New evidence shows pre-school-aged children who have regular bedtimes, scored higher on language, literacy, and math skills, than children whose parents reported that they did not have a routine bedtime.

In the largest study to date of its kind, researchers from SRI International placed approximately 8,000 children in the study.

Parents were interviewed about their children's sleep duration, and children took standardized assessments throughout the course of the study.

Children who had routine early bedtimes took less time to fall asleep and had longer total sleep times than children who had inconsistent bedtimes.

Preschool-aged children should get a minimum of eleven hours of sleep a night, but many children do not get the proper amount of hours.

According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, less than eleven hours has been proven to cause lower cognitive awareness levels, development skills, and school achievement.

Researchers suggest parents create a routine before bed, like telling stories or reading books, so that children are able to fall asleep quickly and stay asleep longer.