How to Stay Up Late Secretly

Planning and Gathering Supplies

Make a map of your house. If you’re planning to leave your room, you need to keep track of where the creaky floorboards are. You can also look up methods to sneak around silently. You can either memorize them or sketch a rough outline of the stairs or hallway on a piece of paper. Then mark the noisy spots on it as you find them throughout the day.

Sneak beverages and snacks into your room. You’ll probably get hungry or thirsty while staying up late, so during the day, sneak some bottles of water and snacks out of the kitchen and into your room. Hide them under the bed if there’s any chance your parents will go into your closet before the end of the day. Choose energy drinks or caffeinated beverages if you’re worried about getting tired. Select quiet snacks like bread or fresh fruit instead of chips or cereal, which will be in loud, crinkly bags.

Gather books and electronic devices. If you’re staying up late to do homework, gather all your books, papers, and pencils together in your room so you don’t have to find them later. If you’re staying up for fun, hide some entertainment under your pillow: a book, your phone, or a handheld gaming device. Make sure any electronic devices are fully charged so that they last through the night.

Find light sources. You’ll probably have to turn your bedroom light off at some point to pretend you’ve gone to sleep. If you plan to read a book or do any writing or drawing, track down a book light or flashlight and store this near your bed so you can read under the covers.

Take a late nap. If you have time in the late afternoon, take a quick nap. Grabbing an hour or so of sleep now will help you make it through the night later.

Pretending to Sleep

Go to bed at your regular time. Avoid rushing to bed early or trying to push your bedtime later. Either of these behaviors could make your parents suspicious. Instead, maintain your regular schedule to prevent unwanted attention.

Turn off the light. If you leave the light on, your parents will see it through the crack under the door. Keep it off until after they’ve gone to bed. Once everyone is asleep, you can turn it back on. Just shove a blanket around the bottom of the door to block excess light in case anyone gets up to go to the bathroom.

Listen for hints of activity in the house. Keep tabs on when everyone goes to bed. If you hear footsteps outside your door, shove your belongings under the covers in case your parents are coming to check on you. If someone does come in, immediately lay motionless and breathe evenly in order to appear asleep.

Keep yourself awake. If you’re worried you’re going to fall asleep, find things to do on your phone or tablet. Try texting with a friend or playing a fun game. Sip water and try to save the energy drink for later since drinking it this early could cause you to crash. If you share a room with a sibling, you’ll need to do this under the covers or even wait until they've drifted off to sleep.

Mute electronic devices. Be sure your sounds are all the way off, even the vibrate function, since this still makes some noise. Headphones are another option, but you risk not hearing your parents’ footsteps outside your door. Also, dim the screen down as far as it can go. If you need to quickly shove your device under the covers, it will be less noticeable. Even if you don't usually do this, keep the blanket under your legs. If your screen brightness is down really low and your device is near your legs, it is harder to see the light. Try this if there is no quick hiding spot for your preferred electronic device.

Wait until everyone is asleep. After your parents go to bed, you may have to wait up to an hour to be completely sure they’re asleep. If you share a room with a sibling or with your parents, listen for deep, even breathing.

Sneaking around the House

Think of a good excuse if your parents catch you awake. If you’re discovered awake, say that you’re just going to the bathroom or are getting a glass of water. Another plausible excuse is "I couldn't sleep." Try saying you had a bad dream and needed to distract yourself for a few minutes. You could also say you thought you heard a noise downstairs (or somewhere else that would make sense for your house) and wanted to make sure everything was okay.

Invite a friend or sibling you trust. If you have a sibling or a friend spending the night, ask them to join you to make the night more fun. Just be sure your sibling won’t tell on you the next day. Make it clear that if they keep it a secret, you two can do this again sometime. Keep your voices down to a whisper as you move around the house, and try not to make each other laugh. Let the dog or cat join you too if you know they'll be quiet. If the dog will bark, you may need to stay inside your room all night.

Move slowly. Take slow, soft steps on the balls of your feet if you’re going to leave your room. Avoid any of the areas you determined could have a creaky floorboard. And turn doorknobs slowly to avoid any loud clicks.

Turn down the TV volume. If you want to watch TV while you’re up, turn it on and then immediately hold down the button to decrease the volume. You never know how loud it was when it was turned off. Keep it as low as possible so that even if your parents get up to go to the bathroom, they might not hear it. Another option would be to use headphones. If you have a TV in your room, be sure to place a blanket or towel at the base of your door. This will block any light from the TV from leaking out into the hallway.

Limit your bathroom trips. Try to go to the bathroom as infrequently as possible in order to cut down on noise. Limiting your beverage intake will help with this. Also consider not flushing the toilet until the morning, right before you hop back into bed.

Keep your eye on the clock. Once it's time to wake up, revert your room to its normal mode. Hide your snacks in the closet, and slide into bed. Pretend that you’re sleeping when your alarm clock rings or your parents come to wake you up.