How to introduce an OK-to-wake clock

Before the first night

Check the model name on your clock, then find its instructions on the clock pages. Set it up yourself before you show your child. Find how to change the time, switch the wake-up light on and turn off any alarm you do not want.

Agree with the other adults on what the morning light means. Does it mean you come in, or that your child can come to you? Choose wording that fits your home and your child's abilities. If you are unsure whether the idea makes sense yet, read when to introduce an OK-to-wake clock.

Show and practice the light

During the day, show the actual light or symbol and describe what your child does when it appears. For example: ‘When this face is awake, come and find me.’ Ask your child to show you what they would do. Pointing or pretending is useful too; this is not a test of color names.

If your clock has a preview, use it: Nanit Sound + Light, for example, plays the light and sound while you make a routine. Do not reset or unplug the clock to show how it works.

If your child is unsure, explain again while you are together. If the light upsets them, pause. There is no need to make the first morning a test they must pass.

Choose the first setting

Begin with the morning routine you are already using. Write down when your child usually wakes and when an adult is up. Choose the first wake-up time around a routine you can explain and keep to, rather than a hoped-for weekend lie-in.

Enter your chosen time, check am against pm, and make sure the wake-up light is switched on: a saved time and a switched-on light are different things. On MELLA, check that a sun or moon shows next to the time; on Groclock, you switch the night mode on at the clock.

The schedule planner keeps your chosen times and tells you when your clock does not have a setting. It does not choose a bedtime or set the clock.

What to do before the light comes on

Decide what quiet choices suit your child and the room. An older child might look at a picture book while an adult is nearby. Choose only an activity and objects you already know are safe for your child. Being awake is not a failure to follow the clock.

When your child comes to you early, check what they need before pointing to the light. Then use the short explanation you agreed and offer the quiet choice if it still fits the moment. Do not let ‘wait for the light’ turn into ‘you cannot ask for me’.

When your child notices the light or does what you agreed, say what they did: ‘You saw the face change and came to find me.’ Praise the understanding, not extra minutes asleep.

Help comes before the light

Say this clearly: ‘If you are hurt, scared, feel ill, need the bathroom or need help, call me or come to me straight away.’ Adapt how to get help to your child's abilities and sleeping space. Never use the light to hold back care or to keep your child from reaching an adult.

Practice how your child gets help, as well as the morning routine. Tell a grandparent or sitter who answers when your child calls. If the clock stops working, tell your child and go back to how mornings worked before the clock.

Changing the time later

If the wake-up time needs to change, explain the new morning plan when your child is calm, and keep the light's meaning the same. If your child wakes long before the light, the early waking guide suggests small steps and says where they come from.

Change the clock and your written plan together, then check that the light is still switched on. For separate weekend times, check whether your clock has a second schedule. Waking early again and again is a reason to look at the whole situation, not to keep pushing the light later.

Review what actually happened

Pick a time to compare notes with the other grown-ups. Did the clock show the right light? Could your child see and understand it? Did the quiet choice work? Did your child know how to get help? Look at those separately from the time your child woke.

If the light did not come on, or it came on and mornings are still hard, follow the clock troubleshooting guide. Talk to your child's doctor about sleep worries that go on.

Leave a note for the sitter or grandparent

Write down what the light looks like, what it means and who to get for help. If it helps, add what everyone says, what your child can do before the light and what to do if the clock stops. A line or two is enough.

Make the card in the schedule planner; every line on it is optional. It prints with your clock and your times, and goes into the text download. Save it in this browser only if you want to keep it here. Check the sitter's app access separately: reading the plan does not let them change an app clock.