It’s always so exciting when your little one is ready for their next big step – crawling, walking, saying their first two-syllable words, stringing sentences together, ditching the diapers – and (gasp!) moving up to their toddler or ‘big kid’ bed. Sometimes these giant leaps in their development can cause disruptions in other areas of their little lives, namely sleep. Well, sit tight, and read on: here is how you move your toddler to a bed.

So, what are the ‘in’s and ‘out’s of doing so? How do you manage this transition with the least disruption possible? 

The 4 ‘W’s of moving your toddler to their bed.

When to move your toddler

Every family and toddler is obviously unique, so the when of this move will be different for everyone. However, the minimum age that I recommend considering making this move is 2 –preferably, much closer to 2.5-3 years old. That’s because we want to prioritize their developmental readiness for this change, their maturity, and their ability to control their impulses (just a little bit – I mean, they’re toddlers after all!). Ensuring that they’re truly at that sweet spot developmental stage will help you to have a successful transition.

Another time you want to consider making this move is if your toddler has outgrown their crib (they’re approaching or taller than about 3 feet) or there’s a safety concern, i.e. your toddler is climbing out of their crib. Before throwing up your hands and deciding it’s time, though, make sure that you’ve done two things first: 1) you’ve lowered their crib all the way to its lowest setting (sounds simple, but it’s one of those things that sleep-deprived parents can easily forget to do!); and 2) you’ve switched to sleep sacks. Sleep sacks help to contain your toddler’s legs and feet to provide just a little bit of resistance to hopefully prevent the attempt to scale their crib.

Additionally, if you have one of those cribs where one side is higher than the other (see picture below), you can turn the crib around so the lower side is against the wall – making it more difficult for your toddler to climb out.

Don’t Forget: One Thing At A Time

Finally, try to avoid making this move at the same time as any other big change in their little lives, e.g. moving to a new daycare or care provider; moving to a new house; or, when a new baby is arriving. And on that point – try your best to avoid moving your toddler into their bed simply because you need to free up the crib for a new baby. Borrow or buy a new crib, and focus on keeping your toddler in their crib until they’re developmentally ready to move out of it.

What bed

What sleep surface should you consider moving your toddler to? You have a few options here.

Keep in mind that a toddler bed mattress is usually the same size as a crib mattress. If your toddler still technically fits in their crib, a toddler bed is a perfectly acceptable option. Toddler beds often come in fun shapes and colours too, so this might just provide that little bit of enticement for sleeping in their bed that you need.

However, lots of families choose to move their toddlers straight into an adult bed (think twin, double or even queen sized!), so that they can avoid making the transition twice – first when their toddler moves to their toddler bed, and second when they grow out of that toddler bed. Your little one may look tiny in their adult bed, but trust me when I say that they will grow into it faster than you can imagine!
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There is a third option, which is simply a mattress on the floor. This is a great option for toddlers on the younger side, or for families who are following a Montessori lifestyle. And, as long as you’ve covered all the toddler proofing tips below, you’ll be good to go regardless of the sleep surface your family chooses.

Where to move your toddler

As with any plan to improve your little one’s sleep, I always keep safe sleeping at the very top of my priority list. In my opinion, the most important consideration in this switch is to make sure to toddler-proof your little one’s bedroom. They are no longer contained by the bars of their crib, so you must now think about their entire bedroom as their crib.

Make sure you’ve done the following:

• Their bed is as low to the ground as possible
• Their mattress is tightly fitting into the bed frame so there are no gaps they can fall into
• Their bed is at least 12 inches away from the wall on all sides
• Their bed has a side rail to prevent falls
• You’ve covered all outlets
• Windows and sliding doors have child-proof locks on them
• Furniture is tethered to the walls
• Choking hazards or other harmful items are out of the way
• Blind or shade cords are eliminated (they are a strangulation hazard)
• I also highly recommend a child gate at their bedroom door and at the top of any stairs they might have access to – a very important safety measure

How 

Okay, so this isn’t a ‘W’ question, but it is the one that causes parents the most worry before they make this switch. This is about setting up realistic expectations for this change, and having some coping mechanisms in place that make sense for your family.

First, ask yourself this question. How does your toddler normally handle change? Although we can’t predict the future, this is going to give you some good clues into how they’re going to handle this change.

Second, if they’re at a developmentally appropriate age for this change, it will help you greatly to talk to your toddler about this upcoming transition. You can say something like, “Wow, you’re so big, you’re growing out of your crib and need to go into a bed now. I’m so excited for you! You’ll be so cozy and comfy in there.” Keep this in balance, though – not too much playing this up, or you may cause more anxiety.

Remember that this should be a change that’s happening with them, not to them. So, you’ll want to involve them in the preparations. For example, plan a special shopping trip to pick out a junior pillow or a fun and colourful comforter. Don’t forget to let them bring their favourite “lovey” with them to their new bed, or make a big deal out of having them choose someone really special if they’re not already attached to one.

I also recommend planning a ‘big reveal’ rather than having them watch their crib being broken down and leaving the room (avoid this at all costs – trust me). You can plan a special small celebration, in whatever way you would normally celebrate together as a family.

Don’t Forget Good Sleep Habits

Throughout all of this, don’t forget to keep up all your good sleep habits – your solid, consistent bedtime routine; your perfectly sleep-conducive bedroom environment (dark, cool, calm and quiet with continuous white noise running); and, make sure they’re well rested on the day you make this transition if they’re still taking a nap. If they’re transitioning out of a nap, pull bedtime back earlier on those non-nap days. You don’t want to put an overtired toddler into bed on the best of days – so, avoid putting them down overtired when you’re asking them to stay in their big kid bed all night long.

Even with the best preparation and good sleep habits, there is a possibility that your toddler will get itchy feet and pop out of bed – possibly multiple times, over and over again. The best approach you can take is to calmly, wordlessly, quietly and gently keep walking them back into bed. Fair warning: you might be doing this a lot at first.

In the morning, if you’ve had success (however you’ve defined that), give them lots of praise if they’ve made steps toward staying in their bed until the family is ready to get up in the morning. Some parents also choose to use a reward system. For example, “If you’ve stayed in your bed all night, you get to put a sticker on a sticker chart and once you’ve collected 10 stickers you’ll get a great reward!” This reward doesn’t have to be elaborate or expensive. But it does have to be motivating.

Be Patient and Consistent

This transition can take a couple of weeks. So, commit to giving it time, patience and consistency and you’ll get there. If, however, it’s taking a while and/or things seem to be getting worse rather than better, take a pause and review their independent sleep skills. Are they able to fall asleep on their own at bedtime so they know how to put themselves back to sleep if they stir between sleep-wake cycles overnight? If not, their independent sleep skills could probably use some tuning up. Even if you’ve never taught them these skills before, it’s never too late!

The great thing about methods that really work for this age group is that they’re naturally very gentle and involve lots of parental presence (that’s you in their room!) and comfort. In my opinion, it’s only fair to use methods like this with this transition, when a toddler can have increased anxiety about being left to their own devices in this big ol’ bed.

Happy toddler sleeping, parents!