How much sleep at what age
The WHO gives ranges that include naps: 14–17 hours for babies aged 0–3 months, 10–13 hours for children aged 3–4 years. The range is wide, and that is normal.
Topics
Topics
The topics here are built around ordinary family life rather than around illnesses. Sleep and daily routine, movement and outdoor play, routine visits to the paediatrician and scheduled vaccinations, and a safely arranged home are four areas where parents can do a great deal without medicines or specialist knowledge. Each card briefly describes the essentials and leads to a section where the topic is covered in more depth. There are no diagnoses or prescriptions here: if anything about your child's health worries you, discuss it with your paediatrician.
Prevention looks boring: going to bed on time, getting outside, turning up for a check-up, moving the cleaning products up high. But these small things are exactly what a calm family life is made of.
How this section works: we take topics every family with a child comes across and write about them without diagnoses, medicine names or treatment plans. We give figures only from WHO guidelines and documents of the Russian Ministry of Health; everything else is described in general terms.
Sleep and routine
Sleep is one of the most straightforward topics and also one of the most debated. Age-based guides help you stop comparing your child with other people's children.
A predictable evening
The same steps before bed in the same order tell your child that the day is coming to an end. The ritual can be very short.
Naps
For young children, daytime sleep is a full part of their daily total, not an optional extra. How it changes with age is a good thing to discuss at a routine check-up.
Sleep and wellbeing
If your child suddenly sleeps very differently, snores, wakes often or looks exhausted during the day, write down what you notice and show it to your paediatrician.
Movement
Active play is not a weekend treat for a child but a daily need, just like food and sleep.
Toddlers and pre-schoolers
According to the 2019 WHO guidelines, children aged 1–4 need at least 180 minutes of varied physical activity a day, and any kind of movement counts.
School-age children and teenagers
For ages 5–17, the WHO in 2020 set a guide of an average of at least 60 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous activity every day.
Outdoors in any weather
Fresh air, daylight and space to run help both movement and sleep. Dressing for the weather matters more than the perfect route.
Check-ups and vaccinations
Routine visits to the doctor are not only for when a child is ill. They make it possible to spot early what a parent cannot see at home.
Preventive check-ups
In Russia, the procedure for check-ups of minors is set by Ministry of Health order No. 514n; other countries run their own programmes. Your clinic and paediatrician will tell you when and which specialists to see.
Scheduled vaccinations
Russia's national vaccination schedule is approved by Ministry of Health order No. 1122n; other countries have their own schedules. Take all decisions and questions about vaccinations to your paediatrician.
How to prepare for a visit
A list of questions, notes on sleep and wellbeing, your child's medical records to hand: the appointment goes faster and more calmly for everyone.
Unfamiliar words in the records
Screening programmes, medical exemptions, routine check-ups: short explanations of these terms are collected in the reference's glossary.
Home and safety
Most accidents involving children at home happen because something dangerous ended up within reach. A lot can be fixed with one calm check of your home.
Windows and balconies
An insect screen will not hold a child. Windows and balcony doors near where a little one plays should be closed or securely restricted.
Chemicals and medicines
Cleaning and laundry products and any medicines are stored closed and out of a child's reach, in their original packaging, never in drink bottles.
Sockets and cables
Socket covers, extension leads tidied away and charger cables your child cannot reach: simple measures that cost very little.
Water near young children
A bath, a basin, a paddling pool or a pond is dangerous even when shallow. A young child is never left alone near water, not even for a minute.
Article catalogue for English-speaking parents
This section will publish standalone articles written for English-speaking families. Authors write them independently of the other language versions of the reference and point readers to their own national health service and paediatrician for vaccination schedules and check-ups.
- Valorant: Placement Matches — Ecosystem Overview
What Valorant placement matches are, how to prepare, realistic alternatives to outside help, the risks of boosting and where to find reliable game info.
- GTA 6 Preorder Guide and Editions: Editorial Overview
GTA 6 pre-orders explained: release date, Standard and Ultimate editions, the pre-order bonus, what is still unconfirmed and how to buy safely before launch.
- Aion 2 pets: Strategies, Limitations and FAQs
A careful guide to Aion 2 pets: researching them in-game, realistic strategies, unverified details, account safety rules and common player questions.
- The player’s guide to World of Warcraft Delves gameplay: Online Service Comparisons
How to approach World of Warcraft Delves: practical scenarios, honest criteria for comparing solo play, groups and online services, and the risks to consider.
What the editors are working on
- Back to school: resetting sleep after the summer holidays
- Screen time and bedtime: building a calm evening wind-down
- Dressing children for outdoor play in rain, wind and sun
- Talking to your child about a doctor's visit so they feel less nervous
Editorial rules
- Articles in this catalogue are written separately for each language version and are not translations.
- Some articles link to third-party websites, including gaming services; we do not control their content, prices or terms.
- We do not collect donations or publish advertising for clinics, medicines or children's products, rankings, prices or reviews.
Read next
- Prevention
How to settle your child's daily routine in two weeks: steps, illustrative examples, common mistakes and a sleep-by-age table.
- Methods
General approaches to sleep, outdoor play and a safe home, plus when to call your paediatrician and when to call emergency services.
- Questions
Questions worth writing down and asking your paediatrician at a routine check-up: about vaccinations, sleep and development.
Sources
- World Health Organization: 2019 guidelines
- World Health Organization: 2020 guidelines
- Russian Ministry of Health Order No. 1122n of 6 December 2021
- Russian Ministry of Health Order No. 514n of 10 August 2017
Information checked as of the date of preparation. WHO guidelines, the Russian national vaccination schedule and the rules for children's check-ups are updated from time to time, and other countries have their own schedules and programmes, so check the details for your child with your paediatrician.