How Much Sleep Do Your Kids (& You) Need? – and WHY.

It seems common sense that we should ensure our children get the right amount of sleep, but how much and why? After reviewing academic studies and articles, it is clear that getting the right amount of quality sleep truly matters for school performance and health. I know life is busy, so here is a quick summary for parents to review what the science says about sleep and its impacts.

Age Breakdown

5-12 years old:  10-12 hours of sleep

Teenagers:  9 hours of sleep

Adults:  7– 9 hours

(BFIS, 2025)

WHY?

1. Academics. Studies have shown that children who get more sleep improve their behavior and ability to concentrate (BFIS, 2025). Other studies have proven that when children get the right amount of sleep, their grades improve. One study showed that math and language grades improved with better sleep. In reverse, studies are proving that not getting enough quality sleep results in poor academic performance.
2. Overall Health. Getting the right amount of sleep is essential to health (Ramar, 2021). It impacts cognitive abilities, moods, mental health, and how the body operates on serious systems like cardiovascular systems. Studies show that not getting the right amount of sleep negatively impacts children’s and adults’ overall health.
3. Immune System Impact. Healthy immune systems require the right amount of sleep (Besedovsky, 2011). Immune cells peak during sleep and move throughout the body to keep children and adults healthy. Without proper sleep, the immune system suffers, making you more susceptible to catching whatever is going around around your area.

Quality Sleep Matters.

The quality of sleep matters in gaining improved behavior, concentration, and other benefits (BFIS, 2025):

●Uninterrupted Sleep. If a child is interrupted by their phones, is getting up to sneak a video game, etc., then this impacts their sleep.

●Sleep Routine. For best results, consistent bedtime and wake-up times should occur.

What can parents do?

1. Evaluate Schedules. As parents, we need to evaluate our children’s schedules.  Are they not getting enough sleep because they stay up to finish school homework after their scheduled activities? It might be time to cut back on something if it is impacting their sleep.
2. Set Bed/Wake Up Time. Your children’s sleep will benefit if you set a fairly strict bedtime and wake-up time, as consistency is positive for quality sleep. It is easier, especially in the younger years, to set up a bedtime routine to follow each night.
3. Set Bedtime Rules for Phones and Computers. In the teen years, especially, phones can ping throughout the night and kids may want to play video games in the middle of the night. Talk about the issues with your children and why sleep matters. Set reasonable rules of phones and computers. For example, put all phones & their computer mouse on the kitchen table when it’s time for bed.

Make sure your family has comfortable pillows. My family uses MyPillows. We got new ones for Christmas and have really enjoyed them. If your family is interested, click on the pillow for a link to Amazon. You still get the same low price at Amazon, but they will compensate me a small amount if you use the link I provided. Thank you for helping support our Blog/research in this way.

Blessings,

Jeanne

References

Besedovsky, Luciana. (Nov. 2011). Sleep and immune function. NIH, National Library of Medicine. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3256323/

BFIS, 2025. Kids need more sleep to get better grades,Tips for families. https://www.bfischool.org/kids-need-more-sleep-get-better-grades/

Ramar, Kannan, MD, et al. (Oct. 1, 2021). Sleep is essential to health: an American Academy of Sleep Medicine position statement. https://jcsm.aasm.org/doi/10.5664/jcsm.9476

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