Discover expert insights on sleep news august 17. Professional advice and tips from LA Mattress Store to improve your sleep and comfort.
Most kids aren't getting enough sleep — and the school schedule is a big part of the reason why. Research from the U.S. Department of Education found that 5 out of 6 middle and high schools start before 8:30 AM, which conflicts with the natural sleep biology of adolescents. The result is a generation of students running on chronic sleep debt, with measurable effects on health, mood, and academic performance.
You probably can't change when school starts. But there's a lot you can do about when your child goes to sleep — and how.
Adolescent sleep isn't just a schedule preference — it's biology. During puberty, the circadian rhythm shifts later, making it genuinely difficult for teenagers to fall asleep early. This is sometimes called "sleep phase delay," and it's a real physiological phenomenon, not a willpower problem.
When school starts at 7:30 or 8:00 AM, teenagers who can't fall asleep until 11 PM or midnight are getting 6 hours or less on school nights. Over a full academic year, that accumulates into a significant sleep deficit with meaningful health and academic consequences.
The American Academy of Pediatrics, the CDC, and the American Medical Association have all recommended that middle and high schools start no earlier than 8:30 AM for this reason. Some districts have made the change; most haven't.
Sleep isn't passive recovery — it's when the brain consolidates memory, processes learning, and regulates emotion. Cutting it short has real costs:
The summer-to-school transition is always rough — kids stay up late and sleep late during break, then school demands an abrupt schedule reversal. The solution isn't willpower; it's gradual adjustment.
Pediatric sleep specialists recommend beginning the transition about 2 weeks before school starts. Rather than resetting the schedule overnight, shift bedtime and wake time earlier by 15–30 minutes every 2–3 days. This lets the circadian rhythm adjust gradually rather than being forced into an abrupt change.
Naps during the transition period can make it harder to fall asleep at night, pushing bedtime later and perpetuating the cycle. If your child is exhausted, limit naps to 20–30 minutes in the early afternoon. Avoid naps after 3 PM.
A consistent 30-minute pre-sleep routine — same activities in roughly the same order — signals to the nervous system that sleep is coming. Reading, a shower, light stretching, and quiet conversation all work. The key is consistency, not complexity.
The honest answer is that very few kids — or adults — fully give up screens before bed. What matters more than perfection is reducing the most sleep-disrupting aspects of screen use.
Blue light emitted by phones, tablets, and laptop screens suppresses melatonin production and delays sleep onset. Research shows that reading on a bright-screen device before bed can delay sleep by 1–1.5 hours compared to reading under dim light or a paper book. Evening scroll sessions on social media also tend to be activating — not relaxing — which doesn't help.
Practical tip: The most effective intervention for kids isn't taking away screens entirely — it's making the bedroom a screen-free zone. When the phone stays outside the room, the bedtime battle often resolves on its own.
| Age Group | Recommended Sleep |
|---|---|
| Infants (4–12 months) | 12–16 hours (including naps) |
| Toddlers (1–2 years) | 11–14 hours (including naps) |
| Preschool (3–5 years) | 10–13 hours (including naps) |
| School age (6–12 years) | 9–12 hours |
| Teenagers (13–18 years) | 8–10 hours |
Source: American Academy of Sleep Medicine, endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Most middle and high school students are getting 6–7 hours on school nights — well below the recommended range for their age group.
Children and teens spend a lot of hours in bed — even if not all of them are sleeping. A comfortable, supportive sleep surface makes it easier to wind down and reduces nighttime restlessness. Growing bodies benefit from mattresses that provide proper spinal support without creating pressure points.
If your child has been using the same mattress for several years, it may be worth reassessing. Visit any of our five LA Mattress Store locations to talk through the right options for a growing child or teenager, or browse our full mattress selection online.
Because of a biological shift in the circadian rhythm during puberty — called sleep phase delay — teenagers genuinely cannot fall asleep as early as younger children or adults. Their melatonin release is delayed until later in the evening, making earlier bedtimes feel unnatural and largely ineffective without gradually shifting the schedule over time.
Key signs include: difficulty waking in the morning, falling asleep on car rides or at school, significant mood changes, difficulty concentrating, falling asleep shortly after getting home, or needing more than 9 hours on weekends to feel rested (suggesting significant weekday sleep debt).
Yes — particularly the timing, not just the duration. Using bright screens in the hour before bed delays melatonin release and can push sleep onset back by 1–2 hours. Social media and games are especially activating. Even 20–30 minutes of screen-free wind-down time makes a measurable difference for many kids.
Ideally, yes — at least within an hour of their school wake time. Sleeping in significantly on weekends creates social jet lag, which makes Monday morning harder and perpetuates the cycle. A smaller swing (1 hour, not 3) is much better for sleep consistency.
Start early — about 2 weeks before school begins. Shift sleep and wake times earlier by 15–30 minutes every 2–3 days. Create a consistent evening routine with low light and no screens in the final 30–60 minutes before bed. Keep bedroom conditions cool, dark, and quiet.
Good sleep habits in childhood and adolescence have lasting benefits that extend well beyond grades and morning moods. The fundamentals aren't complicated — they just require some consistency and a willingness to prioritize sleep as seriously as any other part of your child's health.
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