Children under the age of 5 often exhibit different napping patterns when attending childcare compared to when they are at home. According to research, older children tend to nap more in childcare settings, while younger ones nap less.
George Normore at the University of Queensland in Brisbane noted that children's sleep needs gradually decline as they develop from babies to toddlers to preschoolers, moving from multiple naps per day to a single nap, and eventually to none. However, he stated that each child progresses through these stages at different rates.
Normore and his colleagues investigated whether the common practice of scheduling a single nap in the middle of the day—where all children are encouraged to sleep regardless of desire—conflicts with individual sleep needs. The team analyzed data from a study involving 188 children aged 1 to 4.5 in Brisbane who attended childcare. Parents filled out monthly surveys regarding how many naps their children had on childcare and non-childcare days in the previous week.
The data showed that between the ages of 2.2 and 4.3, children usually napped as often at childcare as they did on non-childcare days. However, children younger than 2.2 years tended to nap less often at childcare, while those older than 4.3 years napped more often at childcare.
Normore suggested that younger children might nap less at childcare because they prefer two or more naps at home but only have the opportunity for one at the center. Conversely, he said older children may nap more because they have naturally outgrown daytime naps at home but are still encouraged to sleep at childcare.
Separate research by Karen Thorpe at the University of Queensland found that parents and childcare staff often disagree on nap frequency. Some parents do not want their children to nap at childcare because it pushes back their nighttime sleep. However, a set sleep time allows staff to complete tasks and provides a quiet environment for children who do want to sleep. Childcare staff told researchers that some children who no longer nap at home still benefit from sleeping at childcare because it is a more tiring environment.
