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4.5: Sleep

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    Sleep in Early Childhood 

    During early childhood, there is wide variation in the number of hours of sleep recommended per day. For example, two-year-olds may still need 15-16 hours per day, while a six-year-old may only need 7-8 hours. The National Sleep Foundation's 2015 recommendations based on age are listed in Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\).

    National Sleep Foundation recommended sleep durations.
    Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\): National Sleep Foundation recommendations for daily sleep duration across the lifespan. Recommended sleep generally decreases with age, from 14–17 hours for newborns to 7–8 hours for older adults. (CC BY-SA 4.0; via Wikimedia Commons).

    Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\) is a chart that presents the National Sleep Foundation’s recommended daily sleep durations for different age groups. The vertical axis shows hours of sleep per day, and the horizontal axis lists age categories from newborns through older adults.

    The chart uses three visual categories:

    • dark blue bars show the recommended sleep range
    • light blue bars show sleep ranges that may be appropriate for some individuals
    • tan areas show sleep durations that are not recommended

    Recommended Sleep by Age Group:

    • Newborns (0 to 3 months): 14 to 17 hours per day
    • Infants (4 to 11 months): 12 to 15 hours per day
    • Toddlers (1 to 2 years): 11 to 14 hours per day
    • Preschoolers (3 to 5 years): 10 to 13 hours per day
    • School-age children (6 to 13 years): 9 to 11 hours per day
    • Teenagers (14 to 17 years): 8 to 10 hours per day
    • Young adults (18 to 25 years): 7 to 9 hours per day
    • Adults (26 to 64 years): 7 to 9 hours per day
    • Older adults (65 years and older): 7 to 8 hours per day

    The chart shows a general developmental trend: sleep requirements decrease from infancy through adulthood. In early childhood, the chart emphasizes that:

    • toddlers typically need 11 to 14 hours of sleep each day
    • preschool-age children typically need 10 to 13 hours of sleep each day

    These amounts support healthy growth and development.


    This page titled 4.5: Sleep was last modified on Thu, 10 Sep 2026 22:27:54 GMT and is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Martha Lally & Suzanne Valentine-French via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform.