What time is a good bedtime for children under 12?

My son is 8. He goes to bed at 9pm on school nights. He usually is not asleep until around 9:30 though. He seems to be getting enough sleep, so I have left it there. He knows that if he starts acting like it is not enough for him it is going to be changed to 8pm though.

My bedtime growing up was 8:00pm until sometime around age 10, I think. At some point it moved up to 9:00pm then 10:00pm but I don't know when I'm sure I was getting close to being a senior before I got to stay up until 10. Unfortunately, this set a pattern for me to think as I got older bedtime could be later. At one point, I was treating midnight as go to bed time. I've moved it back to 10. :) I needed more sleep than that. As to a young kid, I think 8 is a fine time.

My brother has 2 boys, 8 and 9 years old. He has them in bed by 7:30 every night, weekends included. He also has them up by 4:30 or 5 AM every day, so they can practice piano for an hour each before they go to school. Personally, I think the boys will begin to rebel at this bedtime real soon. My brother is very strict with the boys. When my son was little he pretty much went to bed around 8 PM, unless he had an evening activity. He started playing hockey at the age of 4 and played/practiced 3 or 4 times a week, so he was tired every night. He was in bed by 9:30 (note exceptions above) every night until his junior year in high school. Then he decided his own bedtime, which was almost always before 10 PM any how. CHildren under 12 should be going to bed no later then 9 PM.

my son goes to bed by 8 the latest. he has to get up for school at 6:45 so that gives him almost 11 hours of sleep.

Hello dear ersmommy. I think that a small kid needs to have a sleep of at twelve hours a day from eight in the evening to eight in the morning to make sure that they have enough sleep during the early age. But as time goes on, fewer hours may need.

Well 8pm is the normal time most use. And since that is when prime time starts on tv, you are sure they won't be watching any of that crap. Plus, they have to get up pretty early themselves. I had to get mine up a 6am to get them both ready, drop them both at different schools and get to work by 8. So 10 hours isn't that much for kids. As adults we only go 8 hours sleep so there really isn't hat much a difference, other than the kids are growing and need a little more until they learn how and have the ablitlity to do with less sleep time.

Well, when my sister is here staying with me on a school might and she is 6 I try to have her in bed by nine. The older ones over 12 atleast by 10. They need there sleep I know but trying to get one in bed on time seems almost a chore sometimes, they are always something else they gotta do or need or just one more minute that usually turns into 5 or more..lol Just as much job getting up as getting them in bed..always one more minute which gain is usually more like 5-10 So I have learned start waking them up 15 minutes ahead of time just ot get them out the door in time.

I would have to say 9:00 or 9:30. I always sheduled my daughters bed time as to how tired she was the day before while trying to get her up for school. It also depended on if she had enough rest the day before. I also made her get enough rest if she had a test the next day or had some little chores to be done when she got home from school too. My daugher was very hard to get out of the bed at times. she needed alot of sleep or she was grouchy and not mobile at all.

My son is 11. His bedtime during the week is set at 9p and on the weekends at 11. If their is a holiday for a week or more, I let him stay up to 12:30, or at least I let him think he's staying up that late. Nine times out of 10, he is asleep well before the time he is allotted. LOL.

Our kids all go to bed at 9:00 on school days. 8:30 would be fine though. But because of my husband's work schedule we eat late, and I feal they need a little time to play or what ever before bed.