As a recent addition to the many useful tools we offer at Bright Minds Training, we will now publish a monthly blog! Here, we will feature what is new in the Early Childhood Education world, along with information about our newest and upcoming courses, and free monthly curriculum!

Potty Training…….sigh. When I was still working in a center, everyone dreaded being in the two-year-old room simply because of the potty training chaos. The mess, the smell, how helping a child go potty can take away from the other kids, and trying to stay on the same page as the family when they are at home is all reason for calling in sick, like every day. So let’s talk about how to make it just a tad easier.

1. To help save toilet paper (and not clog the toilet), mark on the wall right under the toilet paper roll by taping a stop sign to help them measure how much to use. You can also use a happy face or even a black and white checkered “finish line”!
2. Encourage them to sit backward! LESS MESS! Boys can do this too.
3. Use a timer! This is not only for the children but for YOU too. It is so easy to get sidetracked when you are in circle time, doing art activities, eating lunch, and playing outside. You might have a couple of different kids at different stages of their potty training journey so they might not need to try at the same time. One way to keep track is by using a dry erase board and writing down what time they last tried and whether or not they went.
4. To help kids remember all the steps to going potty, make bathroom routine visual cards. Put an index card on the wall above the toilet paper with a hand pointing to it (a visual of wiping might get weird) and on the door or wherever they pass through on the way out of the toilet area, a picture representing hand washing so it reminds them that washing their hands is the next step.
5. Use food coloring to dye the toilet water blue! When the kiddo pees, it will turn the water orange or green! This will turn into a fun game or “science experiment?!”