what is the best way to potty train a boy?

Question

my son turned 2 earlier this month and I want to begin potty training. He tells me when he has a bowel movement and he gets the wipes and pamper for me. how can i begin to train him with good results.

Answer 1

Wow! Sounds like your little boy is ready to potty train. I am the mom of two boys - 3 1/2 and 5 (both potty trained). The bad news is that there is no cookie cutter method for potty training kids - they all respond to different things. I struggled with my oldest boy for months with potty training - I tried sticker charts, candy bribery, money bribery - everything!. Then one day, when there were no more clothes left for him to soil (everything was in the washer), he was naked, got the urge and ran to the potty. No turning back.

My youngest was much easier. I said the word "ice cream" and he was potty trained in two days! I've had other friends who have been successful with a sticker reward chart and some have been successful with little candies like M&M's or Skittles.

Another suggestion I would give is to get a potty seat for the big potty instead of buying a separate potty for him. Both my boys shunned the little potty but really like the potty seat for the big potty. Most potty seats also have a little "catch" in them designed for boys so they can sit on the potty and not urinate all over the bathroom floor).

Lastly, the Pull-ups are a huge waste of money. They're just like a diaper the kids can pull up and kids can't really feel themselves wet. Instead, put your son in big boy underwear. Take him to the store, let him pick out some really cool Big Boy underwear, make a big deal about it, and what a big boy he is to be wearing big boy underwear. Then, brace yourself for a rough few days of many accidents and laundry. He will get it.

Good luck to you!! I hope this helped.

Answer 2

First, know that boys usually take longer than girls to be ready....but sounds like he is at least "aware"....so start a reward system.

Everytime he has a bowel movement "in the potty" he gets the reward....it's going to take a lot of reward, so don't make it too expensive.....my daughters used M& M's....you can also say
"so many times" and you earn a trip to the park, etc....but don't add for too long because immediate rewards work best with small kids....or they will forget why they are doing it.

You can also use the sticker system...each time they get a sticker to put on the chart....10 stickers, or five or whatever earn the bigger reward.....

Be sure they respond well to the reward...if they don't try something else.....The point is to make them "choose' to go in the potty....if he is ready, it will work.

Don't despair if it doesn't....just wait a month or two and then try again....You also have to get rid of the pampers...unless they are
pull ups....as long as they have diapers on, it won't work...but pull ups today are a lifesaver.

Answer 3

i got my 2 year old potty trained in less than two weeks!! so i know what i'm talking about. if he's interested (he might now be ready just yet) but get him involved in the potty process. bring him in with you so he can see what you do and take him to the store and let him pick out his own potty and big boy pants. i skipped the Pull Ups since they look and feel just like a diaper and that's not really any different. my son chose an Elmo potty seat (just one of those inexpensive ones that sits on top of the regular toilet) and some Elmo and Thomas underpants and we got home and i put them on him. then 15 minutes later, he wet himself. he cried, i explained it was okay that accidents happen and "let's try again" and he was so excited that he wanted to try again and got it right away. it's not as big of a deal as some parents make it out to be and give it a try for one day...if he has a lot of accidents, then put the underpants away and try again in another month or so. make sure you do it on a day that you can devote ENTIRELY to the potty and you won't have too many distractions or errands or anything else to do. avoid yelling or making a big deal about accidents b/c it will only make him feel bad for going to the bathroom, not the fact that he went in his pants. good luck!!

Answer 4

As a pre-preschool teacher, I get the uh -- priveledge of potty training toddlers everyday. I read all your other responses, they all sound like great advice. I only have a few things to add, when rewarding your child with a reward, do not use food. Food should never be a reward, this problem of rewarding with food is part of why America is so obese. Stickers, tattoos, small dollar store gadgets work the best. I use a daily sheet at work to track progress for parents. I let the child pick out a sticker and put it on their sheet by themselves. I t gives them a sense of accomplishment, even if they just attempt going and not actually succeed. There are fun books out there to read with your son. Good luck and do not get frustrated, it will happen before you know it just like walking.As gross as it may sound, maybe let him see what poop looks like in the toilet, not something I do at work , but I showed my daughter, she hated poopy diapers, it just clicked in her head that 's where it is going to go . Let your son learn how to flush the toilet, the magic of disappearing is amazing to them as well

Answer 5

Your son is beginning to not like sitting in his poo, which is a great start!! That doesn't mean he has bowel CONTROL though, this needs to develop first. Around the age of 2 that should happen tho and there's nothing wrong with trying.

I started at 2, without pressure. I just offered the toilet at random, especially after eating cos that's when my son used to do his business. I skipped the potty and offered the toilet instead.
We started by weeing in the toilet standing up like daddy does, aiming at the water. A little step to stand on helps here..

My son thought this was hilarious and was toilet trained for wees in two days flat.

I encouraged him to poo there too and I sat him on the toilet a couple of times daily, and when it happened he got a big lolly snake as a reward with lots of clapping and cheering. He never usually got lollies, so this was a great incentive.

At the age of 2 1/2, he announced that he would now do poos on the toilet. From that day on, he did.

It's just encouragement without pressure, and when they are ready, they will do it.

Answer 6

Try taking him with you when you go into the bathroom and remember that kids feel comfortable when they copy their parents so play a game i will call
" make up for lost lost time"
When you train him it is really easy.
Be smart when you or he has to use the potty shall we say, bring his potty in with you and have him sit and show him you make a small groan when you try to pass your stool.Put a small strained look on your face so he knows it's normal to use muscles to push.
Now he will get the idea that pushing and using his muscles is normal and it will come to him as a natural thing see it's easy you are duplicating the normal function of the body for a 2 year old to copy.
He doesn't have to know that he is different from a girl yet.
You only want to potty train him.
It will be easy later when he's taller to understand that there are times he doesn't have to sit to only relieve himself of water.
This is a simple learning lesson that you have to teach him A.S.A.P.
I commend you for asking such a common sense question and caring enough to do it before it got to late.
Don't forget to praise him for being such a big boy and that he's all dry and like a older boy it will reinforce his feelings of self worth and make him feel better about himself.
He sounds like a smart boy that likes to be clean and that's a good start.
Later when he is taller maybe you have a father that can take him into the bath so he sees how a man can just stand and relieve himself when he has to pass urine.
i hate to say it but don't trust strangers with your kids play it as safe as possible.

Answer 7

First buy him some cool underware..like bob the builder or spiderman..somehting that he would really enjoy. Tell him that when he start to go potty he will get to wear the "big boy underware" let him try them on to see what they feel like for a day and run him every half hour or so. When he starts to understand the concept...reward him. I had a bowl of treats for my son so everytime he went pee he got one and evertime he went poo he got 2. Start him off sitting though..give him books and toys..stuff to keep him amused. Don't want the potty to be boring. If he is not taking to sitting then set him up to pee on some cheerios or fruit loops...Target practice is tons of fun..Good luck

Answer 8

What worked best for us is to set a timer to go off every 15-30 minutes and take him, even if he says he doesn't need to go take him. Starting him out sitting backwards on the toilet got him used to aiming, then you can move to the "targets" in the toilet, cheerios work great and are a much cheaper route than the actual "targets". Priase him everytime he goes, offer rewards for going the whole day without an accident. Whatever you do, do not scold him if he has an accident, that can hinder his progress. Good luck.

Answer 9

You can buy those toilet targets that they sell at most stores with baby departments. Make up a potty dance or song to cheer him on when he goes. You can try the reward system with chart and stickers every time he goes. The best thing to do is to spend a few days with no diaper at home wearing undies. You will have to have patience and maybe a scrubbing brush for the few accidents that are bound to happen, but if he is ready he will go to the bathroom especially once he feels what its like to go on himself (worked like a charm with both my kids) Let him know that he is a big boy now, and its time to wear big boy underwear and he doesn't want to make them dirty and show him how to use the toilet. If his dad is in the picture have him show him what to do. Try to use diapers only at night and when you go out during the early stages of potty training, but get rid of them asap so he doesn't get into the lazy stage of just going in the diaper because its easier. In the beginning I also would take their potty in the car with me so I could continue training even when I was out, they also had a kiddies toilet seat to put on the big potty that just folded up and I could throw in my diaper bag. Remind him regularly to try to use the toilet and even if he says no, if you know that its been a while insist on him giving it a try and see if theres anything that needs to come out. Experts say that it is easier to get them to poop first, but for both my kids they got the peeing part right away, it took a little longer for them to want to poop in the toilet, but I guess it varies from kid to kid. Either way, if he is truly ready it should not take long to potty train.

Answer 10

Well you could take him to the bathroom every so often and sit him on the potty for a little while and when he goes praise him for it. He will want to keep doing it if he sees how excited you get. One good way to teach a little boy to aim when they are peeing is to put something in the toilet as a target. A lot of people use cheerios and tell them to sink all of them.