We have something very special for you tonight, all the way from New York City! Now, this episode may not send you off to the land of nod with the snoozle-woozles, but it may teach you a thing or two about bedtime stories! We’re bringing you a crossover episode with the Who Smarted podcast, where their trusty narrator and I will let you in on the secrets of why a good bedtime story works like magic! If you like this episode, there’s much more crazy science and mind boggling history for you to learn over on the Who Smarted Podcast, and as always, I’ll be here to calm you back down again when it’s time for bed. So, sit back and enjoy “The Story of Bedtime Stories” with WhoSmarted.
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The No1 kids bedtime stories & sleep meditations podcast that helps children sleep like a dream. Hosted by the world's biggest fan of bedtime stories, Abbe Opher! All episodes are safe for babies, children and really big kids 0 to 100, so settle down tonight and get sleepy with the world's greatest bedtime stories & sleep meditations for kids.
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00:00:00
Speaker 1: Hello, everybody, Abby here, we have something very special for
00:00:04
Speaker 1: you tonight, all the way from New York City. Now,
00:00:09
Speaker 1: this episode may not send you off to the land
00:00:12
Speaker 1: of Nod with the snoozeor woozles, but it may teach
00:00:15
Speaker 1: you a thing or two about bedtime stories. We're bringing
00:00:19
Speaker 1: you a crossover episode with the Who Smarted Podcast, where
00:00:23
Speaker 1: their trusting narrator and I will let you in on
00:00:26
Speaker 1: the secrets of why a good bedtime story works like magic.
00:00:31
Speaker 1: If you like this episode, there's much more crazy science
00:00:34
Speaker 1: and mind boggling history for you to learn over on
00:00:37
Speaker 1: the Who's Smarted Podcast, And as always, I'll be here
00:00:41
Speaker 1: to calm you back down again when it's time for bed,
00:00:44
Speaker 1: So sit back and enjoy the story of bedtime stories
00:00:50
Speaker 1: with Who's Smarted?
00:00:55
Speaker 2: Hey, smarty pants. You hear that? That's the clock in
00:01:02
Speaker 2: my bedroom and right now it's telling me it's two
00:01:04
Speaker 2: thirty seven am. Normally I'd be fast asleep at this hour,
00:01:09
Speaker 2: but guess what, I can't sleep. Instead of getting valuable
00:01:13
Speaker 2: rest and recharging my brain and body, I'm just laying
00:01:17
Speaker 2: in bed, staring at the ceiling, listening to my clock.
00:01:21
Speaker 2: Have you ever had trouble falling asleep, smarty Pants, Yep,
00:01:25
Speaker 2: it's pretty common and it happens to almost everyone. Also,
00:01:29
Speaker 2: have you ever noticed how much louder your clock sounds
00:01:32
Speaker 2: when you can't sleep? So, smarty pants, what do you
00:01:35
Speaker 2: do when you can't sleep?
00:01:37
Speaker 3: Call it out?
00:01:38
Speaker 1: Uh?
00:01:39
Speaker 2: Huh uh huh uh huh. I'm here in counting, reading,
00:01:43
Speaker 2: doing exercise, taking a warm bath or shower, coloring or drawing,
00:01:47
Speaker 2: taking deep breaths. All great answers. There's just one problem.
00:01:53
Speaker 2: I've already tried all of them, and I'm still awake
00:01:57
Speaker 2: and wet from my bath. There's gotta be something I'm
00:02:01
Speaker 2: not thinking of. Wait, I got it, smarty pants, which
00:02:05
Speaker 2: of these could help me fall asleep? A bedtime story,
00:02:08
Speaker 2: a bedtime salad, or a bedtime sing along? Did you
00:02:12
Speaker 2: say a bedtime story?
00:02:14
Speaker 3: Yep?
00:02:15
Speaker 2: I bet a nice bedtime story could put me right
00:02:18
Speaker 2: to sleep. But who could I get to read me
00:02:24
Speaker 2: a bedtime story at this hour?
00:02:26
Speaker 1: Oh? I know?
00:02:27
Speaker 2: I bet Chet Nickerson is awake. That guy never sleeps.
00:02:32
Speaker 3: Hello, Chet Nickerson answering, Hey, Chet, it's me Trusty.
00:02:37
Speaker 2: I can't sleep.
00:02:38
Speaker 3: Have you tried eating an entire box oh chips, a
00:02:42
Speaker 3: hoy cookies? No, good because that definitely will not work.
00:02:51
Speaker 2: Okay, this might sound weird, but any chance you could
00:02:55
Speaker 2: read me a bedtime story?
00:02:58
Speaker 3: I don't have any bedtime stories here, but I could
00:03:02
Speaker 3: tell you the news. There's been three hurricanes, eight fires,
00:03:07
Speaker 3: a tsunami, and a rhinoceros on the loose. Also, the
00:03:13
Speaker 3: stock market is down. You just lost a lot of money.
00:03:20
Speaker 3: And now sports your favorite team just lost again by
00:03:26
Speaker 3: a lot. It wasn't even close, you know.
00:03:31
Speaker 2: Chet. Maybe the news isn't the best thing to fall
00:03:34
Speaker 2: asleep to.
00:03:35
Speaker 3: Ah, probably not. Maybe that's why I never sleep. Whoo,
00:03:40
Speaker 3: they just caught the rhinoceros.
00:03:41
Speaker 2: Gotta go great Now I'm even more wide awake. Oh well,
00:03:47
Speaker 2: if I'm up, I might as well record some more
00:03:49
Speaker 2: Who's Smarted? Wait a second, that's it. I could listen
00:03:54
Speaker 2: to a bedtime story podcast. Oh and I know just
00:03:58
Speaker 2: the one. My friend Abby at Coco Sleep tells the
00:04:02
Speaker 2: most wonderful original bedtime stories, especially designed to take you
00:04:07
Speaker 2: to dreamland. I'll just put one on and fall asleep
00:04:10
Speaker 2: in no time. Hmm before I use Cocos Sleep original
00:04:14
Speaker 2: bedtime stories to fall asleep. I'm kind of curious where
00:04:18
Speaker 2: did bedtime stories originate? Why are certain stories so good
00:04:22
Speaker 2: at making you fall asleep? And what differentiates a bedtime
00:04:25
Speaker 2: story from a story story? Oh well, I can look
00:04:28
Speaker 2: that up in the morning. Back to Coco Sleep.
00:04:32
Speaker 1: Hello, trusting narrator, if you want to know the answers
00:04:35
Speaker 1: to your bedtime story questions?
00:04:37
Speaker 2: If I can help you, Abby from Coco Sleep? Are
00:04:41
Speaker 2: you talking to me?
00:04:43
Speaker 1: Are there any other trusting narrators out there?
00:04:45
Speaker 2: I don't think so, but there are a lot of
00:04:48
Speaker 2: smarty pants and Coco Sleep listeners. Wait, how are you
00:04:52
Speaker 2: talking to me through your podcast?
00:04:54
Speaker 1: Actually? This is my phone. I think you called me
00:04:57
Speaker 1: by mistake.
00:04:58
Speaker 3: Oops.
00:04:58
Speaker 2: I guess I'm a little sleepy after all. Sorry to
00:05:01
Speaker 2: call so late?
00:05:02
Speaker 1: Is okay? I'm in the UK with five hours ahead,
00:05:06
Speaker 1: so I was just having my morning coffee.
00:05:08
Speaker 2: Who well, in that case, Abby, I'd love to take
00:05:11
Speaker 2: you up on your offer to tell us about bedtime stories.
00:05:14
Speaker 2: Get ready for a big whiff of science, history and
00:05:17
Speaker 2: Coco Sleep on.
00:05:20
Speaker 3: How smarted? Who's smarted? Who smart? Is it good? Does
00:05:28
Speaker 3: it me? Is it science or history? Listen up, everyone,
00:05:36
Speaker 3: Why that's smarting? Lots of fun? How smart? Ah?
00:05:46
Speaker 2: If only I could be making that sound instead of
00:05:48
Speaker 2: hearing this, but hopefully a good bedtime story can change
00:05:55
Speaker 2: all that.
00:05:56
Speaker 3: Abby.
00:05:56
Speaker 2: What exactly is a bedtime story?
00:06:00
Speaker 1: A bedtime story is a very sleepy version of a
00:06:03
Speaker 1: traditional story told to a child or trusting narrator at
00:06:07
Speaker 1: bedtime to prepare the child or trusting narrator for sleep.
00:06:12
Speaker 1: For many families, a bedtime story is part of their
00:06:15
Speaker 1: nightly bedtime routine or ritual.
00:06:18
Speaker 2: Smarty pants true or false? We know when the first
00:06:22
Speaker 2: bedtime stories were told? The answer is false. Ah, there's
00:06:27
Speaker 2: no way of knowing exactly when the first bedtime stories
00:06:30
Speaker 2: were told, because humans have been telling each other stories
00:06:33
Speaker 2: as long as they've had the ability to communicate. Smarty
00:06:38
Speaker 2: pants true or false? We know when the term bedtime
00:06:42
Speaker 2: stories was first invented. The answer, surprisingly is true. The
00:06:49
Speaker 2: term bedtime story was coined by author Luis Chandler Moulton
00:06:54
Speaker 2: in her eighteen seventy three book titled Bedtime Stories, which
00:06:58
Speaker 2: included classic tales like What Birdie Did, Mark Granger's New Dress,
00:07:03
Speaker 2: and Mister Turk and What Became of Him. These stories
00:07:07
Speaker 2: don't sound very.
00:07:08
Speaker 1: Familiar, no, but that's the beauty of a bedtime story.
00:07:12
Speaker 1: It doesn't have to be familiar or well known to
00:07:15
Speaker 1: be effective on cocos sleep. We create original stories with
00:07:19
Speaker 1: original characters, especially designed to help thousands of children fall
00:07:24
Speaker 1: asleep each night.
00:07:25
Speaker 2: And one trusting narrator. But first, why are bedtime stories
00:07:30
Speaker 2: so good at helping you fall asleep? Abby?
00:07:33
Speaker 1: Bedtime stories make us sleepy because they're designed to make
00:07:37
Speaker 1: us relax, and when we're relaxed, all our thoughts in
00:07:40
Speaker 1: our busy heads have been paused until tomorrow, so we
00:07:44
Speaker 1: find ourselves asleep before we know it. Storytelling has always
00:07:50
Speaker 1: been a big part of being human, but the bedtime
00:07:53
Speaker 1: story really kicked in in the early twentieth century when
00:07:57
Speaker 1: researchers realize that soothing rituals were necessary to help children
00:08:02
Speaker 1: fall asleep. And it's true. Bedtime stories are still popular
00:08:07
Speaker 1: not only because story time is a lovely way for
00:08:10
Speaker 1: families to spend time together, but also because it's great
00:08:14
Speaker 1: for taking us away from the real world towards dreamland.
00:08:18
Speaker 1: As we listen to a story, any thoughts that could
00:08:22
Speaker 1: keep us awake float away, and instead we use our imagination.
00:08:27
Speaker 1: As the lovely images and funny storylines play out in
00:08:31
Speaker 1: our heads, we soon drift off and begin to dream instead.
00:08:41
Speaker 2: That's great, but I have to ask what makes a
00:08:44
Speaker 2: bedtime story different from a story story. As a trusting narrator,
00:08:48
Speaker 2: I tell stories all the time, but I wouldn't want
00:08:51
Speaker 2: the smarty pants falling asleep during them, although I'm sure
00:08:54
Speaker 2: some do. Go ahead admit it, I thought so.
00:09:00
Speaker 1: Well. Firstly, a bedtime story has to make us feel
00:09:03
Speaker 1: all warm and fuzzy inside. Nothing scary or sad ever,
00:09:09
Speaker 1: happens in the land of bedtime stories. In order to sleep,
00:09:13
Speaker 1: we have to get relaxed, and a relaxing story has
00:09:17
Speaker 1: to be about nice things like talking animals, space rockets,
00:09:22
Speaker 1: far away lands, or with sprinkles of magic instead of
00:09:29
Speaker 1: there being problems to solve or villains to beat, has
00:09:33
Speaker 1: a funny adventure to go on, all lots of kind
00:09:35
Speaker 1: friends to meet.
00:09:37
Speaker 2: Also, it's not just the story, is it, smarty Pants?
00:09:40
Speaker 2: What else makes a bedtime story so effective? Did you
00:09:45
Speaker 2: say the way it's told? That's right.
00:09:50
Speaker 3: This is Chet Nickerson interrupting trusty narrators bedtime story with
00:09:54
Speaker 3: some weight breaking news. The escaped rhinoceros that was captured
00:09:59
Speaker 3: turned to not to be a rhinoceros at all, but
00:10:02
Speaker 3: rather two pranksters wearing a rhinoceros costume. When asked why
00:10:07
Speaker 3: they did it, they answered, how do Rhino Paha get it?
00:10:12
Speaker 3: They trusty? Did my story help make you feel sleepy?
00:10:17
Speaker 3: No Ah, that's too bad. This is Chet Nickerson reporting
00:10:22
Speaker 3: on a wave of insomnia sweeping the city with no
00:10:26
Speaker 3: end in sight. Details at eleven.
00:10:30
Speaker 1: Oh that was a little bit exciting, wasn't it?
00:10:33
Speaker 2: It was? So Why was Chet's story, while mildly amusing,
00:10:37
Speaker 2: not good at making me sleepy?
00:10:39
Speaker 1: Newsreaders need to get everyone's attention, whereas when we're trying
00:10:43
Speaker 1: to talk somebody to sleep, we're trying to be a
00:10:46
Speaker 1: little bit softer in our delivery.
00:10:48
Speaker 2: Good point so abby? How should a bedtime story be told?
00:10:53
Speaker 1: Bedtime stories are best told at a pace that is
00:10:57
Speaker 1: slow and gentle, and gets slower and slower towards the
00:11:01
Speaker 1: end of the story. So we never want a bedtime
00:11:05
Speaker 1: story to feel attention grabby like this. Settle down in
00:11:10
Speaker 1: your bed and close your eyes. If you need to
00:11:14
Speaker 1: wriggle your fingers and toes, give your arms and legs
00:11:18
Speaker 1: a little shake to get rid of any leftover energy
00:11:21
Speaker 1: from the day. We want it to be slow, soft
00:11:27
Speaker 1: and relaxing like this. Settle down in your bed, and
00:11:32
Speaker 1: close your eyes if you need to, wriggle your fingers
00:11:37
Speaker 1: and toes. Give your arms and legs a little shake
00:11:41
Speaker 1: to get rid of any leftover energy from the day.
00:11:45
Speaker 1: Snuggle down a bit more and let a soft smile
00:11:49
Speaker 1: settle gently on your face.
00:11:52
Speaker 2: Oh wow, just your voice and the way you're speaking
00:11:55
Speaker 2: is already putting me in the mood to fall asleep.
00:11:57
Speaker 1: Not effects, none taken. That's the goal of cocoa sleep
00:12:01
Speaker 1: and the stories we tell.
00:12:03
Speaker 2: I've noticed many bedtime stories have animals in them, especially
00:12:07
Speaker 2: talking animals.
00:12:08
Speaker 1: Great observation trustee. Animals are great to use in bedtime
00:12:13
Speaker 1: stories because you don't have to ask or wonder how
00:12:16
Speaker 1: old they are, or where their parents are, or why
00:12:19
Speaker 1: they're alone or solitary. Animals can go places on their
00:12:24
Speaker 1: own without a guardian. There removes a lot of the
00:12:27
Speaker 1: worries a kid might have. Animals also tend to be softer, cuter, fuzzier,
00:12:33
Speaker 1: and a lot more fun smarty pants.
00:12:36
Speaker 2: Besides talking animals, what other elements help make up a
00:12:40
Speaker 2: good bedtime story? Go ahead, call them out. Uh huh
00:12:45
Speaker 2: uh huh uh huh, I heard some good answers. We'll
00:12:48
Speaker 2: find out what Abby has to say, right after this
00:12:50
Speaker 2: quick break, Now back to Who's Smarted? So abby. What
00:13:00
Speaker 2: elements do you find help make up a good bedtime story?
00:13:03
Speaker 1: Well, bedtime stories are best when they take place in
00:13:07
Speaker 1: far away lands or different worlds, as this can help
00:13:11
Speaker 1: put us closer to dreamland and eliminate any real life worries. Ah,
00:13:18
Speaker 1: It's always best when our characters follow a quest with
00:13:21
Speaker 1: a simple goal finding a place or a person or object.
00:13:27
Speaker 1: This keeps the brain from having to work too hard
00:13:29
Speaker 1: to follow the story. And of course, the loveliest bedtime
00:13:34
Speaker 1: stories are about being kind to yourself and others, feeling safe, loved,
00:13:41
Speaker 1: and able to be yourself.
00:13:43
Speaker 3: That sounds great.
00:13:45
Speaker 1: We also like to add meditation elements, encouraging you to
00:13:49
Speaker 1: breathe deeply and focus on lovely images of nature until
00:13:53
Speaker 1: your worries drift away and dreamland appears on the horizon. Trusty,
00:14:02
Speaker 1: did you just fall asleep?
00:14:04
Speaker 2: Huh? Huh? What? No? No, no, I would never fall
00:14:07
Speaker 2: asleep during an episode of Who's Smarted? Anyways, I was
00:14:12
Speaker 2: just wondering. Are there things that bedtime story shouldn't include?
00:14:16
Speaker 1: Absolutely? Bedtime stories shouldn't include anything that makes us worried, scared,
00:14:22
Speaker 1: or stressed because any of these feelings would make us
00:14:25
Speaker 1: feel awake in an instant. So bedtime stories should not
00:14:29
Speaker 1: include any danger or conflict. No scary monsters or getting
00:14:38
Speaker 1: lost in the dark, no arguing, and certainly no shouting.
00:14:44
Speaker 2: That's interesting because some of the classic fairy tales like
00:14:47
Speaker 2: the Three Little Pigs or Little Red Riding Hood have
00:14:50
Speaker 2: actual danger and scary big bad wolves.
00:14:53
Speaker 1: That's true, which is why we find those aren't the
00:14:56
Speaker 1: best stories to read at bedtime. The key is to
00:15:00
Speaker 1: make the child relaxed and fall asleep, not frighten them
00:15:04
Speaker 1: or have them asking all kinds of questions like did
00:15:07
Speaker 1: the wolf actually eat Grandma?
00:15:10
Speaker 2: Good point? Besides falling asleep? Are there other benefits to
00:15:14
Speaker 2: bedtime stories?
00:15:15
Speaker 1: Definitely? Reading bedtime stories has benefits for both children and parents.
00:15:21
Speaker 1: The fixed routine of a bedtime story before bedtime can
00:15:25
Speaker 1: improve a child's brain development, language mastery, and logical thinking skills.
00:15:32
Speaker 1: Bedtime stories are also great at teaching children values such
00:15:37
Speaker 1: as sympathy, selflessness, and self control.
00:15:41
Speaker 2: But bedtime stories aren't just for kids.
00:15:43
Speaker 3: Are they?
00:15:44
Speaker 2: Please say no? Please say no, Please say.
00:15:46
Speaker 1: No, Believe it or not? No? Yes? Adult versions of
00:15:52
Speaker 1: bedtime stories in the form of audiobooks and podcasts help
00:15:56
Speaker 1: adults fall asleep without finishing the story. Ah, we have
00:16:01
Speaker 1: many adults who love falling asleep to Coco Sleep or
00:16:04
Speaker 1: stories on the Sleepyes mobile app.
00:16:07
Speaker 2: This was great, Abby, I learned about bedtime stories and
00:16:10
Speaker 2: now I'm ready to have you tell me one so
00:16:12
Speaker 2: I can finally fall asleep. After all, I need rest
00:16:15
Speaker 2: before recording more.
00:16:16
Speaker 1: Who's smart it Actually, it's gotten a little late and
00:16:20
Speaker 1: I have to record my Coco Sleep podcast. I can't
00:16:23
Speaker 1: tell you a bedtime story right now. I'm so sorry. Trusty.
00:16:27
Speaker 3: That's okay, Abby, No worries, Trusty chat Nickerson here with
00:16:32
Speaker 3: another breaking news bulletin.
00:16:34
Speaker 2: Nope, I'll just listen to Coco Sleep all right.
00:16:38
Speaker 1: Well, I guess I'll be going. It's been fun chatting
00:16:42
Speaker 1: with you, the smarty pants and everyone listening. Hello, trusting narrator.
00:16:54
Speaker 1: I guess you fall asleep. Sweet dreams everyone.
00:17:01
Speaker 2: A big beautiful shout out to Bethany in London, England.
00:17:04
Speaker 2: Thank you so much for taking Who's Smarted with you
00:17:07
Speaker 2: on long journeys. We love that you love learning interesting
00:17:11
Speaker 2: facts as much as we love telling them. Also, a
00:17:14
Speaker 2: big thank you to our friends at Sleepiest and Coco
00:17:17
Speaker 2: Sleep Jenna Clark and Abby Offer. Of course that's Coco Sleep,
00:17:22
Speaker 2: Ko Ko Sleep. This episode, Bedtime Stories was written by
00:17:26
Speaker 2: Adam tex Davis, Abby Offer, Jenna Clark, Susannah McLaughlin and
00:17:31
Speaker 2: Jillian Rogerson and voiced by Abby Offer, Adam tex Davis
00:17:34
Speaker 2: and Jerry Colbert. Technical direction and sound design by Josh
00:17:38
Speaker 2: Han Who's Smarted as recorded and mixed at the Relic
00:17:41
Speaker 2: Room Studios. Our associate producer is Max Kamaski. The theme
00:17:44
Speaker 2: song is by Brian Suarez with lyrics written and performed
00:17:47
Speaker 2: by Adam tex Davis. Who's Smarted was created and produced
00:17:50
Speaker 2: by Adam tex Davis and Jerry Colber. This has been
00:17:53
Speaker 2: an Atomic Entertainment production
00:18:01
Speaker 1: To the Slop