't the school day could go downhill fast.
"They could have performance issues, academically, as far as that goes and also behaviorally. If I'm not getting enough sleep that I need, adults are gonna do it too, I might be a little more fidgety," she said.
Sheehy recommends a calm and quiet bed time routine, and cut out screens at least an hour before bedtime. She also said to cut the caffeine by noon.