By Adaire Fit Fish reporters | Students get cranky when they don’t get enough sleep, according to recent interviews between fourth-grade reporters and Adaire school staff members.

Good sleep is important for learning, memory, good behavior, and general health and fitness, according to the National Sleep Foundation. Kids ages 6 to 12 should get from 9 to 12 hours of sleep every night, said the American Academy of Pediatrics. To help kids get to sleep, the National Sleep Foundation said kids should stop using electronic devices an hour before going to bed because the blue light interferes with the body’s process of going to sleep.

Not getting enough sleep can affect your body, yourself, and your mind, according to Adaire nurse Amy Dougherty. When kids don’t get enough sleep, “kids fall asleep in class, they yawn, they want to eat, they’re cranky, they’re emotional and they don’t feel like themselves,” she said.

“I’m not in the classroom, but sometimes students come to me in the nurse’s office and I let them nap in my office.”

Ms. Cat Crochunis-Brown (also known as Ms. C), fifth-grade creative writing teacher, said that when her students don’t get enough sleep, they don’t participate. “I will tell the person it’s important to get enough sleep so they can do their best,” she said. One time, Ms. C, said a student fell asleep and when she woke them, they were upset, tired, and grumpy, and they did not want to be in school.

Mrs. Marybeth Sgrillo, school secretary, said she can tell when students don’t get enough sleep by their appearance, and they are cranky. She also said they act like they don’t want to be at school. She said that sometimes she calls parents to work with them on a sleep schedule for the student. There have been times when Mrs. Sgrillo woke a student up and she said the student is “miserable, sometimes agitated,” and doesn’t want to be in school.

Ms. Pastorik, learning support specialist, said she can tell when students have not gotten enough sleep when they are not focusing. She said she would try to find out why they felt cranky and very agitated.

Written by Fit Fish reporters in Room 214.

Illustration by Millie, Fit Fish reporter.