If you’re the parent of a toddler, you’re probably wondering when toddlers stop napping and when to drop the afternoon nap. If your toddler is refusing to nap, it might be time to introduce quiet time to your toddler.

In this post, you’ll learn how to know exactly when your toddler is ready to stop napping and how to implement quiet time instead. For some families, the end of the nap means increased freedom, and for others, the loss of a midday break can be a challenging adjustment. No matter which camp you fall into, introducing quiet time is an excellent next step when naps are done.

When do toddlers stop taking naps?

I love my kiddos dearly, but I also love it when they nap and I have a few moments to myself. Some days I feel like a machine during nap time. I’m getting things checked off my to do list left, right, and centre, I’m getting meals prepped or cleaning and organizing the house. And other days, I binge watch a show, read my book, or work on the NYT crossword puzzle while I enjoy a leisurely lunch.

Either way, nap time is something I look forward to every day. And when my oldest showed signs of being ready to drop his nap, I have to admit that I was devastated. I just couldn't fathom how I would carve out any moments to myself during the day, and I found the prospect of being “on” all day long incredibly overwhelming.

Here’s where quiet time can be a lifesaver. Even though your toddler is ready to stop napping, it doesn’t have to mean zero opportunity for downtime in your day. Done right, quiet time can be an excellent replacement for that last nap, and an enjoyable time for both you and your toddler.

Most toddlers are ready to stop napping somewhere between the ages of 2.5-4 years old. It’s important to note I said most toddlers, not all toddlers.

If you’ve made it to the toddler stage, you’ll know by now that every baby, every toddler, and every parent is different. Some toddlers are ready to drop their nap much earlier than others, and others are still happily napping well past the point when others have moved on to quiet time.

During this period of time, overall sleep needs decrease, which means your little one will need a little less sleep in a 24 hour period (that includes nights and naps). Some families choose to cap or drop the nap and move bedtime a little earlier while their kiddos adjust, and others opt to keep the nap and go for a slightly later bedtime.

When should toddlers stop napping?

When my oldest started daycare at 18 months, his naps changed. He didn’t sleep well at daycare, and most days were a short nap or no nap at all. We put it down to the big transition of starting daycare and the change in sleep environment. We thought he’d settle into new routines with time.

That didn’t happen. We kept up with naps at home on the weekends for quite a long time, but daycare naps were hit and miss (mostly miss) from the start. And after a lot of consideration, we decided to drop the nap completely when he was about 2 years old.

Even though we know most toddlers are ready to stop napping somewhere between the ages of 2.5 and 4 years old, it can be tricky to know exactly when to stop trying to make the nap work and introduce quiet time in its place.

Signs your toddler is ready to stop napping

Although there’s a wide age range for when kids are ready to drop their last nap, there are some very clear signs your toddler will give you when it's time.

It’s completely normal and expected for toddlers to push boundaries (around sleep and everything else). If one of the signs listed below happens once or twice, don’t immediately jump to the conclusion that it’s time to drop the nap.

If your toddler is generally a good sleeper, and you’ve noticed one or more of the following signs happening consistently (4-5 times a week over a 2 week period), then it’s most likely time to drop the last nap and introduce quiet time.

Your toddler is fighting bedtime.
If a previously peaceful bedtime routine suddenly becomes a battle, it can be an indication that it’s time to drop the nap. This might look like boundary pushing, protest of the regular steps in your routine, or refusal to even get started with bedtime. This often happens because toddlers who’ve had too much daytime sleep simply aren’t tired at bedtime.
Your toddler wakes up too early.
If your little one is usually awake at 6am, and that suddenly changes to 5am, it might be time to think about transitioning to quiet time. When overall sleep needs decrease, but naps stay the same length, you’ll notice a change in the amount of nighttime sleep, and this often shows up as early morning wakings.
Your toddler takes a long time to fall asleep at naptime or bedtime.
When kiddos are well rested and have mastered independent sleep skills, it typically takes about 5-15 minutes to fall asleep at naptime or bedtime. If your toddler is suddenly taking much longer to fall asleep (this might be 30 minutes or 2 hours), then it might be time to think about dropping the nap. If your babe is getting more sleep than necessary during the day, he just won’t be ready for sleep at his regular bedtime.
Your toddler refuses to nap.
If naps have been easy and successful for your toddler and all of a sudden they start to become a battle or just aren't happening at all, it might be a sign to move to quiet time. When your child needs less sleep overall, she might struggle to get to sleep at naptime because she’s simply no longer tired at that time of day.

How to drop the nap

As parents, we all know what it feels like to suddenly be operating on less sleep than normal. This was my biggest worry about becoming a first-time mom. Sleep is the one thing I struggle to do without, and those first few months were tough.

I found the smallest of challenges overwhelming, I would melt down at the tiniest bump in the road, and I was cranky and emotional. And until my body adjusted to the change in the amount of sleep, it was a struggle.

Dropping the last nap is a huge transition for your toddler and a big change in overall sleep. For many toddlers, you’ll see some of those same changes: big emotions, frustration, and low patience. Follow the steps below to help you transition from naptime to quiet time with ease.

Give it time
Any time your babe moves through a nap transition, you can expect it to take up to 4-6 weeks before she’s fully adjusted to the change in sleep. Be prepared to be a bit more flexible with bedtime and bit more patient with your toddler.
Give yourself (and your toddler) grace
Dropping the last nap is the biggest nap transition for your toddler. He’s moving from being awake for a 5-6 hour stretch to an 11-12 hour stretch, and that’s a huge adjustment for a little brain and body. Be kind to yourself and your little one during this period of time and expect that he’ll probably need some extra support and TLC.
Move bedtime earlier
While your toddler is dropping the nap and moving to quiet time, you’ll most likely need to shift bedtime a little earlier. You may need to put your little one to bed up to an hour earlier than normal. This doesn’t mean she’ll be awake at 5am, it just makes the adjustment a little easier.
Replace the nap with quiet time
Even though your toddler no longer needs sleep during the day, most toddlers benefit hugely from a rest period during the day so their brains and bodies can have a bit of a break. Setting up quiet time in place of naptime is the perfect opportunity for both you and your toddler to have some much needed downtime.
If your toddler falls asleep at quiet time, wake him gently after approximately 30 minutes.
As I’ve mentioned, dropping the nap is a huge shift in sleep for your babe. There’s a chance he might unintentionally nod off at quiet time, especially during the first few weeks of the transition. If this happens, let him sleep for about 30 minutes, and wake him gently so that he’ll be ready for sleep at bedtime.

Quiet time for toddlers

I was devastated when my oldest was ready to drop his nap. I thought that meant the end of that midday break for both of us, and I was worried the whole day without any downtime would be overwhelming.

I can honestly say that after taking the time to properly put quiet time in place, my worries melted away, and I discovered that some days I actually preferred quiet time to nap time. We both still had that much-needed break during the day, he was gaining independence and confidence, and the time we set aside for quiet time was much more flexible than the nap had been.

Quiet time could easily be shifted earlier or later in the day, depending on what we were doing. Quiet time could be done anywhere, without having to lug a playpen, sheets, sleep sack, monitor, and white noise machine. Quiet time could be done on the road, in the car, at the cottage, or even at the beach. When our youngest babe arrived, quiet time could easily coincide with his naptime. Quiet time was the new and improved nap time.

That said, most toddlers will benefit from some support to transition from nap time to quiet time, and most parents will benefit from having some sort of structure for quiet time. Quiet time won’t look the same for every family or every toddler, but using the checklist below will help you set up a successful quiet time for your child.

Consider how you want quiet time to work before introducing it to your toddler

Think about what you want quiet time to look like in your home. Do you want it to last a certain amount of time each day? Do you want it to happen in a specific place? Do you only want your child to do certain activities during that time? If you have a partner, taking some time to discuss these questions and make a plan together so that you’re both on the same page is a great way to get started.

Set boundaries with your toddler

Once you’ve decided on how you want quiet time to work, share that information with your toddler. Explain your expectations, set some safe, firm boundaries, and do a practice run together so he knows exactly what to expect. The important part is to then stick to those boundaries you’ve set once quiet time begins.

Use a toddler clock

A toddler clock, also known as a sleep to wake clock, is an excellent tool at this age and can be used for bedtime and quiet time. Set your toddler clock so that your little one will be able to know independently exactly when quiet time starts and ends. Not having to rely on an adult for this will help alleviate the constant queries of “is it time yet?”, and allow your little one to grow his confidence.

Stick to a specified area

Choosing an area of your home where you’d like quiet time to happen takes the guesswork out of making that decision on the daily and helps your toddler feel secure in new routines. In our home, quiet time was originally done in the crib, and later in the kitchen when he was a bit older.

Choose specific toys, books, or activities to use during quiet time

Think carefully about what activities your toddler is interested in, able to do independently, and are easily set out and cleaned up. Craft activities might be frustrating for a younger toddler, but a 4 or 5 year old might love to create independently at quiet time. Some kiddos will be content with a stack of books and some lego at quiet time, but if your child doesn’t enjoy reading or building, this won’t be a great fit for him. Some families I work with find it helpful to create a special basket of toys, books, or activities that only come out at quiet time.

Start small and build from there

How long you want your toddler to spend doing quiet time is up to you. I like to aim for a minimum of 30-45 minutes, but I always advise families to start with a short period of time and gradually extend the length. You want your toddler to be successful doing quiet time independently, and for the majority of toddlers, starting off with a long period of time just isn’t achievable. Start out with just 5-10 minutes of quiet time, and as your little one gets the hang of independent quiet time, increase the time slowly as the days go on.

Celebrate success

Doing quiet time independently is a big accomplishment for your toddler, so make sure you celebrate. Tell her just how proud you are of her, share the good news with siblings, friends, or family, and offer encouragement and praise as she slowly increases the amount of time spent doing quiet activities.

Involve your toddler

Toddlers are in a stage of development where they’re exploring autonomy and growing independence. They want to make their own decisions, but having unlimited choice can be overwhelming. Involving your toddler by offering a small set of choices on which toys, books, or activities to include in quiet time will meet his needs without the overwhelm.

Quiet time activities for toddlers

When we started quiet time for my oldest son, he was happy with his stuffed monkey and a basket of books. He would “read” to himself for nearly the whole hour, but he’s 4 years old now, his interests have changed, and quiet time looks quite different. It usually involves driving cars and trucks, building with blocks, and the occasional book.

With the sheer volume of toys and activities on the market (and probably also in your home) it can be challenging to formulate a list of ideas that might work well for your toddler at quiet time. The list below is by no means exhaustive, but it’s a great place to start if you’re unsure about what might be a good fit for your child. And of course there’s always a bit of screen time if you just need a few extra minutes.

Regardless of which activities you choose to offer your toddler, making sure they can be done independently and are easy to set up and clean up is an important consideration. Keep things simple for you and your little one - if you want to set up special activities every day, that’s wonderful. But if that’s not you (it’s definitely not me), that’s perfectly okay too.

List of quiet time activities:

Books
Blocks
Lego
Magnet tiles
Imaginative play (dolls, play kitchen, action figures, dress up, building roads, etc)
Cars, trucks, other vehicles
Audiobook with headphones
Puzzles
Matching games
Playdough
Magnet activities
Drawing or colouring
Crafts

Next steps

Parenting is the toughest gig around. When my first babe was ready to drop the nap, I was anxious about losing that time to myself in the middle of the day, both because I needed time to get things done, and I needed time to myself.

These days, I love supporting families as they shift their toddlers to quiet time and drop the last nap. In my mind, it’s not necessarily a time to dread, and many parents I work with actually prefer quiet time to nap time once they get new routines in place.

If your toddler is not quite ready to drop the nap or if he’s struggling at naptime or bedtime, please reach out. Easy, peaceful naps are possible for every toddler, including your own.

FAQs about quiet time for kids

My toddler refuses to nap. Should I transition to quiet time?

Many toddlers will protest their nap at some point. If your little one is typically a good sleeper, and has suddenly started not napping, the first thing to do is look at their overall sleep. You may find capping the nap works just fine. If the nap hasn’t been happening consistently over a two week period (4-5 times/week) then it might be time to move to quiet time.

When should my toddler stop napping?

Most toddlers are ready to drop the last nap at some point between 2.5-4 years old, although some will be ready a little earlier or a little later.

How do I know if my toddler is ready to stop napping?

If you’re seeing one or more of the following signs consistently over a two week period (4-5 times/week), your little one might be ready to drop the last nap and transition to quiet time: difficulty falling asleep at naptime or bedtime, waking early in the morning, bedtime battles, or not napping at all.

Quiet time for kids: When do kids stop napping and what to do next?