Jan and Bill – 3 Kids – Ages 3 & 6

Aidan – 3

• Bedtime routine begins at 7:00
• Reading a book downstairs with mom and dad
• The other kids are in their rooms so that Aidan has a chance to connect with mom and dad and begin to relax before bed. They learned the hard way that if the other kids were flying around the house, Aidan resisted saying goodnight.
• Aidan decides who will go upstairs while he gets ready for bed which includes:
• Washing teeth
• Taking a bath
• Pajamas on
• When he is in bed, 7:30 – 7:45, he calls to the other parent to come up for kisses
• Both parents share one appreciation with Aidan and often times he returns with an appreciation of his own. They have maintained the one sentence rule so that Aidan doesn’t turn this into a 30 minute ordeal. Early on, they decided they would leave the room quietly if Aidan started making mischief with the appreciations. They reported that within 3 days, they had established a completely enjoying and peaceful bedtime routine.
• Final kisses, lights out by 7:45.




Jan and Bill decided they needed 15 minutes to themselves to regroup after putting Aidan to bed and found this a time to start their wind down for the night.

Megan – 6

Megan is a night owl and comes alive just after dinner. Her parents have figured out that she doesn’t require as much sleep as most kids and can maintain a great attitude with as little as 6 hours of sleep.

• 7:00 – 8:00: Megan gets herself ready for the following day. The house is quiet and she has agreed to leave mom and dad alone with Aidan. She also does her contribution during this time (unless it involves vacuuming).
• 8:00 – 8:30 Reading with mom and dad. Megan doesn’t have homework yet, so this is still a time to connect alone with her parents.
• 8:30 – 9:00: She is ready for downtime and has a room full of options. The family has agreed to tv on weekends, but not during the week. Downtime includes legos, crafts, and any other interests that might capture Megan’s attention.
• 9:00: Call mom and dad up for final kisses. Megan isn’t in bed yet. But she is ready to say goodnight. Mom and dad gave up fighting with her about lights out when they realized that she could self regulate her sleeping needs and patterns.

If you would like more information on training children, please check out Chapter 3 of the Parenting On Track™ Home program.