Potty Training - How to Teach Your Child to Use the Potty Or Toilet

Every child is different. Some children will be ready to use the potty or toilet at 2 years old and others won't be ready until they are 2 ½ or even older. Just remember, there is no rush and if you start potty training too early it will probably take longer; it is always best to wait until your child is ready and starts showing an interest in potty training. Another tip is to ensure that nothing significant will be happening in your child's life whilst he/she is learning how to use the potty e.g. the arrival of a new sibling, moving home, starting nursery.

So, how do you know when your child is ready for potty training? There are a few signs you should look out for:

1. Your child regularly poos at a certain time of day


2. Your child is uncomfortable with a wet nappy and asks for a clean one


3. Your child can follow simple spoken instructions


4. Your child asks to use the potty or toilet


5. Your child can stay dry for 2 hours or more during the day and can stay dry through his/her daytime naps


6. You can tell when your child wants to wee or poo from his/her facial expressions, posture or words


7. Your child asks to wear potty training pants or underwear


8. Your child can pull their pants up and down

To introduce them to the idea of using the potty or toilet you could allow them to choose their own potty or potty chair. In the beginning, let them sit on the potty a few times a day with their clothes on so they become comfortable with the potty. Once they are comfortable sitting on it they can try it without a nappy. Make sure you encourage and praise them at every step.

If your child poos at certain times of the day try to get him/her to sit on the potty at this time, and give lots of praise if you "catch" something. There will be lots of mistakes while your child is learning to go to the toilet so always be patient and don't get angry with them when they do slip up. It is also a good idea to schedule in regular toilet visits as your child will often need a gentle reminder.

To summarise some tips for success:

1. Let your child help to choose the potty


2. Let your child sit on the potty a few times a day so they get comfortable with it


3. If it's warm enough let your child run around with nothing on his bottom half to make it easier to go to the potty or toilet


4. Use trainer pants if you are away from home or for the in-between stage of potty training


5. Don't get cross when your child has an accident


6. If you have a boy it is probably easier to show him how to have a wee sitting down on the potty, and when he has mastered this he can be shown how to wee standing up


7. Don't expect your child to be able to control his/her bladder at night-time if he/she can do so in the day as this will take a lot longer to master

Hopefully these tips will help you to potty train your child successfully. Please do remember that if your child is resistant or gets upset while you're trying to teach them to use the potty it is best to wait a few weeks and then try again at a later date.

Cat.

Written by Cat Scrivens, Author of http://www.baby-solutions.co.uk blog. Please visit my blog to read related articles and to make suggestions on future articles.