Tips For Siblings Sharing Room

I am frequently asked when is a good time for two children to start sharing a room.

Here are my top tips:

1. Wait until your older child can understand the ‘sleep rules’ -

   I recommend, where possible, waiting until the oldest sibling can understand the rules (generally three or four years plus). This is important to minimise the risk of them waking the younger sibling, but also from a safety perspective so that your older child does not place anything in a younger child’s cot that may prove a hazard to them.

2. Wait until both are sleeping through the night –

   With the exception of twins, I recommend where possible waiting until sleep is settled for both children and ideally, they are both sleeping through the night. This will help minimise disruption to the other sibling.

3. Introduce white noise –

   One of the key benefits of white noise is that it helps to block out environmental noises. I recommend placing the white noise machine between your two children (always 1 meter away from a child and volume should no louder than the hum of a dishwasher).

   White noise should be left on for the full duration of a child sleeping.

4. Stagger bedtimes –

   Stagger bedtimes and where possible, have the youngest go to bed first and wait until they are asleep for 15 to 30 minutes ideally (in a deep sleep), before the second sibling goes to bed. This again, should minimise disruption to the younger sibling and generally however not always the older sibling is less likely to wake baby. Again, this is why it is important to wait until the older sibling can understand the sleep rules.

   Best of luck with the room move for your children and remember working with me can help you prepare for the room move by helping to get sleep settled first.

Colette