Personal anecdote here, and I’m sure things have changed in 30 years, but I feel like it was never a problem for me to attend class starting at 8:15. I had to get up at 6 or 6:30, do outdoor chores like taking care of animals, including in the dead of winter and lots of snow, get a shower, eat a healthy breakfast, catch the bus by about 7:45, and ride in.

The secret? I had an early bedtime, typically 9pm, at least to start winding down. It definitely wasn’t cool, I didn’t see the interesting late night TV shows, I didn’t go out much during the week, and I generally wasn’t allowed to do sleepovers on school nights. But I had a rich social life, friends, fun and interesting activities, and did among the best at my school.

I know lots of kids who had no bedtimes or who were just in control of getting enough sleep on their own. I don’t think it worked out very well.