I may have mentioned that I was a war baby. If not, I was. That meant that Dad worked 12 hours at the Siddeley and Mum continued to cope when he spent half the night doing his duty as an air-raid warden. So bed, I understand, became very precious. And that feeling was passed on to me and my sister. Of course we rebelled a bit as teenagers but in general we respected the hours set aside for sleep. The evening ritual of blacking-out, locking up and filling the kettle lived with us for many years.
But that’s a thing of the past. I read that school children now catch up on their sleep in the classroom and students are too tired to study – because the night is now their time for recreation – from computer games to discos and their associated refreshments.
Not sure what to recommend as a cure for this chronic malaise. Maybe a rerun of the Magic Roundabout wouldn’t come amiss.
Boadicea's Chariot 
I would recommend parental discipline, but it’s probably too late in many cases.
“Time for bed”, said Florence.
“Boing”, said Zeberdee.
Jasper Carrott, circa 1974.
OZ
Hello Janus, I started writing a comment here but got carried away and ended up writing my own post. Here. https://charioteers.org/2012/03/01/childhood/
Yes, but discipline is a dirty word in many homes.
Sipu, there’s a charge for advertising on my posts! 😮