Keeping quiet time QUIET - help!

I have a new 3YO daycare kid who will not stay quiet at quiet time. I would have liked to have had him (and all the kids) resting bodies for 1 hour, then possibility of reading quietly for 1 hour after if still awake. That wasn't working, so I compromised to reading quietly in bed for the first hour, but now there's way too much going back and forth to the bookshelf (and never mind about a pile next to the cot because he reads so quickly!) and chatting about the books or to other child in the same room who just wants to sleep! I don't really have another place to put our busy chatterbug during quiet time. I'm feeling like this could be a deal-breaker (isn't it reasonable to expect a child to rest during rest time A) so the other children can rest, and B) so I can get some downtime much less housework, etc...?), but want to make it work. WHAT TO DO? :blink: (p.s. we don't have screen time here, so putting him in front of a movie wouldn't work) TIA

Good for you on NO screen time, wish I could say I was the same, we do offer about an hour in the am transition time and an ocassional movie. I'm a pushover!!!:)
for quiet time? he is old enough to understand, "I need you to stay on your mat!" If he can't handle taking one or two books and laying still while looking at them quietly, or can't stay quiet all together? I would look right at him and say "you are not big enough to listen, so you are not big enough to stay up. I need you to put all your books back and role over (facing away from all others) and go to sleep" I would sit right there next to him for the first day or two until he fell asleep and after that he should get in habit of doing it on his own. Sounds to n\me like he was just "pushing" as far as you'd let him. No ups and downs to the bookshelf, pick a few books and lay quiet or go to bed like a little baby. :)

Not to mention, Right Now! is the perfect time to let him know...He is not in charge...YOU are! :)

I agree with Kidlove ... at that age he is perfectly capable of following the simple direction of 'it is time to lay quietly and rest' ....everyone has a quiet time at my house and in 5plus years I have never had a child who 'wont/cant' rest quietly ~ they might TRY once or twice to resist quiet time but they quickly learn it is just easier to rest when everyone else does cause here if you do not rest quietly at REST TIME so that you have energy for the afternoon than when everyone else is up and having fun in the afternoon your option is to 'do quiet restful things' in the book nook and I make sure it is a really great natural consequences cause I make sure I plan something EXTRA FUN for those who rested well that day for them to miss out on ;)

Honestly I have a 16 month old who has been sleeping on a cot since 9 months old cause he has some issues with clausterphobia or something in the pack and play and even at that age he was quick to master that it is quiet time and you need to stay on your cot until I invite you off .... IME children are FAR MORE CAPABLE than we typically give them credit for ;)

I'm with Reggio....he should be able to rest just fine. I don't care if a child is 15 in my care....he's still having quiet time, lol. I need a break from them, they need a break from me and really, they all need a break from each other. It's awesome that you don't have screen time. I'm impressed but not as dedicated as that. We don't watch any television right now, save the odd movie as now I only have babies who all sleep. When I had older children, they had to lay down and watch a movie. Each had his/her own pillow and blanket. 9 times out of 10, they fell asleep part way through the movie just because they were forced to lay still and realize 'hey, maybe I AM tired after all". Right now, your little guy has the option of going to the bookshelf and he's likely to milk that for all the entertainment value it's worth.

If you feel willing to cave on the movie thing, pick the movie a 3 yr old would find the most boring ever. After a couple shots of this, trust me, he'll sleep :) 11 yrs and I've not had a non-sleeper yet.

have to agree with the others. The child must remain quiet..I wouldn't even offer books until he's done whatever amount of time you choose for lying without sound/moving. At 3, I'd say it should be an hour. If after an hour, he is truly unable to sleep, then choose x amount of books to give to him and he must silently look at the books while staying on his mat. If a 3 year old stays quiet for an hour after a busy daycare morning, I'm thinking he'll fall asleep!
Good luck!

We dont' get up till we have rested so having to stay on their cot for another 10-15 mintues or whatever you feel works for your program can sometimes work in the sense that the next day he is reminded about the consequences of not resting when the others do. You may need to use a timer with him as in he must rest for a certain time and the timer restarts every time you have to speak to him about not resting quietly.

Find out from the parents what he did previously as in was he expected to sleep in his other program or at home. At 3 whatever he is used to doing is ingrained now and it will take time to change the routine and him to adapt., However he is old enough to make the change and know that you mean what you say. He may just need less sleep than the others. My own kids never napped in the daytime past about 18 months but they slept 12-14 hours overnight since I didn't have to wake them early in the morning to go to daycare. I loved having that time with just my own kids while daycare kids slept.

that's true. Timers are great. I have a time timer that I use when needed...the red slowly disappears, so they get how much time it's been and how much remains. And each time I have to go speak to them, we restart. They figure out how to be quiet pretty quickly! You can order them from most preschool/school type places....well worth the $$!

I had the same problem with my 4 year old dck. Especially when I had my 5 yr old dck for the summer. Between the both of them they couldn't keep quiet and kept waking up everyone so I put them on separate couches and had them lay so they couldn't face each other. I told them (and still do) that quiet time is for 2 hours and they have to lay quiet for the first hour so they get some rest and if they aren't sleepy after that then they can read a book or watch a movie). I then would sit at the end of the bigger couch and read or go on my laptop so that they wouldn't talk to each other. On days when the 4 yr old is extra fidgety I sit with my hand on his back or leg so he stops moving and 10 minutes later he's sleeping. 9 times out of 10 he always falls asleep and the 5 year old always falls asleep.

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Originally Posted by cfred

....I don't care if a child is 15 in my care....he's still having quiet time, lol. .....

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LMAO ... my stepson had to engage in quiet time until he was old enough to go be ELSEWHERE off the property during quiet time and now even though he is old enough if he is HOME he goes up into his room and plays his DS with the headphones on so QUIET in his room ;)

Yup....my boys are 14 and 16 now and they are banished to whatever room doesn't have kids napping or outside till everyone is up. The wrath of doG is incurred if they dare wake the kids up! No one messes with quiet time. I might actually go insane without it and dealing with unrested children....Plech!

my daughter turned 3 last february and she does not sleep anymore. and sometimes she bothers me and the other kids who wants to sleep. I usually send her up in her room and give her like 5 books to read (max). i give her some coloring pages (5 max). Once she is done, I tell her to read her book to her dolls and show them her coloring pages. Then i click the door.
Some days, I can hear her talking loudly to her doll. POOR dollies!

but she is off my case.

with the boy, maybe you can find something he can do