Free guide
An ADHD bedtime routine your child can see
Bedtime comes when everyone has the least patience left. A child with ADHD is being asked to stop something fun, switch gears, and remember a string of steps, all while tired. Repeating instructions louder rarely helps. A visible sequence does.
What makes bedtime easier
Same steps, same order. The order does the remembering so you don’t have to.
A warning before the switch. “Ten minutes, then we start bedtime” lands better than “Bed. Now.”
Something to point at. When you can point to the chart, the chart is the one saying what comes next. That takes some heat out of it.
A sample sequence
Post it in the bathroom or the bedroom. Change the steps to fit your house.
- Ten-minute warning
- Screens off, devices on the charger outside the bedroom
- Bath or wash up
- Pajamas
- Teeth
- Tomorrow’s clothes out
- One book or quiet time
- Lights out
Small things that help
- Start earlier than you think you need to. Rushed is harder than slow.
- Let your child check off or point to each step. Doing it themselves is the point.
- Keep the last step the same every night. A steady ending is a signal the day is over.
The late-night version
Some nights you get home at 8:45. Decide in advance what still counts:
Pajamas. Teeth. Bed.
That is a complete bedtime. You are not behind.
A note on sleep itself
A routine helps with the steps before bed. If your child regularly cannot fall asleep or stay asleep, bring it up with your pediatrician. That is a separate question from the routine.
Want it ready to print?
The Bedtime Routine System is a printable wind-down sequence with one repeatable path to bed.
See the Bedtime Routine System