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Is your elementary-age child suddenly resisting bedtime, taking longer to fall asleep, waking at night, or starting the day too early? You may be dealing with a very real and very common pattern: the end of school year sleep regression.

In this episode, Allison explains why sleep often starts to unravel in the final stretch of the school year. While longer daylight hours can play a role, the bigger driver is often simple exhaustion. Kids are tired of routines. Parents are tired of enforcing them. Bedtime drifts later, structure loosens, and sleep quality begins to slip.

The good news is that a few small adjustments can help get sleep back on track and make the final weeks of the school year smoother for everyone.

Allison shares practical strategies parents can use right away, including how to reset bedtime routines, protect the hour before bed, handle the “but it’s still light outside” argument, and stay consistent even during busy spring schedules.

If your household feels a little more tired, cranky, or chaotic than usual right now, you are not alone. This episode will help you understand what is happening and how to finish the school year strong.

Listen in to learn:
— Why sleep problems often show up at the end of the school year
— How longer days and routine fatigue affect bedtime and sleep quality
— What to do when a child suddenly starts resisting bedtime
— How to reset routines after bedtime has drifted later
— Why protecting the hour before bed is especially important in the spring
— How to handle late activities without derailing the whole schedule
— Why consistency on weekends matters more than parents think

Resources mentioned in this episode:
Episode 235. What Time Should My Child Go to Bed? How to Find Their Ideal Bedtime
Allison’s favorite black out shades

Give your child the gift of better sleep. Allison’s free, age-specific guides show you exactly how many hours of rest kids need to grow, learn, and thrive—no matter their age. Get your free copy now: 0-2 Years Old or 3 to 10 years old

From baby sleep to toddler sleep, daycare naps to sleep training—How Long ’Til Bedtime? is the podcast for parents who want practical, guilt-free sleep tips they can actually use.

Hosted by pediatric sleep coach Allison Egidi, each episode delivers real solutions for every stage—from navigating newborn sleep struggles and weaning night feedings to helping your 3-year-old fall asleep independently (and stay asleep!). Whether you’re trying to make sense of daycare sleep patterns, craving your evenings back, or simply need a working mom podcast to keep you grounded, you’re in the right place.

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Scroll down for a full transcript of this episode.

237. End of School Year Sleep Regressions: Why Big Kids Fight Bedtime in the Spring
Before we dive in today, I just want to say hi to all of our new listeners. I’m recording this episode on April 2nd and in February our listens were up 70% and then in March they were up another 37%. So if you are new here, hello, I’m thrilled to have you here. And for those of you who have been around from day one, thank you so much for sharing the podcast with other parents. You guys are the best. If you have found an episode or many episodes helpful, it would mean the world to me if you would take a moment right now to rate and review the podcast on whatever app you’re using to listen to it. This is truly one of the best ways to support this podcast and to help us continue to share this free resource with parents all over the world.

Okay, on to today’s episode where we’re going to talk about big kid sleep regressions. Those sleep regressions that kind of happen at the end of the school year because I think many of us are there.

Hey there, Allison here. Welcome back to How Long ‘Til Bedtime. Can I just say something out loud that I think many of us are feeling right now? Many of us are a little over it. We’re over the lunches, we’re over the homework, the early alarms, the afternoon schedules, the routines over and over again. Every August I joke that I am so over the freedom of summer and I am ready for school to start so that we can get back to our routines and our schedules. And then inevitably every May I am equally ready to let go of the structure and to embrace the freedom of summer. And as I record this episode in early April I am not over it yet. But my daughter, who is in elementary school, has been complaining about bedtime for the last two weeks. So I get it. Not only are we over it, sometimes our kids are over it. But here’s the thing. We’re not quite there yet, you guys. And if your elementary age child has been pushing back on bedtime lately, struggling to fall asleep, waking up in the middle of the night or starting their day really early, there’s a good chance you are dealing with an end of school year sleep regression. So today I want to help you understand why it’s happening and how you can get the train back on the tracks to help you make it through the rest of the school year.

Let me paint a picture. It’s the last handful of weeks in the school year. The days are getting longer. It is still light outside at your child’s typical bedtime. Your child is pushing back harder than usual and you honestly are a little tired of holding the line. Parents often tell me that they think it’s about the days getting longer, the brightness outside, that those longer days are what are keeping their kids up later. And yes, light does affect the body’s production of melatonin and more evening light can make kids feel like you’re making them go to sleep when it’s still daytime. But typically a lot of what’s driving the end of year sleep regressions isn’t just the light. It’s just the collective exhaustion of everyone involved. Kids are over the school year structure and parents are over enforcing it. And when the enforcement gets a little looser, even subtly, kids pull that thread and they push back even more. Bedtime drifts later, routines get a little sloppier and before long, sleep quality starts to slip and behavior might be going downhill. Everyone’s attitudes might be spiking in a way we don’t like. I see it every spring and I am not immune to it in my own household. As I mentioned, my youngest daughter, she is in fifth grade and her ideal school year bedtime is 7:30. In early April, as I’m recording this here, she’s over her early bedtime.

Now she is my rule follower. So she doesn’t give me a lot of trouble at bedtime in general, but for the past couple of weeks, she’s been very vocal about the fact that she does not want to go to bed at 7:30 anymore. And here’s the thing. Part of her feelings around that are not just real. They’re like legit that she doesn’t feel like she wants to go to bed then because she’s in the early stages of puberty. And one of the things that happens as kids move through puberty is that their circadian rhythm genuinely shifts later. Their body is wanting to stay up later and sleep in later. So when she tells me she’s not tired at 7:30, I do believe her. But here’s what’s also true. She still needs 11 hours of sleep to be her best little self. And she knows it. Because she will admit it sometimes begrudgingly that on the days after she goes to bed later than usual, she is more tired and more easily annoyed by all things. She has that self awareness, which I love, but that doesn’t make her excited to go to bed at 7:30.

So I try to be empathetic without caving. When she complained, I say something along the lines of I know, I get it. I’m ready for a break from all the schedules too, including bedtime. But after spring break, you only have seven more weeks of school and then you can go to bed a little bit later because you’ll be able to sleep in later and still get the sleep your body needs. So for now, your body still needs you to to bed at 7:30 so that you can get up for school and be your best little happy self.

Now don’t get me wrong, this little pep talk doesn’t make her excited to go to bed, but she accepts it. She continues to complain and then I continue to hold the structure. So what should you do if your child isn’t in early puberty and isn’t quite as easy about going to bed as my daughter and they’re really resisting bedtime or struggling to fall asleep or dealing with nighttime or early morning wakings. Here’s what I recommend. Reset the routine and the timing. Just like I talked about in episode 235, go back to watching for your child’s sleep wave and see when their second wind is kicking in. Try to get ahead of it. If bedtime has been drifting later, pull it back to what was working at the beginning of the school year and see what happens over the next few nights and days. Protect the hour before bedtime. And this is a big one this time of year. If your child is resisting bedtime or having a hard time falling asleep, take a look at what’s happening during that hour before the routine. Are they playing outside? That’s great in theory, but do it before dinner, not after.

Screens, roughhousing, running, jumping, wrestling, tickling, all of those things can be activating for the nervous system. And they can make it harder for kids to wind down. And I think this time of the year as the weather’s getting better and the days are getting longer, we’re more likely to kind of let those things go. So instead, in that last hour, test out routines that are calm and if you still have extra time think about instead of running around outside playing a low-key family game Uno or some other card game. My kids are currently into this monopoly card game or do a family puzzle something that brings you together and you’re having fun and everyone feels connected but without ramping the kids up.

Keep the bedtime routine simple and consistent. A good elementary age bedtime routine does not need to be complicated and frankly it’s not that much different than an infant routine. So think about a shower or bath, putting on their jammies, brushing their teeth, 15 minutes of reading, lights out, that’s it. The consistency is what signals to your child’s brain and body that sleep is coming.

Address the light issue directly. If your child is pointing to the fact that it is still light out at their bedtime and that is why they are not tired, don’t dismiss it, explain it. You might say, you’re right, the days are getting longer and it’s going to keep getting lighter outside and it’s going to be lighter later and later all the way through the summer. That’s actually because of the way the earth tilts towards the sun this time of year. But even though it’s light outside in the spring and the summer, your body still needs the same amount of sleep and you still have to get up early for school. So until school gets out, we still need to go to bed at your normal bedtime. Kids respond well to science and good explanations. You might even find an age appropriate video on YouTube that explains the days getting longer. Simple, honest explanations can shift the conversation away from being a power struggle.

And if you don’t have blackout shades in your child’s room, consider adding some so that you can make it easier for them to fall asleep in the evening when it’s still light out. And it’s going to help them not wake up early with the rising sun as the days continue to get longer. I will include a link in the show notes to some inexpensive blackout shades. And they are the exact ones that I use in my daughters’ rooms during the summer because I have never invested in legit blackout shades. And these will get the job done if you don’t have good blackout shades.

So try to be consistent, not just during the school week, but throughout the entire week. If your child has a late night because of a practice, a game or school event, that’s okay. This happens in my house all the time. Just prioritize getting them back on schedule the very next night. Don’t let the whole week slip because of a night or two and resist the urge to let them stay up later on the weekends because yes, I know they can sleep in and I know that feels harmless, but it makes it much harder for their body to go to bed on time Sunday night. And then Monday morning becomes a battle and their circadian rhythm is just not settled. So the more consistent you can stay, the smoother the last few weeks of the school year will be.

So to wrap up, end of year sleep regressions in elementary age kids is a real thing. And they’re typically driven by a combination of longer days and the collective exhaustion of everyone in your house just being done with the school year and the routines. But you guys are so close. A few more weeks of holding the line and then summer gives everyone a little bit more flexibility. In the meantime, reset the routine, protect that hour before bedtime, address the light issue and provide a science explanation if needed. And stay as consistent as you can throughout the entire week, not just the school week. Your child likely will not thank you, but they will be a better, happier, more rested version of themselves because you set them up for success. And that makes the whole end of the school year just a little bit easier for everyone.

If this episode resonated, share it with another parent who is in the end of school year trenches right now. And as always, thanks for listening guys. I’ll see you back here next week. Bye for now.