{"id":2645,"date":"2016-08-19T10:58:14","date_gmt":"2016-08-19T14:58:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/?page_id=2645"},"modified":"2026-01-28T04:40:48","modified_gmt":"2026-01-28T09:40:48","slug":"part-1-of-daytime-urine-training","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/part-1-of-daytime-urine-training\/","title":{"rendered":"Ready, Set, “GO”! Daytime Urine Training Part 1"},"content":{"rendered":"

Now let\u2019s talk about daytime toilet training for urine. This is usually the best place to start. If your child has already used the toilet a few times, or has shown an interest the toilet,\u00a0you might want to try a less intense\u00a0method than what we\u2019re going to describe here. There are some excellent books and websites for these less intense methods. A great book is Toilet Training in Less than a Day, by Drs. Nathan Azrin and Richard Foxx. Their approach is similar to the one we will talk about. It has been used with success by millions of families.\u00a0 Autism Speaks also has an online \u201cToolkit<\/a>\u201d that is available to everyone free of charge.<\/p>\n

In this program we\u2019re going to talk about a method for children with autism and other developmental conditions. You can use this with typically developing children also. It\u2019s best if your child has at least some of the readiness signs listed above. Set aside 2-3 days to focus almost entirely on this training. So be prepared to get not much else done for a couple of days.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s Get Started \u2013 Block off Time for Training<\/strong><\/h2>\n

First, set aside a significant block of time to devote to this toilet training. We recommend a four-hour training session. You should have two sessions a day for 2-3\u00a0days in a row. So, you might want to start on a weekend unless you\u2019re at home with your child during the week. You\u2019ll need to devote all of your attention to your child for about four continuous hours. For this reason, it\u2019s helpful if you can get another adult to take any other children out of the house during these toilet training sessions.<\/p>\n

Make the Bathroom the “Place to Be”<\/h2>\n

The first thing to do is to make the bathroom a very fun place to be. If you have more than one bathroom in your home, pick one to use. Put up pictures of your child\u2019s favorite characters. Or choose another of your child\u2019s favorite things as a theme for decorating your bathroom. For example, if your child<\/p>\n

has a favorite Disney movie or character, \u00a0you could put up a\u00a0 picture or two from that movie. You could also put some books about the movie and a few little character toys in the bathroom. Some parents put a small TV, DVD player or tablet in the bathroom which the child only uses when she is sitting on the toilet. Other parents have had success with music. In this case, some preferred pieces of music are only played when their child is sitting on the toilet. Others allow their child to play with the parent’s cell phone only when she is sitting on the toilet. But be careful! Your cell phone could end up in the toilet bowl!<\/p>\n

Decorating the bathroom with pictures of your child’s favorite character or putting some favorite books in the for her to read should help to make it a more interesting and fun place to be.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Set Aside Some Special Rewards<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Next, you must identify some special rewards for your child. As with other skills, it is best when the rewards you have chosen for toilet training can be saved for toilet training only. These rewards should not be available to your child at other times. Some parents have success putting a favorite candy or other treat where their child can see it, but not reach it. For example, a treat can be placed high on a shelf or hung from the ceiling or towel hook on a string. Another type of reward could be 5 -10 minutes of time to play with a tablet or cell phone. The important thing is to only give this special reward to your child when she pees or poops in the toilet. These are only general suggestions. You know best which things will be reinforcers for your child. Whatever you pick, make sure that your child doesn\u2019t get that reward at other times. For now, these special toilet training rewards should only be used for successes in toilet training.<\/p>\n

\"Wikimedia<\/a>
Wikimedia commons.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

You will also need a picture of the toilet. This can be a picture of your own\u00a0 \u00a0toilet or a similar one that you print from the internet or cut from a magazine.\u00a0 \u00a0If your child is already speaking and can say \u2018toilet\u2019 or \u201cwant toilet,\u201d she won\u2019t\u00a0 \u00a0need to use the picture to request the toilet. But, it may still be a helpful\u00a0 \u00a0reminder to have one where your child can easily see it. Now you\u2019re ready to\u00a0 \u00a0get started.<\/p>\n

Getting Ready<\/strong><\/h2>\n

We suggest starting Part 1 of toilet training by taking off your child\u2019s clothing from the waist down. This is so both you and your child can see any accidents happen as soon as they begin. This gives you the best chance to correct the accident \u201cmid-stream.\u201d Of course, if you or your child does not feel comfortable with this, it is OK to keep your child in underpants or shorts. If your child is fully clothed, it may be harder to catch an accident. It\u2019s important to have as many chances as possible to reward your child for urinating\u00a0(even a little bit!) into the toilet.<\/p>\n

If possible, plan to spend time in a room that is close to the bathroom so it\u2019s easy to clean up any accidents. If you have area rugs, put them away before you begin. If you have wall-to-wall carpeting, lay down a thin layer of plastic sheeting. A tiled or linoleum floor (like a kitchen) close to the bathroom is best.<\/p>\n

Be sure your child drinks plenty of fluids. That should give her more chances to practice using the toilet.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Offer your child his or her favorite drinks (even soda or other sweet drinks, even in the morning). Give her plenty of salty food snacks, like pretzels and chips. The goal is to keep your child thirsty so that she will keep drinking. The more your child drinks, the more there will be chances to practice using the toilet during this training period.<\/p>\n

Teach Your Child to Initiate (Starting\u00a0on her Own)<\/strong><\/h2>\n

This is an important step that people often skip. You can start teaching your child to initiate use of the toilet by prompting her to ask for the toilet before each sitting. Then reinforce the request. Learning to ask for the toilet completely on her own may take months. But, once a child learns how to do this, she will have fewer accidents. This is especially true when away from home in an unfamiliar environment.<\/p>\n

After about 10 minutes of playing, eating, reading or any fun activity, help your child initiate going to the toilet. Do this by having your child hand you the picture of the toilet or by prompting her to say \u2018toilet\u2019 if she can do that. \u00a0You can say \u201cpotty\u201d or whatever word your family uses for toilet. Praise your child for giving you the picture or asking for toilet. Do this even though you prompted her. Then bring your child to the toilet and have her sit down.<\/p>\n

Sitting Versus Standing\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n

We suggest having your child sit on the toilet to urinate\u00a0when you are toilet training. This is easier even for boys. In many cases it\u2019s easier to teach children to have BM\u2019s on the toilet if they can already sit and urinate. You will have plenty of time to teach your child to stand while urinating\u00a0in the toilet once he is toilet trained.<\/p>\n

\"Used<\/a>
Wikimedia<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Scheduled “Sittings”<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The sittings should be 3 to 5 minutes long. If you think 4 minutes is too long for your child, start with 3 minutes. See what works best for your child and then try to stay consistent. Don\u2019t\u00a0have your child sit for 3, then 5 minutes. Try to make sure it\u2019s close to the same every time. It\u2019s best not to keep your child on the toilet for longer than 5 minutes. If you do, your child may start to see the toilet as an unpleasant place. You don\u2019t want that!\u00a0 It may be helpful to use a timer. That way, your child will learn that when the timer goes off, it is ok to get up from the toilet. The timer will also help you keep track of time so you can keep sittings the same length. Reinforce your child while she is sitting on the toilet. You can use lots of positive attention, praise for good sitting, books, music, or anything else she likes. Make sitting on the toilet a fun thing for your child. Save the most powerful reinforcer, like a favorite toy or a favorite candy, for after your child urinates in the toilet.<\/p>\n

If your child doesn\u2019t urinate on the toilet during the 3-5-minute sitting, take her off the toilet and return to the other room. Continue playing, eating, or whatever you were doing before the toilet sitting. Continue for another 10 minutes and then repeat the process. Use a timer to help you remember when it\u2019s time for the next toilet sitting. Each time you repeat this process, begin by prompting your child to initiate the sitting by handing you a picture or saying \u201ctoilet\u201d or \u201cwant toilet.\u201d<\/p>\n

Next:\u00a0Challenges and Triumphs<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\nNow let\u2019s talk about daytime toilet training for urine. This is usually the best place to start. If your child…\n<\/div>\n
Continue reading “Ready, Set, “GO”! Daytime Urine Training Part 1”<\/span>…<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":49,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2645","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2645","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/49"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2645"}],"version-history":[{"count":27,"href":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2645\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9592,"href":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2645\/revisions\/9592"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/parenttraining.chip.uconn.edu\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2645"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}