Background: Sleep is essential for preserving physical and psychological health and developing children's cognition, emotions, and behavior. This study aimed to document the sleep habits of children aged six to 17 years in Saudi Arabia and the relationship between healthy sleep habits and children's academic performance. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study conducted in Saudi Arabia using the connivance sampling technique. We distributed surveys to parents regarding their children’s sleep habits, demographic information, and academic performance. The surveys were distributed electronically through social media to the parents for self-completion, and each parent provided informed consent to participate in this study. The survey was created using a validated tool: the Child and Adolescent Sleep Checklist (CASC). CASC scores of 18 or higher indicate poor sleep, and lower scores indicate better sleep. The data were analyzed by IBM SPSS Statistics for Windows, Version 22.0. (Armonk, NY: IBM Corp.). We used the chi-squared test to determine statistical significance between dependent and independent categorical data, and p≤0.05 was considered significant. Results: This study included 335 respondents. Most children were aged eight to 10 years (42.4 %), and 54.3% were females, 45.7% were males. According to the CASC questionnaire, 11.9% of children had a CASC score >18, which indicates sleep problems. Lower CSAC scores (indicating better sleep habits) were significantly associated with better academic scores (p=0.001). Moreover, children with sleep problems have a 5.46-fold higher risk of difficulty studying than those without sleep problems (odds ratio, 5.46; 95% confidence interval, 1.738 and 17.155; p=0.003). Conclusion: We found a relationship between sleep quality and academic performance in children and adolescents. Improving the sleep quality of children should be a primary goal among parents, educators, and physicians. More investigations about the effect of demographic factors on sleep patterns and controlling these demographic factors should be conducted.
