Five Great Sleep Apps for Kids

If you have a kid that just won’t sleep, this is the article for you!  First thing is first: you’re not alone! Ask any parent out there, we have ALL struggled with sleep (either for ourselves or our little ones) at some point or another.  Luckily, we live in an era of smartness, which means – you guessed it – “there’s an app for that!” Here, you’ll find some of the best sleep and meditation apps available today, geared specifically towards kids.  These apps do everything from whispering stories to whooshing waterfall sounds to whisking your kiddo (or baby!) off to a dreamy state so you all can get better sleep.

Apps to Help Your Children Get Better Sleep

1.) Headspace For Kids:  This is by far my favorite app of the bunch, and the one I always use as my “go-to”.  In this app you’ll choose from five areas: calm, focus, kindness, sleep and wake up. Click on the category of your choice, and sit back as Buddhist monk Andy Puddicombe walks your child through exercises to become more mentally mindful and calm.  This app is particularly good for kids up to age 12, and the meditations change based on individual customization. (Pro tip: they have a headspace for grownups, too!)

2.) Nature Sound: If your child prefers sound to meditation, put this app at the top of your list.  This app provides hundreds of unique sounds, including different types of rain, jungle noise, city life, white noise and instruments.  Take things one step further and mix and match your favorites; for example, try pairing “rain on the window” with “piano”.

3.) Sleep Baby: This app is easy to use and about as straightforward as it gets!  Simply click on the image of your choice – fan, hairdryer, vacuum cleaner, clothes dryer, running water or womb sounds – to help your baby go to sleep and stay asleep longer.  There’s also a timer feature so you can preset the amount of time you want the app to play sound (just an hour? All night? Your choice!).

4.) Sleep Hero: This app is super cool and has a slew of features that others don’t.  For starters, it’s noise activated, meaning it listens for your baby or child to make a sound and responds accordingly with music, sounds or nursery rhymes.  You can choose from a number of preloaded sounds, or record your own. This app was created by the father of a 3 year old and a 1 year old, and is intended to help everyone get a good night’s sleep!

5.) Baby Shush:  Most babies LOVE to be “shushed”.  The problem is that most parents cannot “shush” as long as their kiddos need them too!  Save your breath and download this app instead (your lungs will thank you). Record yourself “shushing” and set an adjustable timer and watch your little get sleepier and sleepier.

Sweet Dreams!