This nap, which should be the last nap to go, usually lasts until 3-4 years of age. If this nap disappears too soon your child may get overtired and be cranky in the evening and have difficulty falling asleep at night. To fix this add nap back in (see post Restoring a previously dropped nap) or put your child to bed earlier. If this nap persists too long then bedtime battles may begin since your child is not tired enough to go to sleep. You can fix this by either making bedtime later or dropping or shortening this nap (see Dropping a Nap - How to do it). If the morning nap continues for too long or lasts for too long then a child may resist the afternoon nap or the afternoon nap may occur too late resulting in bedtime battles (see
Controlling Nap Lengths).
The best time to start this nap is between 12-2 pm since this is the time that coincides with a child's natural dip in alertness (see Biological Rhythms and Sleep).
It is generally a good idea to have this nap over by 3 or 4 pm so it does not interfere with your child going to sleep at bedtime.
This should be the longest nap of the day (around 1.5-3 hours) since it is the most refreshing (assuming it is done around 12-2pm when your child has a dip in alertness).
The longest period of wakefulness usually occurs after this nap.
Controlling Nap Lengths).
The best time to start this nap is between 12-2 pm since this is the time that coincides with a child's natural dip in alertness (see Biological Rhythms and Sleep).
It is generally a good idea to have this nap over by 3 or 4 pm so it does not interfere with your child going to sleep at bedtime.
This should be the longest nap of the day (around 1.5-3 hours) since it is the most refreshing (assuming it is done around 12-2pm when your child has a dip in alertness).
The longest period of wakefulness usually occurs after this nap.
