Understanding Sleep Cycles and REM Sleep

WEEK 30 1 Directions Read the text and then answer the questions. SCORE When you go to sleep at night, you probably think that you are not doing much. Your body is in one place, your eyes are closed, and you don’t talk to people. But your body is doing more than you think it is! Scientists have used special, sophisticated machines to study the way people sleep. They have found that your brain is actually very busy when you sleep. There are several stages of sleep in a sleep cycle. You go through the sleep cycle multiple times each night. Your brain’s activity level is a little different in each stage. The final stage of the cycle is called rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. During REM, your eyes are moving even though you are asleep. That is how this stage got its name. Most of your dreams occur during REM sleep. 1. A B C D 2. A B C D 3. A B C D What is your brain doing while you are sleeping? It is not able to work. It is only a little busy. It is also asleep. 4. A B C D Which is a synonym for occur? 5. Which word describes the tone of this text? run 1. Y N 2. Y N 3. Y N 4. Y N 5. Y N sleep happen wake It is very busy. What is true about people during REM sleep? They dream. They are awake. They talk a lot. They feel sick. How else could you say asleep? slept sleep sleeping sleepwalk  A B C D informative cautionary funny serious ___ / 5 Total WEEK 30 DAY 2 _ Directions _ Read the text and then answer the questions. SCORE 1. Y N 2. Y N 3. Y N 4. Y N 5. Y N ___ / 5 Total Do you ever remember your dreams? You may not remember what you dream, but you probably dream every night—almost everyone does. Why do you have dreams? Scientists disagree on exactly why you dream. Some say it is your brain’s way of processing things. You learn a lot and have a lot of things happen to you, so while you sleep, your brain processes that information. Dreaming might be the way your brain makes sense of what happens to you. Some say that dreams are the way your brain solves problems. Suppose you are upset about something. Dreams may be a way for your brain to help you feel better. People may not agree on why you dream. But everyone agrees that dreaming is very important. You need to dream so that your brain is ready for the next day. 1. A B C D What is this text mostly about? 2. Which statement about dreams is not true? A B C D 3. A B C D how to fall asleep where to find a good bed how many hours of sleep you need dreams 4. A B C D Which is an antonym of remember? 5. What do we process in the same way we process information? A B C D Nobody knows exactly why people dream. Only a few people dream. Dreaming is very important. There are several ideas about why people dream. What does the prefix dis– in the word disagree mean? large not water with  sleep talk forget recall problems socks products paper WEEK 30 DAY _ _ Directions 3 Read the text and then answer the questions. SCORE Sleep is a very important part of staying healthy. When you are asleep, your brain uses that time to take care of itself. Some scientists think your brain sorts things out when you sleep and that it also replaces chemicals it needs. The rest of your body needs sleep, too. While you are sleeping, your body stays busy by using that time to heal itself. It also uses that time to build up your immune system, which is the system your body uses to fight off germs. Your body also uses your sleep time to build up muscles, bones, and tissues so that you can grow. Sleep helps you think clearly and stay in a better mood. That helps you to cope better with a busy day. 1. A B C D 2. A B C D 3. A B C D What would be a good title for this text? How the Brain Helps You Learn Why Do We Sleep? Build Up Your Muscles! How Does the Immune System Work? Which of these is not something your body does when you are asleep? heals itself builds up muscles, bones, and tissues helps you feel full builds up your immune system Which system helps your body fight off germs? tissue chemical sleep immune  4. A B C D Which is a synonym for busy? 5. What does the phrase cope with mean? A B C D active 1. Y N 2. Y N 3. Y N 4. Y N 5. Y N asleep resting absent manage avoid fear desire ___ / 5 Total WEEK 30 DAYS 4–5 _ _ Sweet Dreams A good night’s sleep is very important for your health. Your brain and your body use that time to do all kinds of things that they cannot do as well when you’re awake. How much sleep do you need? Every person is a little different, but many experts say that children need about ten hours of sleep per night. So if you wake up at seven o’clock to go to school, you should be going to bed by nine o’clock at night. Sometimes it’s not easy to fall asleep quickly, though. You might have a lot of energy. Or you might be excited about something. Maybe you’re worried about something. When that happens, it’s hard to get sleepy. Here are some things you can do to make it easier for you to get the sleep you need: • Keep your body in a routine by going to bed at the same time every night. • Do something calming right before bedtime, such as taking a warm bath or reading. • Limit sodas, iced tea, and other foods and drinks that contain caffeine. • Turn off your TV when it is time to sleep. Better yet, don’t have a TV in your room. Studies show that children who have a TV in their rooms sleep less. • Don’t watch scary TV shows or movies close to bedtime because these can sometimes make it hard to fall asleep. • Exercise during the day—it will help you sleep better at night. But don't exercise just before going to bed. • Don't do homework, read, play games, or talk on the phone in bed. Use your bed just for sleeping—you’ll train your body to associate your bed with sleep. If you follow these handy tips, you will get yourself relaxed before bedtime. Then, it will be easier for you to fall asleep and stay asleep.