In just five minutes, Netflix will help you win your nightly bedtime war with your children by brokering a compromise between you and your reluctant sleeper(s).
The streaming TV service polled parents globally to figure out the stalling and delay tactics that kids use to push bedtime back. And since TV time is often a requested treat and treated as a reward, they invented five-minute episodes of its original cartoon Dinotrux.
Dinotrux, as my son will tell you, "is trucks but they are dinosaurs, too, and there is a little tool." You can search for the episodes by typing in "5 Minute Favorites." That way, you can make them a deal they can't refuse—they get an entire (five-minute) episode, but then they have to get to bed.
Now, a sleep specialist will tell you that your kids shouldn't be watching TV or having any other screen time right before bed. And a pediatrician will tell you to limit the screen time overall. But neither of them are up with you at 10 p.m. when your 3-year-old won't Go the F**k to Sleep.
So let 'em have an episode now and then, if it'll bring peace to the household.
And check out Netflix's infographic to find out which kind of bedtime staller your kid is. Mine is sooooo hungry/thirsty that he could give those Dinotrux a run for their money.
