Change the Way You Say Goodnight to your Toddler

Is putting your child to bed a piece of cake?  If not, this one is for you! Today is a day that I’m going to tell you how to change the way you say goodnight to your toddler.  From here on out,  take out a phrase from your vocabulary – “Go To Sleep”

I promise it’s for a good reason!

Most parents say “Go to Sleep” at the end of the night and if your toddler is continuously acting out, horsing around or stalling, the phrase “Go to Sleep” easily can turn into “GO TO SLEEP” in not the most pleasant of tones.  But that’s actually not a great way to say goodnight to your child!

Think of the phrase “Go to Sleep” from a toddler’s perspective – sleep is something that can’t just be done – they can’t press a button to fall asleep. Sleep doesn’t just happen the second that they close their eyes. The word “go” is suggesting that a child should do something and toddlers may get frustrated by saying “I can’t, I can’t go to sleep” thus stalling further.

Think of “go” to sleep from a toddler’s perspective. Sleep isn’t something that can be done.  Your child can’t press a button to fall asleep.

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 Change the way you say goodnight.

So here’s a new concept – rather than  “Go To Sleep” – say:

“Sleep Will Come to You”

All your child has to do is lay still and be quiet and sleep will come to them. For certain children, sleep takes longer and for certain children, it comes quicker – but sleep will come. It’s a much more concrete direction that they can grasp.

With the phrase “Sleep Will Come To You” you have made it much clearer for your child!

This great tip came from – Beyond Time Out from Chaos to Calm which can be found here.

If you’re ready to make the change, go ahead and learn 6 peaceful ways to get a toddler to sleep.

Who’s making a change?  How did making the change to say goodnight work for your toddler?