Let the
countdown
L
earning how to use the toilet is a complex skill set for
a little one to grasp. She must learn what poos and
wees are, how to recognise when one’s on its way,
how to pull her pants down – and back up – and
what the toilet roll is for, and how to wash her hands. And that’s
without the tricky business of actually doing her business.
Teach your toddler all these other skills before removing her
nappy and suddenly potty-training is a whole lot simpler.
You can start this countdown from the age of 18 months.10 CHANGE HER NAPPY
IN THE BATHROOM
It’s a big ask for a toddler to leave a game she’s
absorbed in and go to a boring bathroom. “If she’s
used to interrupting her play and going to the bathroom
to do a nappy change, it will be easier for her to
accept she must stop playing to use the potty,” says
Judith Hough, who wrote the book How to Potty Train
with Diane Titterton. It’s also a good idea to make your
bathroom into a place where she likes to be. “If she’s
comfortable in there, it will be
far easier to get her touse
the toilet,” says Judith.
Make a mini library,
put up a poster
or wall stickers,
or collect a
tub of toys. PiratePete’sPottyandPrincess
Polly’sPottyboardbookswith
a“hooray!”buttonforwhen
yourtoddlerusesthepotty
successfully.
R120,loot.co.za48 | SEPTEMBER 2019 | L&L