A solid potty training schedule can set you and your toddler up for success – especially when you’re first getting started. Used in conjunction with a potty training chart and rewards, your potty training schedule will help your children gain potty independence in no time.
In this article we would be looking at How to Create a Potty Training Plan For Your Child.
How to Create a Potty Training Schedule
When you first start potty training, the majority of work will be done by you – the parent. Unfortunately, it’s not usually as simple as taking off that diaper and having your child tell you every time they need to go.
In fact, for the first several days (and maybe weeks), it may feel like you are the one that is potty trained – trained to put your child on the toilet every 20 minutes.
But if you can stick to a solid potty training schedule, it will pay off in the end.
1. Clear your schedule.
Part of the potty training schedule is making sure you have time in the first few days of potty training to stick around the house and make using the potty a priority. It’s best if you can spend at least two or three days at home and not be distracted by errands, multiple caregivers or having to visit strange bathrooms.
This will also give you the time you need to really evaluate if your child is ready for potty training, as well as practice your carpet cleaning skills.
2. Set a timer.
Once you take off the diaper, set a timer and plan to take your child to the bathroom every 20 or 30 minutes.
One of the main causes of potty training accidents is because the child is having too much fun or is too engrossed in play to listen to their body and make it to the bathroom in time.
At first, it is your job to interrupt their play to give them time to go potty. They probably won’t need to go every 20 minutes, but at least you’re giving them the time and space to sit on the potty for a few minutes to try.
3. Incorporate potty training charts and rewards.
Potty training charts and rewards are important parts of the potty training process – and can help your child get really excited about your new potty training schedule.
4. Stretch it out.
Once you’re a few days in, you can stretch out the potty breaks. Maybe go from 30 minutes to an hour. And then from an hour to two hours. Until eventually you won’t need a timer at all. No, really. It will happen!
5. Plan mini trips.
No, we’re not talking about mini getaways. We’re talking about quick trips to the grocery store or to grandma’s house. Once you and your child are feeling good about your schedule, incorporate a few mini trips into your day.
Maybe you take a walk around the block in underwear in between potty breaks. Or take a 20-minute spin through the grocery store. At first, you will be more nervous than your child about leaving the house. But keep the trips short and close to home to start, and build up your confidence. You can do this!
6. Go back to the schedule.
If you start to notice more accidents as you get further along in potty training, go back to your schedule for a day. Chances are, the accidents are caused by a lack of schedule. If that doesn’t work, it’s possible that your child is experiencing a potty training regression.
Potty Training Doesn’t Have to Stink!
If you’re potty training your child, Kandoo is here to help. Follow the three steps below to receive all of the potty training support we have to offer.
1. Get Potty Training Resources
Visit Kandookids.com/PottyTraining for hacks and support on your potty training journey. From the very basics to how to handle potty training regressions, poop problems and wiping, we’ve got answers to your questions.
2. Sign up for our Free Potty Training Program
Need a little more help and support? Sign up for our FREE potty program. It’s full of step-by-step advice to walk you through the entire potty training process – from the first time you introduce the potty to how to throw a potty training party to celebrate your success at the end.
3. Stock up on Supplies – like Kandoo Flushable Wipes
Kandoo Flushable Cleansing Wipes clean up to 30% better than toilet paper. The wipes pop up with the push of a button, making them perfect for little hands. Added bonus? No more using too much (or too little) toilet paper.
Help your little one get a clean wipe every time with the Kandoo Potty Time Pack. From Kandoo Flushable Wipes to Kandoo BRIGHTFOAM® Hand soap – and even a potty training superhero cape – the Potty Time Pack has everything you need for potty training success.
Having potty-training plan for your child and knowing the best time to start it can make the toilet training process go more smoothly. But there are certain universal rules relating to toilet training—as well as to other aspects of parenting—that will enhance your family’s experience no matter what method you choose. Some important points to remember:
- Be positive. Children learn best when they are praised for their progress rather than punished for their mistakes. Do what you can to help your child succeed as often as possible—even if it means learning gradually, one tiny step at a time. When they progress, give them a hug, some praise, and perhaps even a small tangible reward. When they fails, tell them you’re sure they’ll do better next time and ask them to help you clean up.
- Try to be as consistent as possible. Create reasonable expectations according to your child’s abilities, express them clearly and frequently, and expect your child to at least try to follow them every time. Keep their bathroom routine as consistent as possible, with their potty in the same place every day and the sequence of actions—including wiping and hand washing—the same every time. While they are toilet-training, praise your child for each success, and provide predictable, nonpunitive consequences (such as helping to clean up) for each failure. Make sure that your approach to toilet training is consistent with those of your child’s other caregivers as well.
- Stay involved and observe. Very young children’s needs, behaviors, and abilities change frequently and, to some extent, unpredictably. Toilet-training approaches that worked two weeks ago may not work today, and skills that your child mastered in the past may temporarily disappear in the face of new challenges. Continue to monitor your child’s bathroom behavior throughout toilet training and afterward so that you can quickly identify and resolve any new problems that arise.
- Enjoy. Toilet training is a necessary chore, but it can also be fun at times. Don’t take your child’s hesitations, passing fears, or resistance too seriously. Nearly every child learns to use the toilet sooner or later, and your child will, too. Do what you can to occasionally take your eye off the long-term goal and enjoy the charming, funny moments along the way.
A potty-training plan of your child’s own
If you are concerned that designing a potty-training plan to suit your particular child may prove more difficult than following a prepackaged, one-size-fits-all program, keep in mind the advantages. It doesn’t take a great deal of effort to figure out whether your child is more a talker or a doer, or a lover of adult-imposed routine or an independent soul who prefers to control their own actions. In the process of figuring that out, you and your child will have gotten to know each other better. Plus, your child will have learned a new skill in a way that increased their confidence, their sense of security, and their self-esteem. What a wonderful process to have been a part of!
I hope you find this article helpful as well as interesting.
