Tiffany Martin

CUIN 6320

Dr. Bulent Dogan

Digital Storytelling Assignment

The need for sleep in education

Why is sleep important and how does it affect our day to day lives? Let's take a look into

elementary school. Children are expected to be functioning and focused at 7am ready to do a full

day of work. How does the amount and quality of sleep they have received affect their

performance? First, we must analyze how sleep is used by the body. According to the Sleep

Foundation, “sleep is an essential function that allows your body and mind to recharge, leaving

you refreshed and alert when you wake up. Healthy sleep also helps the body remain healthy and

stave off diseases. Without enough sleep, the brain cannot function properly. This can impair your

abilities to concentrate, think clearly, and process memories'' (sleepfoundation). It seems as though

without sleep, our health and brain functions begin to receive harm. A student would find it

difficult to focus on fractions and multiplication if their brain is not functioning properly. They

may also work slower than others if they are struggling to concentrate on the teachers words or

lesson presentation. As sleep also affects health, a student might also struggle retaining information

if they are feeling unwell on a regular basis. This would also give children another reason to

deviate from being able to think clearly and concentrate during school. However, how much sleep

must a child receive before these consequences come to life? According to Kids and Health, Dr.

Gavin suggests a school age child ages 6-13 years old requires about 9-12 hours of sleep

(Kidshealth). Students may begin to exhibit behaviors when their body is not receiving enough

sleep, such as mood swings, show irritability, have trouble paying attention, falling asleep, struggle
with school work, may demonstrate behavior problems, as well as hyperactivity. (KidsHealth).

Studies have also shown the appetite of tired kids is higher due to imbalance hormone levels,

which can later lead to obesity if not taken care of (healthcare.uta.edu).

Expecting a child to function properly and meet school expectations without an adequate amount

of sleep is not possible or attainable. Without the ability to concentrate with a fresh mind and

renewed energy, the student is already behind the others before they even walk into the school

door. Encouraging sleep is encouraging the future success of all our young ones.
 Works cited

Pacheco, D. (2022, August 10). Why do we need sleep? Sleep Foundation. Retrieved October 10,

2022, from https://www.sleepfoundation.org/how-sleep-works/why-do-we-need-sleep

Gavin, M. (2022, August 10). Kids and Sleep. Nemours KidsHealth. Retrieved October 10, 2022,

from https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/sleep.html

Gellner, C. (2018, June 4). Lack of sleep can affect children's performance in school. University of

Utah Health. Retrieved October 10, 2022, from

https://healthcare.utah.edu/the-scope/shows.php?shows=0_49he136u