verb (used with or without object), bifurcated, bifurcating. 1. to divide or fork into two branches. adjective. 2. divided into two branches.
Advertisement. By the Numbers. According to the National Sleep Foundation, newborns should sleep 12 to 18 hours out of every 24 (every new parent hopes), with a gradual reduction to 12 to 14 hours for toddlers ages 1 to 3; 11 to 13 hours for preschoolers 3 to 5; and (yes!) 10 to 11 hours for schoolchildren ages 5 to 10.
How much daytime sleep â if any â your child requires depends in part on how many hours he sleeps during the night (although many kids need to nap no matter how much sleep they get at night). But in general, kids this age do best with a total of 12 to 14 hours of sleep in each 24-hour period. So if your child goes to bed at 8 p.m. and sleeps until 8 a.m., he may get his full quota of rest all at once.