When it comes to children sharing a bedroom, there are many positives and negatives to consider before making the decision. In this blog post we will discuss the advantages and disadvantages of children sharing a bedroom. We will also provide some advice on how you can best set up your child's room if they are sharing.

Pros

1. Sleep

Believe it or not, you might get more sleep if your children are in a shared room. Young children often wake up in the middle of the night to seek comfort from Mum or Dad and usually end up sleepwalking through to their parent's bedroom. This results in Mum or Dad having to walk their child back through to their own bedroom several times a night and spend time settling them back down again. This means that everyone is a little sleep-deprived come morning! However, if your children share a bedroom, then there is the possibility that they will come to rely on each other for comfort instead. The presence of a sleeping sibling in the same room is sometimes enough reassurance to soothe the child who has woken up back to sleep.

2. Bedtime routine

If your children do not have a large age gap, then the time that they go to bed will likely be very similar. If they are in a shared room, you can start their bedtime routine at exactly the same time. If your children were in separate bedrooms, you would have to go back and forth between the bedrooms and run the risk of reading two different stories and singing two different songs, for example. You will be saving your energy when your energy may already be at a low at this time of the day.

3. Sibling bond

Brothers and sisters who share a bedroom will be spending more time in each other's company. This in itself provides them with the opportunity to develop a close and strong bond that will last a lifetime. As we previously mentioned, they may seek comfort from one another when falling asleep and if they are upset in general. They will also have more of a chance to play together.

4. Empathy, sharing and boundaries

Children who share a bedroom may be more respectful, patient and understanding towards each other's feelings. This might result in children becoming more caring and empathic. They will naturally develop these skills over time when sharing a bedroom.

It is also thought that children who share a bedroom may be better at sharing space later on in life, in a classroom or in the workplace, for example.

It is inevitable that children who are sharing a bedroom will sometimes need their own space or will perhaps even have a set of rules for the other sibling to follow. Sharing a bedroom creates a great opportunity for each child to set their own boundaries. For example, one child might want to be alone in the room for a little while, one child might want their sibling to be quiet so that they can read, or one might not want to play at a particular time of day.

Cons

1. Sleep schedule

If there is a large age gap between your children, then they will almost certainly have different sleep schedules. Children under four years of age usually need to have a nap during the day, go to bed early and wake up early. This means that if an older child is sharing the bedroom, they won't be able to do the things that they might normally enjoy, such as watching television or listening to music as it will disrupt their sibling.

2. Friends

Your children will probably have different friends and will want exclusive access to their bedroom as a place to play or chill out in when their friends are round. This may cause a problem for their sibling, and they might feel as though they have to be in a different area of the house.

Bedroom Set Up

If you would like your children to share a bedroom or if they have no choice in the matter at the moment, then take a look at our space saving beds in the range here at the Children's Bed Shop. We sell bunk beds, triple bunk beds, triple sleeper beds and pull-out beds, all of which are better options than two traditional single sized beds as more space and privacy is created.

To minimise any conflict that might arise from sharing a bedroom, you should make sure that each child has their own things in an area of the bedroom that belongs just to them.