No Soul Left Behind

My friend Amy from Wisconsin asks, “What do you do when your three year old gives up their nap, even though they still need it (and Mom needs it too!)?”

With both the Naturalist and the Dancer, I used books on CD. (Our local public library has a fabulous collection).  They both loved them and it has greatly improved their vocabulary.  Here’s how to do it:

First, stop calling it “nap time”.  Call it “quiet time.”  Nap time makes it clear what you expect from them (a nap) and they will fight it.  Quiet time is less threatening.

Second, make sure the bedroom is free from items that might lead to mischief.  The Dancer’s room has nothing in it besides the Little People, a bed and a dresser.  And she knows that the Little People are gone if I catch her playing with them when she should be sleeping.

Third, pick the right book on CD.  With a three year old, make sure you start with a short book (30 mins.). That may not seem like much, but remember that a short break is better than no break at all.  Eventually, the child can work their way up to longer books.  For example, The Dancer can now enjoy books as long as one hour, and The Naturalist (at age 5+), listens to books over an hour in length. 

A great book on CD for a three year old is Frog and Toad.  Frog and Toad is a two disc collection, each CD is only 45 mins (two books on each CD).  Another short one is Winnie the Pooh by Milne.  Each CD is also about 45 mins.  Our library also owns a two-disc Dr. Suess collection, (the first disc has most of the popular books, we didn’t like the second CD as much). 

Also, my kids are big into Spanish CDs.  Beth Manners has three fabulous CD’s that are each about 30 minutes in length, and includes a nice story and music too.    Look on this blog for more suggestions of great books on CD, or make your own tape if you can’t find something you like. 

When the kids are really tired, they will fall asleep listening to the CDs.  When they don’t need a nap, then they will lay peacefully and enjoy the story.  If you catch them getting out of bed and being naughty, then they lose the privilege of the CD (in which case, I turn on the noisemaker and they are told to take a nap).   Another privilege we have in the house is dessert.  If any child has a bad day (which would include being naughty during quiet time), they get no dessert.  Dessert is a great motivator to most children!

Once the child gets older and no longer needs a nap, then you can change the rules for quiet time.  The Naturalist is no longer required to lie down in bed during quiet time.  Now he colors, does puzzles, makes trains, legos, etc… in his room quietly while listening to his CD’s, and he just loves the down time.  I don’t know how many times he’s asked me, “Is it time for quiet time yet?”

Try this for a couple of weeks.  I’ve noticed that nothing I’ve tried has worked if implemented less than two weeks.  After two weeks, things start to fall into place. 

Books on CD will not only solve the nap time dilemma, but it will also improve your child’s vocabulary.    In fact, people regularly comment about our children’s amazing vocabulary.  Books on CD are also nice because kids’ imaginations need lots of stories, and they need to be read to constantly, but there just aren’t enough hours in the day to give them all that reading!