Invited by the Parent-Teacher Association of the Independent Schools Foundation, Dr Esther Yuet-ying, Assistant Professor of the Department of Psychology, gave a talk at the Independent Schools Foundation Academy on 22 May 2019.
The importance of sleep in a child's neurocognitive and psychosocial development has been shown repeatedly in rigorous scientific research. According to the US National Sleep Foundation, children and teens need more sleep hours than groups of other age ranges. Studying, socializing or screen-time at the expense of sleep may put children and adolescents at the risk of poor cognitive and social development. In this talk, Dr Esther Lau introduced the scientific bases of the roles of sleep in intellectual, emotional, and social development. The attendants also learned about the tips on how to help their children and themselves obtain sleep of good quality and quantity.
From the post-talk questionnaire, participants have shown an increased knowledge of sleep health and are more willing to make changes to improve their children's sleep as well as their own sleep.
