According to Nationwide Children’s Hospital, teenagers need between nine and nine and a half hours of sleep a night to properly function. However, almost every student is well aware that that is far out of reach, because the average amount of sleep they actually get is around seven hours. When students have to figure out how to complete their homework, extracurriculars, and sports, the earliest possible bedtime can sometimes be as late as 1:00 AM. Because NAI’s start time is 7:19, most students have to get up as early as 5:30, depending on how long their bus ride is.

Nationwide Children’s Hospital determined that the average amount of sleep that teenagers truly get during the school year is seven hours per night. To determine if this was accurate for our school, we talked to students of NAI about the quality and length of their sleep.

“In middle school I used to get around 5-7 hours of sleep, but now I only get about 1-5 hours of sleep”, concluded a NAI freshman after saying that, “I either don’t sleep, or go to bed at around 4:00 am.” Another NAI student informed us that they got seven hours of sleep in middle school, but now only gets five hours due to their sport and homework amount.

Sophomore Morgan Cima told that she gets “six hours of sleep very rarely,usually more like four or five hours.” When asked what caused her lack of sleep, she replied that it was due to homework.  According to a poll from NA Eye’s Instagram story conducted on January 30, 79% of our followers get less than seven hours of sleep, and only 21% get more than seven hours.

Although that particular students case is considered extreme, it is common for students to stay up that late to complete their homework. Additionally, sports and clubs cause students to return to their homes late after hours of practices or meetings, lessening the amount of available time they have to do their schoolwork, therefore pushing back their time to sleep.

“Sports or other activities usually delay my sleep”, stated freshman Emma Kim.

As a result of deficient amounts of sleep, many students find it difficult to stay awake in their classes, because they want to take naps. Additionally, continually not getting enough sleep can lead to a weakened immune system, and cause one to become moody. Not to mention, it’s hard to focus and put their best work forward. Tons of students doze off on their bus rides, or even during class.

“I sometimes find myself zoning out in class because I am so tired.  Last year, I never fell asleep on the bus, and only once in a while I would fall asleep in class”, commented Kim.

Compared to middle school, many freshmen are lacking the necessary hours they need to perform to the best of their abilities in and out of class. Whether it’s due to their homework, extracurricular activities, habits, or any other factors, it’s often hard for students to find the time to sleep.