Just Five More Minutes? Netflix Launches Bedtime Shows To Outsmart Kids Delay Tactics

“Pleaaaaase Mom! Just one more episode?”

Is this a cry you are familiar with hearing when putting your child to bed?

Perhaps they need to use the bathroom for the sixth time this hour? Maybe their favourite stuffed toy is feeling sick and needs to be comforted? Could it be that there’s a dinosaur hiding under her bed? Or possibly, he just has to ask you ‘one more question’ that simply can’t wait until the morning.

If you think your kid could win an Academy Award in the ‘Most Likely To Find A Ridiculous Excuse Not To Go To Sleep’ category, you are definitely not alone.

In fact, it would appear that your son or daughter might have more competition than you previously thought, because a poll conducted by Ipsos Public Affairs, which sampled 7,277 parents across seven countries (including Canada and the US), found that 61 percent complained of having to deal with creative ways to put off bedtime.

But, when faced with these delaying tactics, Canadians (and Australians) were found to be the least likely to waver, with those North of the border finding your little show-stoppers antics not quite evasive enough to holdup your nightly rituals. We salute you, parents of Canada!

However, if you are not in the 61 percent of the nation (versus a global 51 percent) who won’t buckle under the pressure of bedtime stalling tactics, Netflix, who commissioned the poll, are here to help.

The clever people behind the online streaming service have collaborated with DreamWorks Animation to come up with “5 minute favourites”. The episodes are full stories from the popular kids series, Dinotrux, and tell a complete story from start to finish. The idea behind this is that children will feel like they’ve watched a entire episode (which they have) that lasted the same amount of time as a regular one (which it didn’t).

So next time your kid asks for “just five more minutes”, you can do just that and still have time to fit in a full adventure from Dinotrux. Just don’t let kids of reading-age see the title of the category as you don’t want them catching on to how sneaky you’re being.

The poll suggests that our neighbours in the south seem to be having the most trouble getting their children to nod off at nighttime. American kids came out on top, as the youngsters are more likely to use tricks to stave off sleepy time, with parents spending 19.3 minutes or more getting them to bed nightly.

Sadly, Netflix is yet to come up with a solution for diversions that include being thirsty, hungry, too hot, too cold, or wanting to say goodnight to the dog before lights out. I’m afraid for these you’re on your own!