Normal Toddler Sleep: One to Two Years
Understanding normal toddler sleep from 1-2 years old.
At one year old, your baby is no longer considered an infant but a toddler. In our article Normal Infant Sleep: Six Months to One Year, we spoke about normal infant sleep and what to expect from six months to one year old. Here, we’ll look at what you can expect from your baby’s sleep from one year up to two years old. Remember, this is just a general guide. It’s important to know that every child is different and there’s a wide range of what’s ‘normal’ when it comes to babies – especially in terms of sleep!
WHAT’S NORMAL
Between 1-2 years old, most toddlers need between 12-14 hours of sleep over a 24 hour period. There are two sleep regressions over this next year (remember: these are actually a progression in their development) plus more teething to happen, so while some children are able to sleep through the night at this age, nighttime can continue to come with its fair share of disruptions.
DAY NAPS
At around 15-18 months, your toddler may start showing signs of dropping one of their naps; it’s usually the one in the morning but could be the one in the afternoon, depending on your child’s schedule. You can keep offering the nap until they refuse it for five days or so, then you can move to one longer nap around lunchtime. This stage of dropping to one nap is a transition for your child so they may need an earlier bedtime while they get used to going from two naps per day to one.
12-MONTH SLEEP REGRESSION
During this regression, you can expect a refusal to nap and frequent night wakes. Even though your toddler may be rejecting one of their naps, they probably aren’t ready to drop it entirely until they are closer to 15-18 months old.
18-MONTH SLEEP REGRESSION
This age is a peak time for language development (and probably some teething) which can often coincide with your toddler protesting sleep during the day and at night. If they’re on one nap, they may refuse to have a day nap altogether during this regression but it will be temporary. Most children aren’t ready to stop napping until closer to age three or even later.
