New research has discovered that a few more minutes of shut-eye can improve their elementary school grades!
Researchers at McGill University and the Douglas Mental Health University Institute created a sleep education program which was to be used in three elementary schools and focusing on the use of age-appropriate methods to teach healthy sleep habits and hygiene.
One of the methods included first and second graders being shown a video about a boy who sleeps in an overly stimulating room and as such does not sleep as well as he should. As part of the research, some 71 students between the ages of seven and 11 took part in weekly two-hour interactive classes which lasted six weeks.
When they got home their parents helped to measure the kids’ sleep by placing a special monitor on their kid’s non-dominant wrist before bedtime, every night for four weeknights. The parents also provided the researchers with their children’s report cards at the beginning and end of the program.
When the study ended it was discovered that the kids slept, on average, 18.2 minutes longer a night than they did before taking part in the program. And overall they slept 2.3 percent better – and the best part of this was that a significant improvement in mathematics and English grades were noted.
So it appears that better sleep habits equal better school grades!