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4 Best Ways To Introduce Your Toddler to The Potty
How do I prepare my toddler for potty training?
The time to start potty training is inching closer and closer. You notice your toddler is communicating more, doing more -and wanting to do more- on their own, they’re sharp and curious and love being part of what you’re doing…
You’re most likely wondering – how do I prepare my toddler for potty training?
First, let’s check on readiness. Then, once we have determined a timeline for when you will start potty training, you can start doing meaningful prep work to prime your child for this big life change.
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There are a lot of horror stories about potty training out there. There is also a general fear and negative energy about it. I want to remind you that negative language creates negative associations in our heads and can show up in how we treat our children.
As you approach and go through potty training, I want you to remember that your toddler is *just beginning to learn a huge, brand new, life skill* AND you are *just beginning to learn how to help them do it*.
Most of all, try and keep a growth mindset, a teamwork mentality, take mental health breaks when you need to, co-regulate regularly with your toddler and balance seriousness with lightheartedness, to get through potty training with less drama and chaos, and more calm and bonding… You two will get through this together and it doesn’t have to be horrible.
4 best ways to introduce your toddler to the potty
1. add potty books to story time
Reading to toddlers plants seeds and helps them learn about the world around them and how things work.
Adding potty books into your story time routine, and reading them regularly, can expose your toddler to this new thing, explain to them how it all works, discuss how they might feel, what needs to be done – all of it, so you don’t have to think about what to say on your own.
The beauty of it is, introducing the potty to them at story time is a beloved and safe time, so it is not scary or jarring. Their curiosity will most likely be piqued and they will start to ask questions, seek out the bathroom and mimic what you’ve read to them from the book.
A powerful addition to this would be to bring the potty to story time, maybe with a doll on it, and let your toddler explore freely.
Maybe they grab at it right away or maybe they just glance back at it as you read. Either way, with consistent reading + having a potty with you as a prop, you will be helping your toddler get introduced to and comfortable with the potty.
For complete prep work, check out this blog post: Everything You Need To Prepare Before Potty Training That Will Make It SO MUCH EASIER
Helpful potty training books to add to story time:
want to potty train easier?
my Peaceful Potty Training course teaches you my simplified method built for ‘strong-willed’, uninterested and scared toddlers. ALL the information you need in ONE place, covering all the scenarios like refusing to sit, withholding poop, pushback, constipation, frequent accidents and more:
2. include it into daily conversation for a week beforehand
My preference is always to chat directly with toddlers about things. I like being direct because it can happen at any time and no props or tools are necessary.
I like the openness and connection that happens. I am not afraid of emotions, in fact, I like to know how they feel about something beforehand so that I know what I need to prepare (mentally and physically) to make something easier.
When I talk about potty training age 2, 2.5 or 3, I simply insert it into normal conversation when the toddler is happily playing or when we are all calm and just hanging out.
This is what it might sound like when I include introducing the potty into daily conversation:
“Hey love, next week we are going to try something brand new! You and me! You are going to shop for the undies with mommy on mommy’s phone, then we are going to start using the bathroom more! Washing out hands with soapy soapy water, sitting on the potty and listening to our body! It’s all new, I’ll show you how!”
I’d reiterate some rendition of this each day, multiple times a day to keep it at the front of their minds.
“Hey babe, don’t forget! Our undies come today. We use those instead of diapers soon! We need to choose a spot for our undies and start putting diapers in a bag so we can say bye bye! Bye bye diapers, hello flower undies!”
Settings where I might bring this topic up are:
- toddler in their car seat, looking at the window
- toddler and I having a picnic at the park
- toddler and I happily building blocks
- toddler playing in the bath at bathtime
- toddler and I happily reading stories
In my Peaceful Potty Training Course I go over all the steps and wording to use to prepare your toddler for potty training. I also include my toddler potty ebook called, “Jackson Wonders What The Potty Is, How & Why We Use It”. It goes over the what, why and how of potty training, so you don’t have to think of what to say. Such a great ebook to read to toddlers to prepare them for potty training.
Want a FREE instant download of The Peaceful Potty Training Starter Guide? Drop your name & email below! We never spam.
Everything you need to know to start potty training with more ease, confidence and calm.
3. put them ‘in charge’
I find that doing this *in addition to* talking to them about potty training or reading books to the about potty training, gets them most prepared and cooperative through the steps.
Some tools that help your toddler feel in charge:
4. playfully add going into the bathroom into your existing routine
A big part of my Peaceful Potty Training Method, is activities. And not as an afterthought, but as the focus. Why? Because it meets toddlers where they are with something they love to do – PLAYYYY!!
“Play is the work of the child.” – Maria Montessori
Think about your current routine. Where could you playfully add going into the bathroom?
Could you place their morning smoothie on the back of their little potty in the bathroom so they start going there to grab it in the mornings?
Could you designate an activity to now be done in the bathroom each day like – sticker time or magnet tile building?
Could you make up a silly song about sitting on the potty before bath time? Using these ‘toilet target‘ stickers, you could see how fast they can make the dinosaur disappear!
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And there you have it! How to potty train a toddler boy and how to potty train a toddler girl can be made much smoother when you include all, some or at least one of these before starting to potty train!
No more wondering – how do I prepare my toddler for potty training! Try these things and you will be off to a solids start with your tiny human!
For more potty training support, you can read all my potty training blog posts, here.
And consider signing up for my free Peaceful Potty Training Cheat Sheet, complete with supply list, what to expect and how to prepare in the boxes above.
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DOn’t forget to check out my Peaceful Potty Training course: expert advice in a simplified method built for ‘strong-willed’, uninterested and scared toddlers. ALL the information you need in ONE place, covering all the scenarios like refusing to sit, withholding poop, pushback, constipation, frequent accidents and more:
