My 3 year old is not falling asleep until 9-9:30 pm every night. He wakes up between 6:30 and 7:30 am and takes 2 hour naps at school. He starts his bedtime routine at 7 and is in his room in pjs by 7:45. Is he just not active enough to be tired at 8? I’m not sure what I can do to get him to go to bed earlier. He’s in daycare so skipping naps isn’t really an option. Any thoughts appreciated!!

A 2 hour nap seems too long at that age. Our 3 year old doesn’t nap anymore and sleeps from 8pm until 7:30am.

Same here! 3.5 yo up at 7-7:30, asleep by 9-9:30. Just not tired enough to go to bed earlier bc of the daycare nap situation. It was annoying me until I leaned into it and now we enjoy the extra time and read in bed until he finally gets sleepy. It’ll pass! (Or so I tell myself lol). On weekends we don’t do much of a nap and can get him town earlier. On school days it is what it is

They are all different doing what works for them… they don’t come with a manual 🤪

My almost 4yo doesn’t nap anymore since she was almost 2, she falls asleep in the car very occasionally - awake between 730 and 8am and falls asleep between bedtime (7pm) and latest 830pm usually - and she also has started saying she is hungry to stay up later which is cheeky since she doesn’t finish her dinner most nights!

Our (newly) 4yr old goes 9PM-7AM; I feel like 10hrs is okay at this age? She sometimes naps for an hour or two if she has had a particularly active day. They just have “rest time” at daycare at this point, though I believe some of her peers do still sleep. Just depends on the kid, maybe?

You’re in that really fun stage where they still need a nap to function but having one pushes bedtime really late. We ultimately dropped the nap for both my kids around this age so we could get back to an earlier bedtime. There is no perfect answer, just a matter of deciding what is most important - longer stretch at night or naps during the day. Eventually you’ll fully transition to the former but it can be a long process.

This was normal for us too… we talked to preschool and they were open to waking up our kid earlier and let them play quietly. However it is definitely not for every kid and ultimately we just let her sleep as much as she wanted and then she’d go to bed at the same time as her older brother for our convenience

My 3-year-old is super active and usually doesn’t nap on the weekends. I don’t know whether he naps at daycare these days, but know that he often didn’t nap before. He falls asleep at around 8 pm most nights and wakes up at 7-7:30 am.

Kids are all different. I had 3. The first was a mess in elementary because she still needed a nap and took one every day after school. My second child would not nap for anything once he hit walking. My third was more balanced. You've probably got one more like my second.
I would talk with the daycare to see what they can do. My son never napped, but once 7-7:30 hit, put himself to bed every night without having to be told. If the daycare won't listen, you might need to look at other options, like family or a nanny that can accommodate his specific needs to get you through.
I would also try looking at his sleeping environment. There might be something in his routine or location that is prolonging this time. Make sure to keep any bedtime routine calm, and quiet. Be on the lookout for anything that might be stimulating (a game, etc). Are you racing to see who's fastest into pj's? Is his room quiet? Too quiet? Maybe white noise would help. Prevent any street light from creeping in. If he needs a nightlight, make sure it is soft light. Is there a pet pacing in and out of the room? Go into his room at night. Try looking through his eyes. What would you notice if you were trying to sleep here?

9-9:30 bedtime is normal for a 3 year old who takes a 2 hr nap. My 3 yo is only ready for bed around 8-8:30 if he refuses a nap

I’m in the same boat!!! Now he will only go to sleep in our bed

Every kid is different but we had to cut naps way down by age 2. We had quiet time with books or coloring a few times a day that sometimes ended with a short nap. Otherwise, we were mostly nap free.

My 3 year old doesn't nap anymore and that's the only way to get a decent bedtime. At daycare she sits in the cot with some books for quiet time while other kids nap.