As a professional toddler teacher, I've assisted in the potty training of dozens of children. One thing I know for sure is that no two children will respond in precisely the same way. It helps me personally to use a timer at the beginning of training, as children become very involved in their play and often forget to check in with themselves early enough.

It also helps a lot when parents communicate with me every step of the way, and supply lots of extra pants, underwear, and even socks!

10 Quick Tips for Potty Training

• Wait for the right time. Your child should stay dry for longer and longer periods of time and show an interest in the subject of how people use the toilet.

• Supply them with vocabulary for toileting from at least six months.

• Let them pick out a potty (choice of two works best).

• Start with short periods of time to encourage success.

• Make sure they're well rested.

• Start with places that don't matter, like the kitchen floor or outside. Then play "ditch the diaper". Have them help remove it and toss it. Leave them naked, or in undies, keeping the potty chair close.

• Make it easier with baggy sweatpants or shorts and loose underwear at first.

• Encourage reading while waiting on the potty.

• Keep it light. If they discover you're invested in their success, they leave too much to you and may rebel at any moment.

• Realize that training takes a while, and their progress won't continue in a straight line forward, so plan for bumps and setbacks to occur. Even long ones!

FYI

Here are the 4 most common mistakes people make when potty training, as seen through the lens of a toddler teacher with almost 50 years of experience.

Mistake # 1

Going into pull-ups too soon. Pull-ups work great for the tail end of potty training when you think you could get away with undies but are unsure of the availability and timing aspects of an outing.

My advice is to use the cotton training pants around the house. Be sure to buy them a little big because they shrink. Save the pull-ups and fancy underwear for later, and your kids will be much less likely to regress when the initial thrill of it all wears off.

Mistake #2

Instead of teaching their kids to pull their own pants up before potty training begins, some parents find it easier and faster to pull their kids' pants up and down for them. Take my advice and start working on this early by asking them to help. Provide the least amount of help they need to get the job done with only a minimal amount of frustration.

Mistake #3

Not setting up a clear routine and allowing kids to answer "no" about having to go over and over again until they wait too long and get wet. After someone cleans up the mess and tells them it's ok, they really have no good reason to listen when someone suggests they try to go.

Remember, kids NEVER want to stop playing, mainly because they learn so much from their play. When a child becomes so engrossed in what they're doing that they repeatedly have accidents, I have a plan. I set up a routine where they get only one chance for refusal. The next

time I ask, they must choose between a thorough underwear or diaper check (in the next room) or trying the potty chair. My goal is to interrupt their play either way so they aren't tempted to put it off until it's too late.

Once I get them aside, I talk to the child about whether they're wet or dry. If wet, I change the diaper or underwear, and if dry, I offer the chance to sit on the potty without forcing the issue.

If they're in disposable diapers, I teach them that a wet diaper feels squishy and a dry diaper feels crunchy. After we're done, I thank them for listening and let them play again.

Mistake #4

Offering too big a reward too early. When a child is ready to potty train, a smile, a thanks for being helpful, a sticker, or a single M&M can work as a reward. When the mind-body connection or the body-brain connections aren't there, there is absolutely nothing you can do that will stick.

I know a family who offered a robot to their child if he got trained before the age of 3, so he could get into a fancy pre-school. Didn't work, but by 3.5, he trained himself; no reward was necessary.

One last tip you need to know. Children don't know how to pull up their pants until they learn to..........

GRAB THE BAND with thumbs under and fingers over. Using this terminology really helps!!

Interested in more quick tips for toddlers?

Browse our donation options here. We have short, easy-to-use presentations on subjects such as biting, hitting, baby sign language, and separation anxiety.

Every small donation you make keeps this nonprofit site going and highlights the good news that's happening right now in early care and education.

One last thing...If you're not already a community member, you can join us here for free and get our 22-page presentation, How To Get Kids To Listen Without Yelling or Time-Outs, immediately.

Thanks so much for reading, and have a great day!

Nanci J Bradley is an early childhood and family educator, author, teacher, family aerobics instructor, and all-around fun-loving person. She believes in the power of sleep, healthy eating, lifelong learning, and most of all, PLAY! She studied early childhood ed at Triton College and received her BS in education in 1986 from NIU. She received her MA in human development from Pacific Oaks College in 2011. She lives and teaches in Madison WI.