ABSTRACT
Inform parents that yet another opportunity for building a warm, supportive relationship with their child comes nightly, with bedtime rituals. All families should have some sort of structured nighttime routine. Children should know what time they are supposed to go to bed and what rituals precede bedtime. For younger children, Bedtime Special Time is story time. It involves five minutes of sitting with your child at bedside and reading or telling a story. It can include "the story of your life" (about either the parent or the child) or "the story of the lives of your grandparents," or it can include reading childhood favorites. For children over twelve, Bedtime Special Time can be a five-to ten-minute "checkin" about how the day went and what's on the agenda for the following day.
