Free Printable Staying in Bed Reward Chart

How it works

This free printable staying in bed reward chart is a week of nights on one page. It opens on 6 sample steps for one child, Sunday to Saturday, and three of them are about staying in bed. Type your own steps over them.

Read the full guide

Put the evening in order

The sample runs in the order of an evening: upstairs at the timer, pajamas, one goodnight, then three rows about staying in bed. Type your own steps one on each line, in the order they happen, up to 12. The week runs Sunday to Saturday because school-night bedtimes start on Sunday.

The staying in bed row

Keep the row you came for, such as Stay in bed after lights out, and fill its box at breakfast. For a bedtime sticker chart, print the page and keep the stickers by the cereal. Points weight a row from 1 to 9, so a whole night in your own bed can count for more than pajamas.

The NHS page Sleep and young children describes a routine with the same things every night. This sleep reward chart puts yours on paper.
Every row is something a child can choose to do. Settle in the travel bed is in the list, and asleep by 8:00 is not.
New week clears every tick and keeps the rows, so the same bedtime reward chart prints again next Sunday.

Questions and answers

Can I print a chart with only a stay in bed row?

Yes. Delete lines until 1 or 2 are left, such as Stay in bed until the clock says 7:00. That makes a free printable stay in bed sticker chart with 7 boxes on each row. A chart this short prints with bigger boxes.

Which rows suit a child who keeps getting out of bed?

The group Staying in bed after lights out has 8, such as Call out once, then wait for me and Hand in your bedtime pass just once. The NHS page says to keep taking a child back to bed with as little fuss as possible.

Does it work for two children who share a room?

Type both names with a comma between them. Each row is for Everyone or for one child, so both can share Teeth brushed before the story while only the older one has Read in bed, then lamp off at 8:30.

All 64 bedtime steps

The bedtime routine, step by step 15

Bath or wash before pajamas On a night without a bath, washing face and hands counts. Towel back on the rail.
Big light off after the story The child flips the switch. A nightlight or a landing light is not the big light.
Choose one bedtime story One book, chosen before the agreed time. The NHS page gives the example of reading only 1 story, then tucking in and saying goodnight.
Cuddly toy found before the story Bear, blanket or comforter on the pillow before the book opens, so nobody hunts for it at lights out.
Curtains closed and nightlight on The child's own two jobs. The NHS page says a dim light can stay on if it is needed.
In bed by 7:30 Retype the time to fit your evening. In bed means under the covers.
Last drink of water in the kitchen Before teeth, not after lights out. It takes the oldest reason for getting up off the list.
Listen to the story under the covers In bed with head on the pillow while the book is read, not on the floor with the trains.

Show all 64 bedtime steps (56 more)

The bedtime routine, step by step, continued

One hug, one goodnight, then eyes closed The grown-up leaves after the goodnight. A second hug in the morning is free.
Pajamas on by yourself Help with buttons is allowed. Day clothes in the hamper is part of the row.
Teeth brushed before the story Brushing comes before the book, so the story is the last thing that happens before goodnight.
Tomorrow's clothes out before the bath On the chair, socks included. One less choice to make at 7 in the morning.
Toys away before the bath runs Floor clear enough to walk from the door to the bed in the dark.
Upstairs when the 5 minute timer rings Set the timer together. Heading for the stairs at the ring earns the box, however slow the climb.
Use the toilet before getting into bed The last stop before the bedroom, every night, whether or not it feels needed.

Winding down before the routine 9

Bedtime snack finished before teeth For a child who is hungry at night the NHS page suggests a bowl of cereal and milk, with teeth brushed afterward.
Help turn the house lights down low Lamps on and ceiling lights off from the start of the routine. A job a 3 year old can own.
Quiet game at the table after dinner A jigsaw, drawing or building blocks: something done sitting down.
Say goodnight to everyone downstairs Pets included. It marks the end of downstairs for the day.
School bag by the door before bath Packed, zipped and standing by the front door, so nothing has to be remembered from bed.
Tablet on the charger before bath The NHS page says no phones, tablets or laptops for the last 30 to 60 minutes before bed. Plugging in before the bath covers it.
Take 3 slow breaths in bed In through the nose and out through the mouth, a hand on the tummy, with no holding of the breath.
Tell me one good thing about today Said in bed with the lights low. One thing each, the grown-up included.
Walk upstairs on your own feet Walking, not carried, and without a chase around the sofa.

Staying in bed after lights out 8

Call out once, then wait for me One call from bed and a grown-up comes. Agree it at breakfast, not at lights out.
Go back to bed the first time For a child who gets up. The NHS page says to keep taking them back with as little fuss as possible; this row is for staying put after the first walk back.
Hand in your bedtime pass just once A card worth one trip out of the room after lights out, for a drink, a hug or a question. A pass still held in the morning earns the box too.
Settle with a grown-up in the hall A step between being sat with and settling alone. The chair is outside the door, in sight.
Stay in bed after lights out From goodnight until you fall asleep. A trip to the toilet keeps the box.
Stay in bed until the clock says 7:00 Retype the hour. Put a clock the child can read where it can be seen from the pillow.
Stay in your own bed all night Checked in the morning: you woke up where you went to sleep.
Stay under the covers while I check back The grown-up promises to look in after 5 minutes, and does. Still in bed at the check earns the box.

Waking in the night 6

Back to your own bed after a cuddle After a bad dream: comfort first, then back to your own pillow. Needing a cuddle is never what loses a box.
Come and get me quietly if you need me Walking in without waking a brother or sister earns the box.
Hug your bear and close your eyes The plan for a child who wakes and is fine: what to try before calling out.
Pull your own covers back up For the child who wakes cold at 2 in the morning and can fix it alone.
Toilet trip, then straight back to bed Hall light low, and the living room stays closed.
Turn your pillow over and try again Cool side up, eyes closed, count slowly to 20.

Early mornings 6

Come into our room after 6:30 Write your own time in the row. Before it, the plan is books in bed.
Look at books until a grown-up comes A small stack chosen at bedtime and left within reach.
Open your curtains when you get up The first job of the day, and the sign to everyone else that you are up.
Play quietly in your room until 7:00 Books and soft toys by the bed the night before. The box is for quiet, not for sleeping.
Tiptoe past the baby's room Counts on any morning the baby is still asleep when breakfast starts.
Wait for the wake-up light For a lamp on a plug timer or a wake-up clock: out of bed when it turns on.

Ages 7 and up 8

Bedroom floor clear before bed Clothes in the hamper, books on the shelf, nothing to trip on at night.
Keep the weekend bedtime we agreed Decide the Friday and Saturday time in advance and write it beside the goal.
Phone handed in by 8:00 To the family charging spot outside the bedroom.
Read in bed, then lamp off at 8:30 The child switches off their own lamp at the agreed time.
Set your own alarm for the morning Set before lights out and placed across the room, not under the pillow.
Shower done by 8:00 Towel hung up and the bathroom floor dry enough for the next person.
Start getting ready with one reminder One reminder at the agreed time, then the routine runs without a second.
Write one line in your journal A sentence about the day, written in bed before the lamp goes off.

Naps and quiet time 5

Carry your blanket to the nap mat For naps away from home or at day care: the child sets up their own spot.
Choose 3 books for quiet time Chosen before lunch, so there is nothing to negotiate at nap time.
Lie down for your nap after one song One song, sung or played, then head on the pillow.
Rest on your bed for quiet time Sleep is optional. Lying down with a book for the set time is the goal.
Stay in your room until the timer rings Start at 20 minutes. The timer sits where the child can see it.

New beds, shared rooms and nights away 7

Clocks changed: in bed at the new time For the week after the clocks go forward or back.
First night back on school bedtime The Sunday after a break. One box, for being in bed at the school-night hour.
Let your brother fall asleep first For the older child in a shared room: reading with a clip light until the little one is asleep.
Same routine at Grandma's house Bath, pajamas, teeth and story in the usual order, in a different house.
Settle in the travel bed On vacation: the usual story and the usual bear, in a bed that folds. Lying down quietly after the goodnight earns the box.
Sleep in the big bed all night For the move from a crib to a bed: you woke up in the new bed.
Whisper voice after lights out For children who share a room. Talking is fine for 5 minutes, in a whisper.

How this list was compiled: Row wordings and hint lines written for this site on 2026-09-18. Every row is worded as something to do that an adult can see, and none uses no, stop or not. Where a hint line names the NHS, the detail was checked against the NHS page Sleep and young children at https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/baby/health/sleep-problems-in-young-children/ (last reviewed 31 March 2023; its next review was due 31 March 2026 and had not appeared when the page was checked on 2026-09-20): a winding down routine that starts around 30 minutes before the usual sleep time, with the same steps each night, the example of reading only 1 story before tucking in, a dim light or nightlight if it is needed, a favorite toy or comforter before settling, no phones, tablets or laptops for the last 30 to 60 minutes before bed, a bowl of cereal and milk for a child who is hungry at night with teeth brushed afterward, and taking a child who gets up back to bed with as little fuss as possible. That page does not mention a bath, pajamas or a chart; those rows and every clock time are our own and are there to be retyped. The groups are our own starting points, not a standard. The points value (2 or 3) is our own rough measure of effort; a row without one counts 1 point. The list is a set of chart wordings and is not sleep advice. Licence: own work

Free Printable Staying in Bed Reward Chart for a Week of Bedtimes