Successful Potty Training Tips and Techniques for Toddlers

Potty training toddlers can be difficult. The most important things to remember are to be patient and consistent.

Before you even undertake potty training your child, first make sure she is ready. She will start talking about her bodily functions, letting you know when she is wet or messy. She may even want to help clean herself up after soiling her diaper. Perhaps she shows interest when you use the bathroom.

Another important part of toilet training readiness is the ability to pull his own pants up and down.

Decide upon the techniques you wish to use prior to starting the potty training process. Share these processes with all other caregivers involved with the child so that everyone is consistent. For example, are you going to use a smaller seat placed upon the larger toilet or a separate little potty chair? Is there only one bathroom that will be designated for the young child to practice toileting skills or will all bathrooms be appropriately set up?

What kind of reward system will you utilize? Some people like to use M & Ms, giving one for #1 and giving two for #2. Others buy, create, or print a potty training chart. Hang it in a prominent place so that everyone can watch the stickers grow. Work toward a special prize.

Decide if you are moving from diapers to pull-ups or directly to underwear. If you decide to go straight for the underwear, do not backtrack to the pull-ups at a later date. Using underwear requires a serious commitment. Pull-ups allow the child to still have toileting accidents with an easy clean-up. It's more convenient for the adult. When in underwear, the child who has an accident has an immediate, natural consequence and will try harder to avoid the unpleasantness later. If you keep alternating between pull-ups and underwear, the child can easily become confused and the potty training process can take even longer.

In the summer, when it is warmer, you could even try allowing your child to run around completely naked. Again, there is an immediate, natural consequence to not going to the bathroom when the feeling is there.