Hello!

Want to transition my son to a big boy bed (King single) this week. He just turned 2 but he can get out of cot so it’s time to move him.
Any tips or tricks? Worried he wont stay in it, and he doesn’t talk much so not sure how to make him understand.
My daughter was 3 and she understood so it was easy.


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  • With my youngest I did first a mattress on the floor and she moved slowly to the bed at her own time


  • Just because he doesn’t talk much doesn’t mean he doesn’t understand! Trust me, they understand a lot more of what you say then you give them credit for. Time is all he needs for this adjustment, time to get used to the change and he’ll be fine. We’ve all done it so it can’t be too hard


  • I would suggest mattress on floor first…he can get used to mattress size and incase he rolls out. With my daughter we made a huge deal about her bed so she was excited, sat on it to read books, put her dolly in during the day etc. We also got her to help make the bed and make it each morning. Initially she got up a few times but I just took her by the hand and took her back, no matter what time of the night it was.


  • When we transitioned our son to a “big boy bed” we talked about it and said that his bed would be like his sister’s. We told him that when he went into his new bed he had to stay in it and only get out when the sun came up. He was really good and only got out twice in the first week. We didn’t engage with him when he was up just took his hand, walked him back to his bed, tucked him in a th missed him goodnight again. He never did it after that unless there was an nissue like needing to go to the bathroom or feeling sick.


  • I moved my 18months old into a king single (the cor converted to this size) as he was continually waking up multiple times overnight due to lack of space to stretch out and sleep I guess lol without hitting the cot sides.. I just grabbed some bed rails from the shops which I put either side just down from the head area so he could still climb out if needed. He seemed to transition fine, in fact it helped with the multiple wake ups going from 7-8times o/night to 3-4 times.. he’s now 3 and in a double bed


  • Maybe before you get the bed start with the mattress on the ground to help with any initial roll outs. When we transitioned my son we bought a bunk bed from ikea that was completely customisable. He started with mattress on the ground then we put him the next level which was closer to normal bed height and now at 3.5yrs we have him in a king single bed. Goodluck.


  • @blossom we received a king single for nothing so we decided to use it. Not very high off floor which is a good thing. Here’s hoping it all goes well


  • Our son was 2yo when he got his big bed as we needed cot for our daughter. It took us a week of building rutine but he pick up quickly. Bedtime story and staying bed ( he was leaving room but me or my husband will take him back cover him and leave him again…each day it was less and less of leaving


  • From a cot to a KING single is a very big step more especially if it is fairly high off the floor which a bed that size normally is. Friends of ours their daughter initially slept on the cot mattress on the floor a few times. She was scared of having nothing around her. She started having short afternoon naps on her bed for a few days then went into her own bed of her own accord without being “pushed” and stayed in her bed all night. Is there any special reason to use a king single??


  • Sometimes you wont know if he will stay in it until you try.


  • No advice but following for the advice as we are looking to transition our daughter shortly (she’s 15months) …..


  • Read him some books on the topic, or visual pictures about how you and his sister sleep in their big beds . A rewards chart might work for staying in bed all night


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