A potty training tip: Build on the excitement of the holidays and introduce (or reinforce!) the fun that can be had with potty training.
That’s right… potty training can in fact be fun!
Are you looking for some gift ideas for the toddler in your life? Be sure to check out all of our potty training book reviews and our awesome collection of Potty Time products.
New! The Potty Time Full Collection now includes a potty training guide for parents and teachers!
Here’s an idea to launch potty training in your house! Why not throw a Potty Time viewing party? Pop up that popcorn, pull out the undies or training pants, grab Hopkins and get ready to celebrate!
Recently, one mom shared with us how this played out in her house. Enjoy!
Adelaide (almost 3) has been interested in using the potty for a while. She has an older sister, Cait, and wants to be just like her. Continue reading
We get lots of good questions on our Facebook page, and from time to time we like to answer them here!
When is a good time to start potty training? How do you start potty training? (Thomas)
This is something all parents start to wonder, often around a child’s second birthday. Can it be true? Is it time to ditch the diapers?
When your child is ready to start depends completely on them! Continue reading
My Big Girl Undies and My Big Boy Undies by Karen Katz
This book comes in two editions, one for boys and one for girls. These books celebrate the fun of underwear, and also acknowledge the occasional accident. The prose is largely the same, just switching out boys and girls. Neither book is really gender specific, at least not beyond the patterns on the underwear and the gender of the children in the illustrations. In other words, your child won’t learn anything about the differences in going potty when you’re a boy or a girl, such standing up or sitting down, wiping front to back, etc. Nonetheless, this is a carefree and fun way to enjoy the potty process, particularly the celebration of wearing underwear.
We have two great resources for training boys and girls here on the blog that do help with gender specifics, and these would be a good addition for Mom and Dad if using these books.
Potty Training Boys and Girls: A mom to 11 kids talks about some of the insights she got from raising her family.
Specific Tips for Girls and Boys: A list of tips specific to training each gender.
By Kim Fries, MA CCC-SLP
This bright colorful lift-the-flap book follows a child, along with a very patient Mommy, through the potty training process. At first the child is hesitant to use the potty, then tries but has an accident and finally goes and gets to wear “big kid pants.” The child is nondescript and could be seen as a boy or girl. Parents will like the opportunity to discuss accidents and opportunity to “try again.” The book has a sing-songy rhyming rhythm that flows easily, and the sense of pride the child feels at the end brings a smile to your face.
I have used this book for years in my Signing Classes. I loved the vocabulary (potty, try, diaper, big kid, accident, proud) and emphasis on children trying rather than the pressure to succeed. The author’s focus on child readiness and use of emotion vocabulary (happy, proud) was also a big draw for me.
With the release of the Potty Time board book, “Hopkins Uses the Potty”, I now use both. They work well together and give the parents in my signing classes an opportunity to practice vocabulary while reading a book to a toddler. When parent go home and sign during the potty routine, or sign another book, they have shared with me that the additional practice helps them feel more confident and comfortable with signing. Signing with your child is good not only for potty training, but early literacy skills too!
A Potty For Me matches the Potty Time philosophy and goes well with the songs “Stop and Go”, “Accident” and “Celebrate!” (click on the songs to hear a sample!)
Kim Fries is a Certified Master Signing Time Academy Instructor. You can learn more about Kim and her signing and speech classes by visiting her website HERE
Here’s a great video chronicling one family’s potty training adventures.
Do you have an adorable video of your kid in the process of potty training? Share it on our Facebook page!
Like the chart they use? Be sure to check our version as a free download on the Resources page!
Here’s a great video with gentle advice for supporting a child’s potty training process, including following the real-life adventures of one little girl.
This book is listed for ages 24 – 36 months on the cover and contains simple illustrated representation of the loveable Sesame Street characters. What I particularly appreciate about this book is that each character is at a different stage of development, one who goes all the time, one who has the occasional accident, and one who is just not interested at all yet. This may be very reassuring to children and parents alike!
The text invites children in by asking occasional questions and explains what each character is doing and why.
One page even mentions how a character calls her time in the bathroom “potty time”, which is a rather convenient link to the Potty Time program too!
To read our other book reviews, click HERE
We are reviewing some potty training books! Our entire collection of reviews will be housed HERE.
You Can Go to the Potty
By William Sears, M.D., Martha Sears, R.N., and Christie Watts Kelly
This book is from the Sears pediatrician team, particular favorites of those who like the attachment parenting method. It’s also one of the books I (Colleen) used with my own son! It actually starts out with tips for parents, and explains some of the choices in the book, as well as giving a few tips if you are experiencing any difficulty during the potty training process.
The story starts out talking about the baby days. In line with the attachment parenting approach, the illustrations show both nursing and co-sleeping, which some families will greatly appreciate and others may not as much. It then transitions into what big kids can do, and talks about where pee and poo-poo might go, first in a diaper and now into the toilet.
This book takes a specific approach to the timing of potty training, telling children they will switch to underwear when they can keep their diapers dry. Some families will do well with this timing, whereas others may find a different approach is going to work better for their child.
The book moves on to the process of potty training, including a supportive take on accidents and of course lots of great celebrating. A particularly nice aspect of this book is the little insets on some pages called “Answers for the Very Curious”. These boxes contain questions children might ask about going potty and simple answers that they can understand – very helpful!
As this is geared towards little ones but is very factual, it would make a nice companion to a more playful approach, such as our book “Hopkins Uses the Potty”
Over the next few weeks, we’ll be taking a look at some of the MANY potty training books on the market. Here’s the first one!
Diapers Are Not Forever
By Elizabeth Verdick
A very simple prose, along with the inviting illustrations, will draw children into this book that explains how diapers are not forever. It starts with showing how the children are growing and now they can do what the big kids do – go potty! It then takes the reader through the steps of going potty, with noted differences for boys and girls, and stresses the celebration a child can have with his family. As a bonus, there are tips for parents at the end.
Parents who prefer not to reward with tangible items will appreciate the idea that the family will celebrate with a “clap and cheer”. This book fits great with the Potty Time philosophy and songs, especially the “Potty Dance” and “Let’s Celebrate” (Click on the songs to hear a sample!)
These songs are included on the Potty Time DVD + Music CD.
To read our other book reviews, click HERE