Toilet training is one of the most important lessons you'll teach your child--and one of the most frustrating. Some children are ready to begin toilet training by their second birthday, in that they understand their body signals and are coordinated enough to use a potty, reports Familydoctor.org. However, others aren't ready until closer to their third birthday. While this is normal, it can be frustrating for parents who want to send their children to school where being potty trained is a requirement. Understanding your child and his needs can help you to teach him to use the potty quickly.
Reward, Reward, Reward
Even the most stubborn child longs for something: an extra story before bed; ice cream in the middle of the afternoon; a new train to add to his collection. Use those coveted items to properly motivate a child to comply with toilet training. Children three and older can take part in choosing the rewards, as well as helping to decide when they will be given. In the beginning of your training, you may give a reward for each successful attempt to use the potty and then change the reward to be given only after a morning or afternoon or full day of dry pants. If you have tried this method and failed, the rewards you're offering aren't important enough to your child and you may have to come up with something big. In her book "The Verbal Behavior Approach," author Mary Barbara reports that when she was training her son---who has autism---she needed to get to the nearest drive-through for a kid's meal every time her child had a bowel movement in the potty. The reward worked when others had not.
Just Do It
Get rid of your child's diapers and have her use the potty instead. In her one-day toilet training seminar, toilet training expert Wendy Sweeney suggests explaining how to use a potty to your child (some people use specially made dolls with potties to aid this purpose) and then letting him use it when he needs to. If he has accidents, he should clean up after himself and get re-dressed. Sweeney said in her toilet training program, Booty Camps, that giving your child the responsibility of dealing with the consequence causes them to act more responsibly.
Salt and Water
Give your child salty snacks, such as pretzels and water or watered-down juice, to help them urinate more frequently. This gives the child several chances to learn her body's signals for having to use the toilet. This can be a messy way to learn, though, so some parents remove the child's diapers or underpants to lessen the amount of laundry that can be generated while learning this way.
Enhance the Experience
Using the toilet can be boring to a child who would rather be playing or watching television. Create an interesting environment in your bathroom by having toys and books that you child can only use in the bathroom. Some potty chairs even come with music that plays whenever your child is successful. You can simulate that by using taped music.
