Top 10 Potty Training Tips For Your Toddler
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Are you a proud mother of a growing toddler, and do you think it’s now time to potty train him? Are you looking for some simple tips and directions on how to potty train a toddler? If you said yes, it might be a good idea for you to read our post below.
Once your little one is 2-3 years old, you must use effective methods to potty train him. Your kid easily adapts to the new changes in his life and performs the activities independently. Teach him all the basic activities related to toddler potty training, like washing his hands or using the toilet properly. Proper potty training makes your toddler more aware of the basic hygiene prospects. In this article, we talk about some important tips on potty training for toddlers.
Basics Facts On How To Potty Train A Toddler:
- Most toddlers learn the etiquette of potty training at the age of 24 to 27 months. Although some kids are ready at much lower age, some others are not ready until they turn five.
- Your toddler needs to be at least 20 months old to be potty trained. At this age, she may know how to walk to the bathroom and pull her pants down without your help. However, if your toddler’s age falls below 20 months, she cannot walk or perform the activities on her own.
- If your toddler urinates eight to ten times a day in her diaper, she is not ready for potty training. Your toddler needs to remain dry for at least 4-5 hours. Otherwise, the training is a complete waste of time.
- Your toddler is prone to throw tantrums and suffer from bouts of inattentiveness while being potty trained. Try to remain calm and patient while you potty train your toddler.
- You can begin potty training your toddler at any age after 24 months. But your kid’s biology, readiness, and learning skills determine whether she can complete potty training effectively (1).
[ Read: Best Bathtubs For Toddlers ]
What Is Potty Training?
Potty training is an assisted learning technique to help your toddler learn the perfect mannerism to excrete urine and stool. The training procedure boosts the learning ability of your toddler, as she uses the toilet independently. She learns to urinate or pass the bowel movement successfully in the toilet.
Successful potty training is an important milestone for both you and your child. Potty training teaches the toddler to control her urination and remain dry for a longer period. Potty training is a natural function that requires toddler’s desire coupled with her biological maturity to master controlling both urination as well as the bowel movements (2).
How To Know Whether Your Toddler Is Ready For Potty Training?
Here are some of the physiological aspects or signs toddler is ready to potty train. They may help you determine whether your toddler is ready for potty training:
1. Physiological Ability:
Your toddler’s bladder and bowel function reach maturity stage at 18 months of age. In such stage of neurological maturity, your toddler gains proper control of bladder and rectal sphincter. As soon as your toddler learns to control urination and stool for several hours, you can effectively start potty training your little angel.
2. Developmental Skills:
As your growing toddler can walk and sit on the toilet seat independently; her body allows her to learn the new things. She becomes capable of pulling clothes up and down and uses her expressive language skills to indicate her toilet urge verbally.
3. Behavioral Maturity:
Your toddler needs to be mature enough to learn the potty training basics interestingly. With proper behavioral maturity, she tries to imitate you and learn the potty etiquettes properly. But with oppositional or immature behavior it becomes hard for you to potty train toddler (3).
Preliminary Steps To Potty Training A Toddler:
Here are some of the preliminary steps to potty train your toddler:
- Teach her an easy name to indicate that she wants to urinate. Use simple words like Pee or poop. Remember that your toddler uses the following terms both at home as well as in public. The terms help them express their urge to visit the toilet and as a parent you should never feel ashamed in public.
- Buy a comfortable and well-designed potty chair for your toddler. Attempting to use an adult toilet prevents your toddler to pass the bowel movements with great ease and her legs may not reach the ground. To avoid such uncomfortable circumstances, buy a colorful baby potty chair for your little angel.
- Show her the effective sitting posture. By noticing your posture, your toddler tries to imitate the same thing and learns to sit in the potty chair.
- When your child gets ready, let her practice pulling the pants or skirts on and off independently. Provide her the potty chair and ask her to use it. Teach your toddler about proper hygiene and flushing the toilet (4).
10 Tips To Potty Train A Toddler:
The below toddler potty training tips will definitely help to make your little one easy adaptable to the nature call.
1. Start Talking Potty:
Before you art potty training your toddler, try telling her some fun potty stories. Explain that potty is a normal human function, and life process and every person including you went through the stage of potty training. Tell them few interesting potty stories, so that they are keen on learning the procedure. Explain how the complete thing works and make your toddler understand the importance of flushing and personal hygiene. If possible, buy some video DVDs or book of animated characters that explains about potty learning to your kid. Involve your complete family and talk about the thing in most casual manner.
[ Read: Personal Hygiene Habits For Toddlers ]
Some of the popular potty training stories are:
- Dora’s Potty Bookby Melissa Torres
- Flush The Pottyby Ken Wilson-Max
- Elmo’s Potty Time Play-a-Song Book
- Everyone Poopsby Taro Gomi
- Berenstain Baby Bears My Potty and Iby Stan and Jan Berenstain (5)
Some of the popular potty training videos include:
- Go Potty Go! Potty Training for Tiny Toddlers
2. Show How It Is Done!
The best process to potty train your growing toddler is to show her the exact sitting posture and educate how to perform the complete activity. For your little girl, show her how to take off her pants or skirts and sit in the potty chair properly. You can take her to the potty and tell to do it in front of you. You can rectify her mistakes and show her the correct procedure. Make the learning process more fun and interesting, rather than scolding your little one hard. Small children often love to imitate their parents and perform the activity exactly the same way as the elders perform. This trick of imitation is helpful in potty training as well. Ask your little angel tries to imitate your act and sitting posture, she learns the process faster.
[ Read: Steps To Potty Train A Girl ]
3. Positive Bribing:
Your toddler always feels happy and overwhelmed to receive lovely presents from her parents. Induce the habit of bribing your little kid, whenever she uses the potty well. Your kid may feel hesitate to use the wipes and clean the poop all by herself. In such circumstances, the bribing seems quite effective. Motivate her to wipe the Poop using clean tissue paper and wash hands after using the toilet. As she completes the task with great accuracy, gift her few candies or chocolates, as a bribe.
4. Naked Training:
One of the most successful methods of potty training toddler involves letting your little angel go around the room naked and with a top only. As there are no diapers, they may have to rush to the toilet to pee or poop. It ensures that your toddler understands the importance of toilet. When your little angel heads towards the toilet, follow her to observe whether she follows the proper toilet etiquettes including flushing and hand washing. In fact, you toddler may love doing flushing and feel happy to listen to the whooshing sound of flushed waters.
5. Target Practice:
One effective tip to succeed in potty training your toddler involves target practice. If your toddler is a boy, teach him how to stand at the time of peeing. If your boy targets the aim correctly, the urine always falls into the correct place, and your toilet remains clean. For girls, show them the accurate sitting postures on the potty chair, so that they can release the urine completely.
6. Heap Praises:
A successful and good potty training procedure involves praising your little one. As your toddler makes a successful trip made to the potty praise her, to make her feel proud. If they are unable to perform the task perfectly, never scold them. Try to remain calm and patient and make your kid understand the importance of potty and urination. With consistent encouragement and praises, you can potty train your toddler efficiently.
7. Check On Overall Readiness:
For successful toddler potty training, you must check the level of interest and readiness in your toddler. Some of the children are hesitant and are not interested in going through potty training. Do not compel your toddler to learn the thing. It is important for you to consider your toddler’s mental, social, physiological and emotional readiness to use the potty.
8. Introduce The Topic Casually:
One of the great parenting tip to potty train your little toddler involves introducing the topic in the most casual and non-threatening manner. Make your toddler understand that it is a normal physiological process that everyone has to perform in their daily life. Set examples and talk about all other children who are using the same thing in their life. You can bring her to visit the toilet and demonstrate using dolls how the complete process continues.
9. Be Calm And Encourage Her:
The best way to motivate your toddler is a continual encouragement. Keep cheering her as long as she sits on her potty chair. Clap your hands and make her complete task all by herself. You can use a daily potty chart, and rate your toddler on the basis of her performance every day. Put a five star on the potty chart when she does well. In addition to consistent praises, never shout at your kid when she cannot perform the task successfully. Smile and motivate her to do the task again. Don’t get angry at her, as it can frighten her, and your little one may end up making a mess on the carpet.
10. Do Not Stop The Training In Middle:
One of the most confusing things for your toddler is if you stop the potty training regime and make changes abruptly. It is important to make the decision firmly and start training your toddler. On first few days of potty training, you need to have a lot more patience. Do not start the potty training for a couple of days and then in for your hectic schedule make your toddler wear her diapers again. It will confuse your little angel and would make the process of potty training more difficult and rigorous.
[ Read: Potty Training In Three Days ]
Important Points To Remember:
Here are some important points to remember while potty training your child:
- Always maintain a positive attitude that reflects in your interaction with your toddler. Being angry can scare your toddler and make her anxious. This will lead to the slow development and a longer potty training schedule.
- Get your toddler to wear loose-fitting clothes. It becomes simple for her to remove such apparels and sit on the potty seat on her own.
- Teach your toddler about the proper seated position of using the toilet. Comfortable sitting postures help smoothen bowel movement and prevent constipation.
- If you want your little one to use the general toilet seat of your bathroom, place a small step stool, so that she could easily reach up to the potty seat.
- Encourage your toddler to eat high-fiber foods especially leafy vegetables and fresh fruits. Also include the plentiful amount of fluids and water in the daily diet. Proper eating habits help in maintaining the normal excretion process.
- If your toddler loses interest or resists toilet training, do not force her. As she is not mature enough, excess pressure hampers her development process and learning skills. Take your time and resume the training after few months again.
[ Read: Best Potty Seats For Toddlers ]
With effective potty training, your toddler masters the skill and learns to go potty all by herself.
When did you potty train your little one? Was she able to follow your instructions? How long did she take to learn these skills? Share your stories with other mommies here! Comment below.
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