Sample bedtime policies

We offer these in hopes that they’ll help you plan ahead.

Examples of (actual) policies that are too vague:

• John and I are going to check in with each other every night.
• I will go to bed when I’m tired.
  
• I’ll resist the urge to stay up after I’m sleepy.
  

Suggested possibilities for you to adapt:

• “At midnight, if I haven’t gone to bed already, I will take 10 minutes to be alone, sit still, take deep breaths, check in with how my body feels, consider what I want to do tomorrow and what I want to get out of the camp week. Based on all that, I will decide what time to be in bed, and I will stick to that choice.”
  
• “I will go to bed by 1 a.m. every night, earlier if I’m feeling sick, except the last night. And, I won’t start new activities and invite other people into them after midnight.”
  
•  “I will be spontaneous about how late to stay up, but I will take a nap every day after lunch.”
  
•  “I will get at least 8 hours of sleep in each 24 hour period.”
  

Actual, successful policies from previous camps (names changed):

• I will get at least 7 hours of sleep in each 24 hour period.
  
• I will be in bed before 2 a.m. every night except for the last one.
  
• I will set my watch alarm for 12:20, and be in bed 20 minutes after that.
  
• I’ll lay my pajamas out on my bed after dinner. I will brush my teeth and wash my face at 11:30, and then talk with Bill every half hour after that about how I’m feeling. As soon as I’m tired, I’ll go straight to bed.
  
• I will plan on going to bed by 2 a.m. every night. If and when I don’t make that goal, I will lay down the next afternoon and try to sleep.
  
• At midnight I will take a moment to think about how much longer I should stay awake and how I am feeling. If I feel tired, the next day I will take a nap. I will get 6 hours of sleep within each 24 hours.
  
• I, Jeanette, will be in bed every night while I’m here by 12:30 a.m. at the very latest.
  

One of Grace's recent policies:

I will get at least 16 hours of sleep every 2 days. That way I can stay up late sometimes because I’ll make up for it the next day by napping or going to bed early. I wish I could get by with less sleep like some people can, but at camp I do seem to need a lot of sleep in order to stay happy, friendly, and healthy.

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