What's a good age for a bunk bed?
When did you let your child sleep on the top bunk? Are there signs of "readiness"?
We're getting close to being done with a toddler bed, and I'm wondering if we can leap straight to a bunk bed since that's our plan for the elementary school years at least.
2 Answers
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We have a bunk bed and loft bed. My oldest daughter slept on the top while the under six slept on the bottom.
I believe the american academy of pediatrics does not recommend bunk beds for kids under 6 (well, the top bunk). Getting in and out of bed involves going up and down a ladder from a platform that is 5ft + off the ground, often when a child is either sleepy (going to bed) or groggy (getting up) -- a time when a kids coordination is off. Falling from that distance is potentially dangerous.
Also, my wife and I were vigilant about younger kids playing in a room with a bunk bed since it is a very inviting thing to play on. At first removing the ladder and placing it on the top bunk worked but the kids soon figured out that climbing up without a ladder is even more fun. This often also involved multiple kids yelling, tugging at each other, racing up, jumping off, etc..
You could get a bunk bed but keep the younger ones on the lower bunk until they are older and set strict "no climbing" rules.
BTW ... if you have the room, you may want to consider one the "twin over full" bunkbed models. As the kids get older they may approciate the extra room or having room for multiple younger kids together during overnights. Also, it is much appreciated by the occasional adult guest.
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We got a bunk bed for out almost 4 and almost 6 year olds, with the thinking being that the 6 year old was going to sleep on the top. The younger likes sleeping up there too and he is very coordinated so we let him once in awhile. Even our 20 month old climbs up there but then one of us is in the room to supervise.
Even though I hate Ikea, we got a bunkbed from there because they have a model that is lower to the ground (the bottom bunk is on the floor and the top is maybe 4 feet off the ground). I second the twin over double suggestion. We couldn't find one of those that we liked (all of those top bunks were like 6 feet) which is the only reason we didn't go with it.
