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Dad Field Manual · Field card 189 · Toddlers

Clocks go back: a 4-night bedtime shift for kids

Kids don't read clocks. Move bedtime, wake-up and dinner a little later each night before the change, and the new wake-up time is less of a shock.

Time
4 nights, about 20 min of setup each
Cost
$0
Ages
1 to 10
Where
Home

What you need

  • The card, or paper, to write each night's times
  • A clock or phone alarm you can reset
  • Curtains or blinds that dim the bedroom
  • Your usual bedtime routine (a nightly plan, linked on the web page, if you want one)

Before you start

  • Dim the lights and turn off screens. AAP says blue light from phones, computers, tablets, TV and even nightlights may trick the brain into thinking it's daytime.
  • Short on sleep? Skip the later bedtimes. AASM says to avoid shifting bedtime later before the fall change if you have chronic insufficient sleep; the extra hour when you fall back will help.
  • Keep light low until wake-up time. AASM's tip for the fall change is to minimize light exposure until your target morning wake time.

Steps

  1. Write down your usual times. Write down your kid's usual bedtime, wake-up and dinner times. These are the starting numbers. 5 min.
  2. Shift 15 minutes later, three nights. Move bedtime, wake-up and dinner 15 minutes later each night: plus 15, plus 30, plus 45. Write the times down. 20 min a night.
  3. Halloween is the late night. Saturday is 60 minutes later by the old clock. Set the clocks back that evening, then bed at your usual time. 10 min.
  4. Keep it dim until wake-up time. Keep the room and house dim until the usual wake-up time on the new clock. No screens. 10 min.
  5. Get outside in daylight. Once it's wake-up time, get your kid into natural daylight: a walk, the yard, breakfast by a window. 20 min.
  6. Hold the routine all week. Keep bedtime, wake-up and dinner at the same times all week. Most kids adjust in about a week. 5 min a day.

If it stalls

  • School mornings Wed to Fri? Skip Wed and Thu; Fri +30, Sat +60. (The weekend version is on the web page.)
  • If you found this plan late, on Friday or Saturday, skip the steps you missed. Set the clocks back Saturday evening, keep the lights low until wake-up time, and hold the routine for the week.
Wed Oct 28 +15
Thu Oct 29 +30
Fri Oct 30 +45
Sat Oct 31 +60
Our usual bed and wake-up times. US 2026: each night is that many minutes later
Clocks set back Saturday evening: Signed by Date