Top Ten Lists About Potty Training

Summing Up Potty Training
for Nannies and Au Pairs

To summarize the advice from all the potty training methods we discussed this week here is our Top Ten Lists about potty training.

Top 10 Things to Do During Potty Training:
1. Be patient.
2. Praise and reward the child to reinforce success.
3. Follow the parents’ choice of potty training method. You can certainly suggest ideas but don’t force your style on the parents, you must respect their choices of how to potty train their child.
4. Read children's books and watch DVDs about potty about potty training with the child.
5. Let the child be in control of when they are ready to go to the potty.
6. Be prepared for many accidents.
7. Bring extra clothes and wipes whenever you go out in case of accidents.
8. Watch for “I got to go” signs of squirming or touching privates to get them to potty in time.
9. Dress the toddler in clothes that are easy to take off and put on during potty training.
10. Have a portable potty that will travel.

Top 10 Reasons Why You Should Not Start Potty Training:
1. When there is a lot of change or stress in a child's life it is best to wait before starting a new stage of development, like potty training.
2. Do not start potty training when a child is ill or recovering from illness.
3. The child has just started attending new school or childcare setting.
4. There is a new addition to the family, or will be in a couple of months.
5. While the family is on vacation.
6. The family has just moved to a new location.
7. Holiday seasons are within that time frame.
8. There is lack of stability in the home, such as arguments, sibling problems, divorce, and so on.
9. The child is not physically ready or you will be setting yourself up for failure.
10. The child is not psychologically or developmentally ready to potty train.

Top 10 Things to Not Do While Potty Training:
1. Allow the child to sense your frustration.
2. Yell at the child.
3. Expect them to be perfect.
4. Push the child to perform.
5. Focus on the negative.
6. Compare the child to anyone else’s experience.
7. Punish the child for accidents.
8. Nag or tease a child, ever.
9. Never force a child to sit on a potty. Let them be in control or it will become a negative experience.
10. Never start potty training during stressful times such as the holiday season, after just moving into a new home, or just adding a newborn to the family.