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Photo credit by ToddMorris

Potty training young children is something parents wish would be as easy as telling the child to go on the potty. Unfortunately, it does not always work that easy. Here are some tips and tricks to use for potty training that will make the process easier on the child as well as the parents. If a child rips off their diaper when it is wet, or asks a parent to change their diaper, this is a good time to start potty training. They do not like having a wet diaper, so showing them the potty and telling them that they will not have to wear the wet diaper anymore if they potty on the toilet could work rather easy. You do have to keep up with this training for it to work.

If the child goes to the bathroom in their diaper at certain times, you can start potty training on a schedule. Trying to make a child go potty when you think they should go is not always going to work. They could sit there for a long time and not go. For instance, if the child wets their diaper every day at ten in the morning, you could place them on the toilet just before this time. It does work, but only if the child wets at certain times. Another trick is running water. By running the water, children will have the urge and need to go. This does not work on every child, but for most, it is successful.

Potty training with rewards is another way to achieve success with potty training. If the child has a favorite cartoon or something similar, try buying the underwear that has the character pictured. Many parents will say that this just does not work, but the idea of wearing underpants with their favorite character on is something exciting for little ones. They will not want to take them off. Calling the underwear "big girl pants" or "big boy pants" does have some influences as well.

The one thing that is not recommended for potty training is making this time playtime. Some parents will sit the child on the toilet with toys and music playing. The toilet is not a babysitter. Making toilet training a playtime is not teaching the child what the toilet is for or what they should be doing. Playtime comes after the child goes to the potty. Teaching the child to tell you when they have to go is another way to potty train. However, this can be difficult if the child does not mind a wet diaper.

Parents need to be calm and not get upset when potty training does not happen right away. Sometimes it may take a word or two from Grandma. A true story that amazes some parents is about a child that would not go on the toilet for his mother, but one day Grandma went out, brought him "big boy pants," and told him he could wear these only if he went potty on the toilet. This was after months of trying on the mother's part. The two-year boy was so proud of his new underpants that he always asked to use the potty when he had to go. The boy knew what the toilet was for, but needed some reason to use the toilet. The underpants from Grandma worked.