Sleep training with toddlers is a lot of work but it’s also really rewarding. Toddlers have a higher level of ability to be able to understand the routine, the expectations, and a variety of clear, simple instructions. Over two years old, sleep training with the use of a sleep trainer clock can be really effective. Sleep trainer clocks are helpful with early wakes, bedtime battles and stalling at bedtime. At about the age of two, children can understand what it means when lights go off and on – off is bedtime and on is time to wake up. With sleep trainer clocks, we aren’t using numbers as this is too complex at a young age – instead, we will utilize colours that we attach to clear, simple instructions. For the purpose of this resource, I will use the OOLY sleep trainer clock because it has four colour options which is helpful for the different stages and transitions for getting to bed such as bath, teeth, book, drink, and then bed. These extra colours are really helpful for toddlers that are stalling or fighting at bedtime.
The colours will be used as follows:
Green – time to get up
Yellow – naptime
Orange – last chance to get a drink, cuddle etc for bed
Red – time to sleep
Introducing the clock
Before you buy the clock, talk about it with your toddler and be really animated and excited about this cool, new clock that they’ll have in their room. The more animated and excited we are about something, the more they’ll feel good about it too. The day that you get the clock, show it to your little one and go through what each of the colours means. You can come up with key phrases for each one that you’ll use on repeat with them. The clear, structured, repetition of instructions will help to cement how it works in their brain. Here are some examples:
Green – “When the light turns green, that means it’s time to get up and play.”
Yellow – “When the light turns yellow, that means it’s time for your lunch moe.”
Orange – “The light is orange, that means it’s time to get ready for bed. One minute to have a drink and a cuddle and then get into bed.”
Red – “When the light turns red, that means it’s time for you to go to bed, close your eyes and go to sleep. When the light is red, stay in bed.”
If your child is in a toddler bed, then you can decide with them as to whether you go in to greet them in the morning, or if they can come out to you. You can come up with instructions, phrases, and routines that work best for your family. Role play is also a really effective tool for toddlers. Practice with them during the day by pretending to sleep, race to get a drink before the light changes, and wake up when the light turns green. You can also have them practice showing their toys so that they feel like they have a sense of control – something that toddlers love!
Over two years of age, it’s common for children to develop a fear of the dark. If that’s the case for your little one, then the red light being on all night can also be really helpful for them. Red light is the colour that least disturbs melatonin production (the hormone responsible for sleep) so it won’t trigger your little one to wake overnight.
Now, the hard part. Just because you’ve bought a sleep trainer clock, it doesn’t mean that your little one will magically stay in bed and that all of your sleep problems are solved. We need to pair this with some other key strategies and rewards.
Early wakes
If your toddler has been waking early, say 5 am, then they definitely need more sleep. If 5 am is the wake time, then I want you to set the clock for 5:30 am for the first two days. I know, that sounds crazy, right? However, we need to give them a confidence boost and a reward. We can’t expect a toddler who has been waking early to stay in bed five days in a row with no significant praise or reward. I want you to set it slightly later than they have been waking to give them a chance to succeed, then get them up when the light changes to green, and make a huge fuss of them. You could make them a certificate, have a rewards chart, take them on a trip to the park, or buy them a small toy – whatever works best and is within your budget. After this, move the time forward little by little, say 15 minutes at a time each day until finally they are staying in bed for the full amount of age-appropriate sleep time.
Stalling or fighting at bedtime
There is nothing more exhausting than getting to the end of the day and your toddler having a meltdown or wanting just one more sip of water, one more book, or one more cuddle. Just like with the early wakes suggestion, we want to really praise and reward our toddlers when they do the right thing. You could have a reward chart focussed on going to bed and getting ready for bed quickly. We can’t force our kids to go to sleep, we can only provide the opportunity for this, so have a chat with them about the light being orange – can they be ready before it changes to red? When it’s red, they need to close their eyes, have some quiet time and stay in bed. For some toddlers, the more we pressure them to go to sleep, the more that this will prevent them being able to do so. By reframing it to them closing their eyes, having some quiet time and staying in bed, this can help them to go to sleep more calmly. If your sleep clock doesn’t have four colour options, don’t stress. The most important thing is a colour for wake up time and a colour for sleep time. In terms of transition time and getting ready for bed, you can say, “you have one minute to get ready for bed once it turns red (or whatever bedtime colour you use).
