1. Try to put your child to bed during his/her age appropriate sleep window. Going to bed too late can cause a child to be overtired.
2. Making sure your child is getting the right quality and quantity of naps is important. If a child does not nap enough for his/her age during the day he/she will be facing bedtime overtired and cranky.
3. Having your child stretch too long between the end of the last nap of the day and bedtime can also lead to a child going to bed overtired. You also do not want your child to nap too close to bedtime (ex: a 6pm nap before a 7pm bedtime is not recommended) as that can interfere with sleep as well.
4. It's best to put your child to bed in a drowsy, but awake state. If your child goes to bed exhausted, then he or she is not really able to learn how to put him or herself to sleep. And if your child does not know how to put him/herself to sleep at bedtime, then he/she is going to have a much harder time doing it at 4:00 in the morning.
Wishing you a restful night's sleep and a good morning!
www.restwellbaby.com