Parents' busy work schedules, after-school activities and homework can all cut into family time on school nights, and can have a big impact on how much a child sleeps. Given the fact that time together for so many households starts at around 6 or 7 o'clock or even later in the evening on a school night, it can be tough to set an early bedtime. And since experts say school-age children roughly need about ten hours of sleep -- which means they need to go to bed around 8 or 9 o'clock -- that doesn't leave much time for anything besides dinner, homework and reading one short book chapter together.

    But it can be particularly important for grade-schoolers to get enough shut-eye. How much a child sleeps can have a big impact on her growth and development. Research has shown that lack of sleep can affect a child's temperament, behavior, alertness, and ability to learn. Children who do not get enough sleep have been shown to perform more poorly on memory and attention tests. And an April 2009 study found that sleep problems in the grade-school years were linked to poor scores on mental tests when the children reached adolescence.

    So what can you do to make sure your child sleeps enough to function at his best? Try these tips to help your child sleep well and build good school-night child sleep habits:

    Smart Child Sleep Habit: Stick to a routine. A bath, pajamas, brushing teeth and a few pages from a book -- whatever your nighttime ritual is, be sure to stick to it consistently so that your child knows what to expect move through every phase efficiently each night.

    Smart Child Sleep Habit: Limit the electronic stimulants. Don't let your child use the computer or watch TV at least an hour before bedtime. These activities can be stimulating, and can interfere with falling and staying asleep.

    Smart Child Sleep Habit: Keep her room comfortable for sleeping. Bedrooms that are quiet, dark and cool are optimal for a good night's rest.

    Smart Child Sleep Habit: Set aside extra time for catching up. If your grade-schooler has younger or older siblings, be sure you give each child individual time （you can switch off with your partner and alternate dad and mom time on each night to save some time）.

    Smart Child Sleep Habit: Curb the sneaky caffeine. You wouldn't let your grade-schooler down a cup of coffee before bed. But caffeine can also lurk in foods and drinks you may not suspect such as chocolate and sodas.

    Smart Child Sleep Habit: Watch your child instead of the clock. How much your child needs to sleep can vary depending on his individual needs. Some kids may do just fine on 8 hours of sleep while others need a solid 10 or more. Look for signs of sleep deprivation such as hyperactivity, crankiness and memory or concentration problems.

    父母忙于工作進度，放學(xué)后的課外活動和作業(yè)幾乎占盡了上課日子的晚上時間，而這些都非常密切的關(guān)系到一個孩子能有多少時間來睡眠。事實上，在上課日子的晚上，對很多家庭活動開始于6:00或者7:00或者再晚一些孩子來說，很難保證可以在比較早的時間上床睡覺。專家建議正處于上學(xué)年齡階段的孩子大約要保持10個小時的睡眠時間--即意味著孩子上床的時間要在八九點鐘--而這樣就無法留出很多的時間用來吃晚餐、寫作業(yè)以及閱讀一本書的一小章。

    然而獲得充足的睡眠時間對于正在上學(xué)的孩子來說是極為重要的。一個孩子睡眠時間的長短對她的成長和發(fā)張有著重大的影響。研究顯示如果缺少睡眠可能會影響孩子的性情、行為、反應(yīng)靈敏性和學(xué)習(xí)的能力。睡眠不足的孩子在記憶力和注意力測驗中表現(xiàn)不佳。2009年4月的一項研究顯示，上學(xué)階段孩子的睡眠問題會是孩子進入青春期后，心理測試表現(xiàn)不好的一個原因。

    現(xiàn)在我們能做些什么來保證我們的孩子獲得充足有效的睡眠呢？試試下面這些小竅門來幫助孩子有個良好的睡眠，培養(yǎng)一個良好的睡眠習(xí)慣。

    聰明孩子睡眠習(xí)慣：堅持作息表。洗澡、換睡衣、刷牙、讀幾頁書--無論你的夜間時間是多么像在例行公事，你都要保證始終如一的堅持它，以便讓你的孩子知道每晚的每個每個階段都能充分的利用。

    聰明孩子睡眠習(xí)慣：限制電子娛樂活動的刺激。不要讓你的孩子在睡覺前至少一個小時玩電腦或者看電視。這些活動將會對他們產(chǎn)生刺激作用，干預(yù)他們的快速入眠和沉穩(wěn)睡眠。

    聰明孩子睡眠習(xí)慣：為她創(chuàng)造一個舒適的睡眠環(huán)境。臥室保持安靜、黑暗和涼爽都是保持良好睡眠的積極因素。

    聰明孩子睡眠習(xí)慣：留出時間以備急用。如果你上學(xué)的孩子有弟弟妹妹或者哥哥姐姐，那么要保證給每個孩子留出單獨的時間（你可以和的伴侶每晚輪流替換爸爸和媽媽時間，可以可以節(jié)約時間。）

    聰明孩子睡眠習(xí)慣：嚴格控制咖啡因的攝入。你絕對不可以允許你的孩子在睡覺之前喝咖啡。但是食物和飲料中可能含有咖啡因，因為你可能不會懷疑像巧克力和蘇打水之類的東西。

    聰明孩子睡眠習(xí)慣：你來觀察孩子來替代鬧鐘叫醒孩子。你孩子需要多長的睡眠時間是由他自身的需要而決定。一些小孩可能只是需要8個小時而有些孩子可能需要10個小時或者更多。觀察你的孩子，如果出現(xiàn)像高亢興奮、偏執(zhí)和記憶或者注意力集中等問題時癥狀，則說明你的孩子可能缺少睡眠。