Potty training mind games

The only thing that will help is time, and maturity. These types of behaviors on your part may actually set your child back even further when their brain finally does start communicating effectively with the bladder. Prior to this connection being established, a child may have endured a lot of frustration during previous attempts at potty training at a time they had no control.

This frustration may now lead them to be unwilling to comply to commands set forth from someone who has previously shown no empathy and has talked to them in a superior-subordinate manner versus a person-person manner.

To regain a sense of self, and a sense of self-control, your child may take to doing exactly the opposite of what you want them to do. Instead of trying to control the situation by asking your child to go potty every fifteen minutes, simply know that eventually they will go just as everyone else does.

Have you? Why would we add toilet training to our already overloaded job description when doing less works just as well, if not better? All About Learning to Use the Toilet. From Baby to Big Kid: Month Skip to main content Skip to footer. Close Search Submit. Upcoming Events. Learning Center. Search Submit. Read more about: Ages and Stages. Back to top. Explore more from Lessons From Toilet School. Become a Member Ready to join?

Connect today. Become an Advocate Become a big voice for little kids by joining our policy network. Sign In Become a Member. When they blow bubbles, their abdominal muscles make the same movement required for them to poop.

Blowing bubbles is an easy and fun way to potty train your toddler, making the entire process enjoyable. It is useful, especially if your toddler holds their poop when you remove their nappy. On a sheet of paper, write the names of all your family members, including your pets. Any time anyone goes to the restroom, let your toddler make a mark against their name using stickers or markers. This potty training game teaches your toddler that everyone needs to use the loo and is a healthy habit.

They will soon be asking for their name to be included on the sheet and make it a practice. Take your toddler to the bathroom and let them explore various things. Talk to your baby and explain the use of each item. Do it regularly. As they get used to the objects and their names, you can initiate the potty training. Toddlers often forget that they have to use the loo. Sometimes, they might even sit on the potty seat for a long time without doing the business.

You have to keep an eye on them for the first few days till they get used to it. Be alert whenever you see such signs and ask them if they want a potty break. Spending time on the potty could be boring for your baby, especially if they have left a play session to go to the loo. To overcome this, stack a few books in the bathroom so that they can read them sitting on the potty seat.

You can even put a few potty-related books there so that your toddler knows more about it. If your toddler has a favorite doll or a plush toy, ask them to potty train them. They can take their toy to the potty seat and explain to them what they are doing there. You can even get a mini potty seat for the toy to sit alongside your baby.

Make sure your baby washes their hands thoroughly each time they take a toy to the bathroom. It is also best to have a separate potty training doll that your child plays with in the bathroom.

Once your toddler starts using the regular loo, there are bound to be accidents, including a clogged toilet. It could happen as your baby does not know how much toilet paper to use and might end up using a lot. Teach your toddler about toilet paper use by asking them to count the number of squares from the roll.

The added advantage of this game is that they can learn their numbers. Tell them how long it takes you to do it and how complex it is.

You can encourage and make this transition more relaxed and fun by making up a song about it. The song can explain the role of food going in from the mouth, and what happens to it on the way down until it comes out as a potty.

When first sitting on the potty, your child is not going to be comfortable, nor is she going to be interested in keeping still. You can hand your child a bottle of bubbles and allow her to blow some bubbles to pass the time. Blowing bubbles stimulate the same abdominal muscles that are used to help push when taking a poop, so if your child is unable to go due to discomfort, this method will help. Children can grow comfortable with their nappies, but it is not something that they can hold onto forever.

Get your little one used to the idea of discarding her own nappies by placing a basket in the living room and asking your child to throw in as many diapers as possible.

Children sometimes need to know that going to the potty is a normal thing to do. Children soon learn that everyone does it. Have your child explain to her favourite toy why she needs to go potty in the potty chair, and have her train her toys. Children will undoubtedly make a game of it, but it will also help them understand the concept of using the toilet themselves.

It is, as they say, you learn while you teach. An activity that every child finds interesting is joining the dots. Find a bathroom version of the game, so that your child will become more familiar with everything related to the bathroom.

You can always tell your child what are the different things in the picture, once it is complete. Having your child decorate the potty chair will make her feel more comfortable and special when she needs to go potty.