How do I teach my son to wake up in the morning?

Question

My son is ten years old and the hardest thing for him is waking up in the morning. I tap him, call his name which turns into yelling his name. I tried the alarm clock and telling him the night before when he hears the sound that means it is time to wake up. What do I do with this heavy sleeper? How do I teach him to wake up in the morning and oh, it doesnt matter what time I put him to bed.

Answer 1

My brother has the same problem.  I turn on his lights and open the door and blinds.  I also have his dog, Mackenzie, come in and jump on him and wake him up.  Works almost every time.

Answer 2

If your having such a hard time waking up your son in the morning, it sounds as if he may not be going to be early enough at night.  If he is going to bed any time after 9 pm, he isn't getting enough sleep.  I would first look at WHAT time he goes to sleep and then alter that.  If you still have a hard time getting him up then tell him that he will have to go to bed earlier each night until he is able to get up in the morning when you wake him.  At 10 he really should be getting himself up...not relying on his mom to wake him.

Answer 3

if i were you, i will have an agreement to my son that whenever he wakes up in the morning in the right time he will receive a reward later..  and that's all..  so that he will take the challenge but be sure don't spoil your son because it will be worsen(^_^)

          hope you will do my advice!..  c:           GooD luck!!

Answer 4

First thing first...is this a new situation or has he always been like this?  If this is something new, there are a few things to look at.  My first question would be...as soon as he goes to bed is he going to sleep right away (or within a decent amount of time..say 30 minutes) or is he tossing and turning til past midnight?  If he goes to sleep easily, is he staying asleep all night or does he wake frequently?  If he is going to sleep easily, sleeping soundly all night and still hard to wake and tired the next day, then it is clear he needs more sleep.  What is enough for most may not be enough for him.  Make 900 his norm, 830 is he is overly tired.  See if that helps.  If he falls asleep easily and wakes frequently, there are a few things to consider.  One is caffiene...if he is drinking soda or eating sugar or chocolate after 700ish,that may be interferring with his ability to fall or stay asleep.  Look at his surroundings...is his bed in good shape and comfortable, can he hear a lot of street noise or has some new noise been added in recently?  Is his room dark enough?  If all that seems to be fine, it may be time to look for medical causes.  Kids can have sleep apnea just like adults.  Does your son still have his tonsils and adenoids?  Even if he hasn't had strep issues, if he has enlarged tonsils or adenoids, these can block his airway, making him snore badly and wake up frequently.  If he is a heavy snorer, I would suggest talking to he pediatrician or ENT just to be sure that isn't part of the problem.  And of course there can be the mental and emotional issues.  We all know stress and worry make it tough for us to sleep as adults.  If there are issues going on in his life that are making him scared, stressed or depressed, I have no doubt his sleep is being affected..time to talk with him to find out what is going on in his head when he lies down at night.

So you've checked all of this and none of it applies..he simply has a tough time getting up.  It may be time to change how he goes to sleep.  First, establish a set bedtime routine.  At a certain time, he showers.  He can then watch TV or play a video game for a bit.  The last half an hour before lights out should be about quiet activities...reading, listening to music at a reasonable volume, journaling, drawing, etc.  Our kids today are so locked into visual stimulation that it can be hard to just switch off the receptors..they need time to relax.  Be sure his room is comfortable...dark enough (black out curtains can be a huge help if your child needs total darkeness) or with  night light it needed.  Some kids get hot even in the middle of winter, so instead of heavy blankets give them a sheet and one or two lighter blankets and keep a small fan in the room ...the movement of the air can be comforting to some.  Lights go out at the same time every night...and that means handheld games put away, no reading under the covers or covert texting!  If your son responds well to sensory input, you can consider an inexspensive sound machine or if he is easily distracted by sounds from outside his room, purchase a white noise machine and set it up outside his door.

So you've done all this and he is sleeping well, soundly and the right amount of time but still no luck getting him up.  First, bring in two alarm clocks.  The first can be a radio clock near his bed.  If he turns it off and rolls over, the second clock will come into play.  This one needs to be loud and should be placed at a distance where he is going to have to get out of bed to turn it off.  If he still hasn't surfaced at that point, you go into the room, open the curtains and pull off the covers.  Get him up and moving.  Now the goal is to get him willing to do all this on his own.  The best way to help kids learn anything is with positive reinforcement..and with older kids that often means some sort of reward.  So put up a chart...he can earn points...5 if he gets up with the first alarm, 3 if he gets up with the second and -2 if you have to wake him up (we all face consequences when we don't do what we are supposed to).  Then come up with a list of rewards you know he is going to want...15 points can get a song download, 25 points can get a videogame rental, 40 points earns a sleep over with a friend and pizza for dinner for example.  You may want to come up with some smaller rewards as well, at least at first.  Keep track of what he earns, being sure to point out when he looses points because you have had to wake him rather than his doing it on his own.  My bet is, once he earns the first reward or two, getting up will become second nature and you can then start either dramatically increasing the points needed to get the rewards or start decreasing the program until you no longer use it.  Good luck!

Answer 5

Try turning on some music, opening the curtains to let the sun shine bright in his room each morning, hey if all else fails spray some water on him! *lol* jk

Answer 6

I didn't learn till I was in college. My mom had to come and take the sheets off of me everymorning. She even left me a few times and then punished me for not going to school  ( I was a teen) still did not work. I stil hate mornings but i have no choice if i want my pay check