These verses were all shared by members on the Waldorf School Online list HERE
Original question from a member: My son’s teacher recommended we say a verse before bed to signal getting ready for sleep time. My son’s are 4 and 7. Any suggestions?
1. Guardian Angels who we love
Shine on us from up above
And as I lay me down to sleep
I pray the lord my soul to keep
And in the morning when I wake
Show me the path of love to take
2. I have a 5 and 3 year old and we’ve stuck with the very simple “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”, which is quiet and soothing and does the job ;0) Bit wierd in the summer as it’s light, but they seem to like it anyway.
3. I use a different verse for each child. For getting ready to walk to bed for all I use ‘how lovely is the evening’. Then for my 6 year old we do ‘I see the moon, the moon sees me, bless the moon, bless me, goooo-ooodniiggghht’. With my middle guy, 3, I do something I think I got from this list! ‘goodnight my star child, sleep by the light of the moon’ and while I say this I draw a star with a circle around it on the top of his head. For my little one, 8 months, when I get ready to nurse her to sleep, I say ‘goodnight my moonbeam grow tall and strong’ and do an expanding circle on her forehead to the back of her head with my fingers.
4. Each night I draw a star, then sun, then moon and then a kiss in turns with each line on my children’s foreheads while saying:
a star for you to wish on
the sun so warm and bright
the moon for you to wish on
pleasant dreams goodnight
5. We do both a verse and a prayer:
Now I lay down in my bed
I pull the covers up to my head
I’ll dream of dragons and fairies bright
And pixies and wizards and elves tonight
I’ll dream of some sort of magical place
And wake in the morning
With a smile on my face.
Now I lay me down to sleep
I pray the Lord my soul to keep
May He watch me through the night
And wake me in the morning’s light.
Amen
6. We keep the curtains open so we can look at the moon when lying in bed and say:
I see the moon
the moon sees me
god bless the moon
and god bless me
I also do a little thing
“blueberry eyes (kiss his eyelids)
button nose (kiss his nose)
strawberry lips (kiss his lips)
and tickly toes (tickle his feet)
Off to the land of nod he goes!”
7. Gentle night,
Let her run through your fields of darkness
Let her drink from the cup of your Milky Way
Rock her to sleep in your blanket of stars
And when you depart,
Kiss her waking soul with wisdom.
8. Oh, yes, the movement bits can be very important parts of prayers for bedtime! I started doing it with my very busy little girl, so long ago now I can’t remember exactly how old she was. I said:
Bless this head, (touch forehead)
Bless this heart, (touch upper chest)
Bless these hands (touch each hand)
To sleep this night,
God our Father,
God our Mother,
Amen.
9. If you’re interested in one in spanish:
Angel de mi guardia
mi dulce compania
no me desampares
ni de noche ni de dia
hasta que me pongas en paz y alegria
con todos los santos
Jesus y Maria
we say it every night after a bedtime story
my 3 year old now has it memorize and it’s
very sweet to listen to it.
10. My oldest son and I made up a song when he was little and we have continued to sing or say it at night ever since. We do hand movements to it:
The lavender and the moon
Tonight are sleeping soundly
The flower petals rest
And now they close up tightly
Sleep, children, sleep
Sleep, children, sleep
Sleep, children, sleep
Sleep, sleep, sleep…