How Telling Stories Got My Son Out of Bed

September 24, 2025

Mornings used to be a battle in our house. My son could sleep through lights, nudges, and repeated calls to get up. Then one day I tried something different: I sat at the end of his bed and started telling a story. Everything changed.

The Morning Struggle

My son was not waking up in the mornings for school. For all of preschool, Jr. Kindergarten, kindergarten, and the first part of 1st grade, each day started the same. I’d get up first and head to my son’s room to get him up. Nothing.

He would be sound asleep. I’d tell him to get up. Nothing. I’d nudge him. Nothing. We’d turn on the lights. Nothing. His defenses were too strong. Eventually he would rouse but move at a snail’s pace.

He gets it from his mother. Neither one of them are morning people. It seems that unlike Dad, he would be taking after my wife. Heaven help them if I was out of town traveling for work. They were going to be late getting to school.

In 1st grade my son’s reading interest took off. Suddenly he was reading on his own and reading for hours at a time. He became quickly interested in a series called I Survived. It’s a fun little historical fiction series that places young readers in the midst of some disaster. Each book lets them live a day or two in the shoes of someone who survived these tragic events. Think D-Day or the Titanic sinking.

The First Story

I don’t know exactly what inspired me to do this. One morning I walked into his room, sat down at the end of his bed, and just started telling a story. I hadn’t thought about the story at all, so I was making it up as I went. I started by describing a normal school day.

Within a few moments, quietly but with more alertness than he’d ever shown, he woke up and began to listen. I decided to indulge his interests. My son is currently passionate about WW2-era jeeps. So naturally there was a jeep that he was suddenly driving. I began to weave in his friends. I started adding elements of danger and mystery. There was suddenly a problem to solve.

This went on for about 10 minutes. Then I abruptly stopped and told him it was time to get ready for school. He was shocked! He protested. He was so involved in the story that he could barely contain himself. I promised that if he got up easily and got ready for school, we’d do some more tomorrow. Much to my surprise, he did just that.

A New Ritual

The next morning, before my alarm even went off at 6 a.m., I heard the thumping of smaller feet coming down the hallway to my room. My son burst into our room and demanded to know why I wasn’t awake and why I hadn’t come down to his room to continue the story!

For the rest of 1st grade and now into 2nd, I have woken up my son every morning with a story. Usually I tell parts of a grand story that stretches for many weeks. The first adventure started as a simple going-to-school retelling. It quickly turned into a zombie/Minecraft adventure. The second story told of my son’s heroic efforts at the Battle of Midway. We are now following Napoleon around on his adventures.

Each story includes my son, his friends, family members, and a heroic adventure. I indulge his every interest. I often turn these into choose-your-own-adventure stories and he decides what paths to take. I’ve begun preparing more with the help of ChatGPT to make sure I get historical facts straight and to track the various story arcs. When I travel for work, I’m now on the hook for sending my wife stories to relay to my son. I record myself talking into Apple Notes that I then share with her.

What I’ve Learned

Little boys and girls need adventure. They need to be the heroes in stories. They need to hear about other heroes too. If you’re struggling to get your kids going in the morning, my advice is to start telling them stories.