The Big Question: Why do we dream? | Newsround

there's a lot of discussion around this as there's  a lot that experts don't know about why people   dream and where they come from I always thought  dreams were just something to watch to pass the   time while you slept what we do know is that  dreams occur during a period of sleep called   R.E.M. sleep this stands for rapid eye movement  it's a part of sleep unique to mammals and a key   feature is random fast movement of the eye during  this stage our brain becomes more active and   starts creating images and stories in response  to our thoughts and emotions it's thought that   the dreams might help us analyse and remember the  events of our day-to-day life or perhaps that our   dreams are rehearsals for different situations  and challenges you might face during your waking   hours I'm not sure why my brain thinks I'm  so likely to encounter a dinosaur though

Share your thoughts