As your baby grows into a toddler and beyond, there are so many ways they become more and more independent.
Children are usually ready to start learning to use the toilet between about 20 months and three years old, but not all kids are ready at the same age. It’s different for each child depending on their individual development and family.
Signs your child is ready
- Your child can feel when they are wet or dry, and will sometimes tell you.
- Your child is starting to do things on their own without your help.
- They feel like they want to wee and can hold on long enough to make it to the toilet.
Toilet training tips
Encourage your child and try to be positive, calm and patient during toilet training – it may take a while for your toddler to get it right.
Here are some tips to help you and your child with the process:
- Start with a calm, relaxed approach
- Try toilet training during summer because there are fewer clothes to remove (and it’s easier to dry the extra washing)
- Introduce trainer pants or underpants when your child seems ready and help them become familiar with the potty or toilet
- Read potty books. Visit your local library or bookstore to pick up some fun children’s potty books. Let your child help choose
- Introduce the potty in a unintimidating way. Allow the child to touch and sit on the potty without any expectations of actually using it. You may even want to start with a potty chair placed somewhere other than the bathroom.
- Show by example. Allow your child to follow you or a friend through the process of using the bathroom several times. Sometimes it is more effective for them to see a child close to their own age who is successfully using the potty.
- Magic tricks. Add some blue dye (or just some blue toilet bowl cleaner) to your toilet bowl. As your little one pees, the color of the toilet water will change from blue to green. An alternative is to add dish soap to the toilet. When your child pees, they will love watching it foam and bubble upt
- Take your child to the toilet at regular times. Give them enough time to try to go, but don’t leave them there for too long
- Praise your child for trying and again when they succeed. Reward them with hugs, claps, stories or a star chart
- Be prepared for when your little one doesn’t make it to the toilet in time, and don’t scold or punish them .
Bed wetting
Often your toddler will be dry during the day but still need a nappy at night. It’s normal for your child to wet the bed until they are up to five years old – one in ten kids still wet the bed at this age. Being dry at night happens at different ages, and often bed-wetting at older ages runs in the family