I need tips on potty training a 3-year old boy!

Judy - posted on 05/27/2009

I threw a cheerio in the tolit and told him to hit it. It worked very well there are also targets u can buy to stick in the bottom of the tolit so he can get points and use the reward system with that. Like how ever many points is on the target, use them with some of his fave things and when he hits them points he gets that special whatever it is. Good luck

Deanna - posted on 05/27/2009

Quoting Katie :

my son has got the pooing part down he can't get the peeing part quite yet though, so my mom suggested putting Cheerios (just like 10 of them) in his potty seat so that he can be entertained by making them float. She said this is how she taught my brother. I'm gonna buy a box of them tomorrow.

A long time ago the cheerios logo had something to do with them floating and not being able to sink. I would toss a few in the toilet bowl and tell my son to aim for them and try to make them sink. It sounds a little gross but it turned into one of his favorite things to do.

Jessica - posted on 05/27/2009

I have a girl but I can give you advice that my friend did with her son! She actually told her son that he could only chew gum while he is on the potty. Which really helped her in potty training her. I also use to tell my little girl that if she started to go potty that she can go see the princess in Disney and that made her go potty! I think giving rewards for going potty is great things to do. But I have to tell you that you are going to have you bad days with your little one and then you are going to have your good days. I kept training pants on my little one until she was going all the time without me reminding her because if she went in her pants she didn't like the feeling which reminded her that she better go to the potty! Hope that helps!

Kim - posted on 05/27/2009

hi amber my daughter is 2 in 3 mths and she has already been toilet trained for 1 month now all i did was put undies on here and put the potty in the lounga area where it was visible at all times and she had good and bad days but she always did in or around the potty on the mat but she eventually got it right you just have to be patient and let them be ready when they are

Courtney - posted on 05/27/2009

I was in the same situation and tried to get my son potty trained for over a year and finally when I just asked him once a day if he would like to try again, within a week he started going and has been potty trained ever since. it is so weird because he was completely capable of going, but he wanted to be the one to decide when he did. once i let him have control of that, he was fully onboard with everything. according to his teachers at preschool, a lot of kids are like that and they just want to do it themselves and when they are ready, they will. that doesn't make it any easier for the parents because it is beyond frustrating! but know that he will eventually get it! i also made him a potty training cake (like a diaper cake but with pullups, big boy underwear, special soap and a few treats) and told him when he starts going like a big boy, he could have it. that was pretty good motivation too! :)

Josephine - posted on 05/27/2009

I don't have a boy I only have girls but I tried for a whole year to potty train my little girl and it just wasn't working. I finally just let it go( which is what my mother told me) 3 months short of her 3rd b-day I went to put pullups on her and she didn't want them had a fit from that moment on she was trained. so I guess I'll give you the same advice I was given just leave him alone when he's ready he'll let you know.

Elizabeth - posted on 05/27/2009

I used gummy bears, one for peeing in the pot, 2 for pooping in the pot....it worked for my child

Mrs - posted on 05/27/2009

i started my son weeing on the tomato plants outside.. made it fun and then did the reward system - started with tiny teddies and snakes for each time he went to the toilet.. then he went backwards and I tried the reward chart where everytime he went including at daycare he'd get a star and when he reached 10 he got to go to the shops and buy a small present and then i increased it to 20 and thats all i had to do.

Lindsey - posted on 05/27/2009

buy a ping pong ball put it in the toilet and you son has to hit it with his stream if he keeps on it for longer than say three seconds then reward him with a sticker at the end of the week give him a treat not only does it make him go as it is a game put also it makes him aim straight! when its number two time take out the ball with gloves and give him a newspaper or comic just like dad! it works !

Cassandra - posted on 05/26/2009

if his father is around ask him to take him to the toilet with him to show him how to do it and in no time he will be wanting to do what dad does this trick worked for us

Jill - posted on 05/26/2009

I have learned consistency is your best bet... what I did with both of my boys when they were 3 also was just make an immediate switch to underpants (have plenty ready) and as long as they were awake (not nap time or bed time) they wore underpants... I did not switch back and forth and avoided pull ups altogether. This way there were no mixed messages. My older was potty-trained in 3 days and my younger took about a week and a half. But then we were done!

I recommend doing this even if you have to take a few days off of work and stay home.

Sherry - posted on 05/26/2009

If you know someone with an older boy preferrbly a year or two older that your son will/ can mimic that helps. Just have him over on the weekend reward them both for helping you!
Its well worth it.

Crystal - posted on 05/26/2009

we used a couple things, and even then, he still had accidents for over a year. First, we got him excited about "big-boy" undies and how he needed to help keep them clean, or he'd have to go back to diapers. He really loved picking out his own Thomas the Tank Engine (etc) undies. Also, anytime we could, we'd just let him be naked. We don't have much carpet, so we didn't worry about accidents. But he seemed to do really well if he wasn't wearing any undies, pullups or diapers.

Jodi - posted on 05/26/2009

I wouldn't force him until he is maybe 4. But - I told my son that when he is potty trained, I defined that as no accidents for a month, he could get a big boy bed. He picked out a lightning mcqueen bed, sheets and a comforter. It was quite a motivator.

Chrissy - posted on 05/26/2009

I used a dvd called potty power. My son watched it for a week straight and he starting going all the time. i found it online. I don't remeber what website but it really gets them interested in going and it tells them all about using the potty.

Kim - posted on 05/26/2009

When my son was little (potty training age) he loved those mini marshmallows. In order for him to get one or two or more, he would have to sit on the potty and go. When he sat down on the potty I told him to let me here it raining in there and he could get a marshmallow. Worked like a charm.

Kelly - posted on 05/26/2009

let him be naked on bottom outside or in your house if you do not have carpet. this was how we finally got my sone to get it. he was very difficult. we also bribed him with the minit thomas the trains. if he wet his pants we took one away from him. he then had to potty in order to get it back this only happend a few times and hew was done!

Tara - posted on 05/26/2009

I am right there with you Amber. I struggled with my 3 year old son until recently. It seems like your little guy actually made more progress then mine had from your post. I couldn't figure it out. My daughter was potty trained a couple weeks after her 2nd birthday and it was so easy. My son is so different, very stubborn. He had no desire - none! He hated every part of it. I recently had success following the 3 day potty training guide. It's a online book that a Mom wrote to show how she did it. She guarntees you can do it in 3 days. So far so good! I believe it. Its costs to order it ($24 ), but then you just download it to your computer. Basically for 3 days he can't be out of your sight, but it works. I think worth the $$. The site is 3daypottingtraining.com. I was told about it through my 5 year old's preschool newsletter. I would recommend giving it a shot. Good luck - hang in there!

Natalie - posted on 05/26/2009

Throw some Cheerio's in the toilet when it's pee pee time, and tell him to aim for them. Also, set up a schedule for him...take him potty every hour, then extend the time between sessions. It might take a few weeks, but it can work. You can't force potty training, he has to want to be the "big boy"

Beth - posted on 05/26/2009

reward stickers works too

Jennifer - posted on 05/26/2009

My son likes Mickey Mouse Clubhouse so my sister in law bought him some Mickey and friends big boy undies and he wore them. When he had accidents instead of getting on to him, I just said that Mickey was sad b/c he wet him. And somehow by the grace of God it worked. He started saying, I will not mess up Mickey Mouse every day when we put his big boy undies on. He was two in March and he was fully trained the second week of April so I suggest getting him some character undies of someone he really likes and try it. If that doesn't work, just pray hard b/c it is very stressful as a mommy to go through this I know, but you can do it!

Mindy - posted on 05/26/2009

3 boys 1st one 31/2 years 2nd one 3 years 3 one 31/2 years the average age to potty train is 2-4 years old with boys usually being later. I found that when they decided they wanted to start using the bathroom they just did it and were trained easily usually with in a week. The most helpful thing especially since your boy keeps wanting to take off his diaper is just take it off, that trained my boys the best of anyother way. When they were actually starting to use the potty on their own taking off their diaper or pull-up in the morning helped them go because there is nothing there to catch the mess big boy underwear is also a good idea. SInce it's getting on to summer if you are worried about the mess have him play out-side then the clean-up if needed is easy. it sound like he is getting ready to be fully trained just give him gentle encouragment and you will know when he is ready to leave the diapers behind. good luck I know it is stressful especially when you have people saying he should already be long since trained. but he is perfectly average with training.

Sairah - posted on 05/26/2009

Nothing worked for me either. My son is 3.5 and is still not trained.

I have started trying something, and for the first time, he is actually telling me 75% of the time. We put up a chart in the bathroom with a happy face and a sad face. Every time he has an accident, we put a 'x' under the sad face. When he tells me he has to go potty, and does it, we put a sticker under the happy face. We now have as many stickers as 'x''s. Hopefully we'll keep getting better

Good Luck!

Jennie - posted on 05/26/2009

I know for my and both my sons, I kept them naked for about 10days. But you have to be consistent. You can't put a diaper on to go to the store etc. You have to have the time to just let them be. They both peed 1 or 2 times on the floor but then they always used the potty. I tried all the rewards but it didn't make a difference for me but this worked great. Also, if hes dressing himself then he's ready. Sometimes people try to push the potty training, but if they can't dress themselves (pull up their own pants) then their not ready. Hope this helps. I know with my first, I worked, so grandma had to do it and leave him naked all day but with my other one i'm a SAHM so I had the time. Good luck!

Tanya - posted on 05/26/2009

With my son what I did was this. I gave him a singe M & M everytime he went potty, it only took one pack & he was finished. I am the type of parent that beleives that candys and chips are junk food and kids can only get them as treats. Once my son saw that everytime he went potty he got treat he was to ready to potty train!

Mandy - posted on 05/26/2009

I tried The candy, stickers, presents ect..... What really worked for me is.... I told my son we didn't have anymore pull-ups. I took him to the store and picked out 3 differant packages of underware. He did not like to be wet. within 3 days he was totally potty trained. I've heard this really works on a number of tots cuz they don't like the feeling of being wet!

Brandee - posted on 05/25/2009

Quoting Michelle:

My youngest son took forever to potty train. The way that I got him to go all the time was to impliment an M & M reward system. I gave him like four M & Ms for going pee and twice as many for having a bowel movement. I could not believe it within two weeks he was completely going on the big boy potty all by himself. Be patient and whatever you do do not say neative things because he will regress not progress. I hope this helps. Good Luck!!!

I used this same thing for my daugher, but she's sneaky, she'd run into the bathroom and try to get into the M&M's. I put them in a plastic jar and sat them on a shelf above the toilet, when she was finished she had to show mommy the proof before the M&M's were given. I did 5 for pee and 10 for poo, within 2 weeks she was completely potty trained. Hardest part is weaning them off the M&M's but after a while she forgot about them and we've moved on....

Melissa - posted on 05/25/2009

I copied and pasted this from another post I made about potty training...so just look over the "she's" and "her's"..lol.



Get a timer with a bell (kitchen timers are good).



Set it for 20-30 minutes and when the bell goes off, take your child to the bathroom and sit her on the potty. While everyone has a certain amount of time that should be given to the child, Abby's doctor suggested the same amount of time on the potty as her age...(ie: Abby is 2 so she sits there for 2 minutes)



If she's still not went potty then we let her up, set the timer for 20-30 more minutes and when the bell goes off, we do it again. There WILL be accidents in between trips to the potty...that's only natural..just chalk it up, change her and tell her, "It's okay, you'll do it next time." Then start over.



While it takes time...it helps mold her way of thinking. When she hears the bell she knows it's time to go potty. Eventually she'll go when she hears the bell because kids are creatures of habit. If they do things a certain way everyday, then they'll continue to do them that way out of habit. Once she does go, she'll eventually learn to recognize the urge to go. It's a process..one that's not at all easy for some kids...but the abilities there...At the right TIME.



While I'm not all for the candy reward, I do think that a reward of some kind can be helpful. I swore I'd never bribe my child, BEFORE I had a child...but sometimes it can help. I've got a sticker program. It's a poster of Poo Poo and Pee...and it's got the date and time and then columns under each. We keep it in the bathroom above her potty chair. Everytime she goes to the potty, we get to put a star by that time. She's into that because it shows her progress and she always wants to improve. Kids strive for approval, if they show it or not. (Well that and she loves stickers..lol) But it works.



It's also been suggested to let a child run around naked the first few days, that way there is no "barrier" when they do have to go...unfortunately there is no "barrier" when it comes to accidents either, so use that suggestion at your own discretion..lol.



Hope some of this helps...just remember, Potty training is just that...Training...it will come with practice

Lisa - posted on 05/25/2009

Lizzy - I love the potty jar idea!!!! Great tip!

Daphne - posted on 05/25/2009

I had two boys to potty train.... i found it ratha easy!!!!! But you could try a game by putting a "ping pong ball" in the toilet and tell him to aim for it.... and reward him for it when he does..... give it a try...... remember all kids are different good luck****

Martha - posted on 05/25/2009

If he's taking off his diaper when he poops in it, he obviously doesn't want to sit in a poopy diaper. Have you tried putting him in cotton training pants? That's what finally worked for my daughter. My husband got her up one morning and told her that her baby sister needed the diapers. She helped him put them in her sister's closet. She wore training pants (the cotton kind with extra layers in the crotch, not pull-ups) for a few days, and now she wears panties. Her last day in diapers was 10 days ago, and she hasn't had an accident for 5 days. I think this might work for you because 1) he has gone on the potty and had good days at it and 2) he doesn't like being dirty (as evidenced by him taking off his dirty diaper). The cotton training pants will alert him much more quickly that he is wet. Diapers these days are so absorbent they don't even know they've gone.

We also have been using m&m's or jelly beans and stickers for a reward . . .

Kirstie - posted on 05/25/2009

I used a sticker and calendar when I started training with my son. He would get a sticker to put on the calendar everytime he went for a pee. That has now passed and he gets a temp tattoo if he poops. He's completely trained he just holds in his poop. So that's why we continue with the reward system.

Joanne - posted on 05/25/2009

Oh, and by the way, I trained four boys. The first one was the hardest he was 3 by the time he was trained. When I got the hang of it, the rest were potty trained by the time they were two. Hang in there, it won't be too much longer.

Joanne - posted on 05/25/2009

He won't be in diapers forever, yes I know the sooner he is out of them the better! I gave my kids a chocolate bar for a reward. I put them on the potty when I saw it in there face that they needed to go. I praised them, really praised them when they went. If they went in the diaper, I said nothing.

Rachel - posted on 05/25/2009

Make it into a game for him. Try putting cherrios or fruit loops in the toilet and tell him to try and ring it with his pee. It helped me my 2 boys.

Stephanie - posted on 05/25/2009

Make it into a game....race to the potty. make a treat jar with his favorite candy. Maybe kind of start over and have him go every hour for one day, two hours the next day. And if you do that, load him up on beverages and salty things ( to make him more thirsty) Just for a day though!

Dawn - posted on 05/25/2009

Hi Amber, I think it's very common for boys to take longer at potty training so no worries. Keep asking him, but I wouldn't 'force' the issue. My son who is now 9 was 3 1/4 when he finally potty trained and I work full-time so I wasn't home with him during the day. It was frustrating at first so I understand your concerns. We used those padded rings that sit on top of the regular toilets (less cleanup for us moms to deal with!). One day I ran out of diapers and sat him down and had a serious conversation with him. I said 'Drew, we're all out of diapers and you have to use pull-ups. You cannot go potty in your pull-ups....." For some reason that worked! Drew is a bit of a procrastinor. He's the last one up in the morning, he does his homework at the last minute, and it took me 2 1/2 hours of pushing when he was born. Just his personality I guess. Perhaps your son is similar. I've also remember that Drew liked to concentrate on the toys he was playing with and having to run to the bathroom just got in the way of playing, so for the sake of convenience he'd just go in his diaper. I also have a daughter (age 7 now) and she trained much sooner. GOOD LUCK!

Jennifer - posted on 05/25/2009

Make it fun for him! I don't know if anyone has posted this already, but usually boys like to win... About every hour or two take him to the bathroom and put fruit loops in the toilet. Tell him he gets a point for everyone he can hit. And then after so many points for the day, he gets some sort of prize. I know it may sound kind of gross, but trust me, it works!

Michelle - posted on 05/24/2009

I used a sticker book. Everytime he went to the toilet using the potty or big toilet he got to choose a sticker and place it in his sticker book. For number 2's had really special stickers and average ones for number 1's. At least with book you could take it with you, plus they like to carry it around too.

Natalie - posted on 05/24/2009

im havn trouble myself, my son is 2 1/2 he will do a wee but not a poo. The best way that i found (with weeing) was i asked him constanley during the day if he wanted to go... his favourite is the wiggles so i made a wiggles potty chart up for him stuck it up in the toilet and brought stickers everytime he went he got to put a sticker up and told him he was a good boy which he thought he was fantastic for!!! Although he won't poo at least of got one side of it done..... i would NEVER EVER smack him for not doing it in the toilet that is just out ragish and wrong... also we found that to start off with we started b4 we where to have a shower so we would run the shower and put him on the toilet not the potty but the toilet and found that he started to go from there.... good luck sorry i cant help with the pooing side of things.. i wish u good luck

Lisa - posted on 05/24/2009

Hey i didn't get my son potty trained until he was 3 and let me tell you what it was a rough road. First of all it's probably not a good idea to talk about it all of the time because he will get frustrated and give up. Put him in regular big boy underwear and just let him know what they are. Once he pees in them and realizes that the pee makes him cold and wet he will stop. Make a poster with every day of the week on it, get some little stickers and have hm put stickers on the poster every time he goes to the bathroom (with or without being told to). I guarentee you will see some improvement. Good luck remember just have some patience with him and let him go at his own pace, he will catch on Good luck!

Cathy - posted on 05/24/2009

hi my eldest son is 3 he has been potty trained since before he was 2 1/2, what i done with him was keep asking him if he need to go on his potty, even if it was every half hour or so, and didnt give him a drink just before bed and ask him to go potty just before bed. i didnt force him to potty train i just left it till he was ready to tell me he wanted to. they all do it at different times.

Rooja - posted on 05/24/2009

i just potty trained my 2.5 year old daughter, and she got trained in only 2-3 days. But the thing is that i trained her before too once, when she was 1.5 yrs old. She was fully trained then too,but i went to visit my parents and there she was so upset, missing her father and all that she stopped using the potty.

What i did then and now , is , i took off her diaper. And just kept taking her to the potty every half hour. Made up a silly poopy song, and made her say bye bye to poo... things like that. But for the first many days, even if she was telling me, i still kept reminding her.

I think the one mistake that moms make sometimes, is not to introduce the potty at all, until u start potty training. This way, when it is a TOTALLY new concept, some kids have a tough time accepting it.
If your child does not want to leave his play area, to go to a boring toilet, get a potty seat for him and he can poo-pee infront of tv. Its ok...
best of luck.

Kara - posted on 05/24/2009

Sounds like he is doing real good. With my oldest I used Fruit Loops instead of Cheerios and only put in two colors in the pot and what ever color he hit the most of he got to get that same color out of the M&M jar that we kept in there. He thought it was a blast and learned his colors very quickly after that!!!! Please dont ever spank a child for not making it in time! That is horrible.

Jennifer - posted on 05/24/2009

Don't push him. My son didn't train until he was 4. When he was ready, he did it. He hardly had any accidents afterwards either. And he is six now and has never worn a pull up. I think when they are ready, they know. Especially boys. But, once he goes a week or so without a pamper, don't give it back to him. Good luck and don't stress over it. There are plenty of other things to worry about. This is not one of them.

Carol - posted on 05/24/2009

I personally think that he is doing well. Boys are harder than girls most of the time. I have tried everything but it is when I quit trying that they usually get the idea to go themselves. You just never know when that time is coming.

I think that when you make it seem like HIS idea to go potty it usually works better. My

Peditrician used to tell me that he could guarantee me that my kids would NOT go to

Kindergarten with a Pamper under one arm and a bottle in the other...........he was right!!!! LOL

Lori - posted on 05/23/2009

My oldest was tough a real fight despite being dry at night at 12 months as soon as he got up in the morning he would predictabley go but it wasn't his idea and so he wasn't really potty trained untill he was 2 1/2. It really has to be their idea get the big boy/girl pants show them how to take them on and off and on days when you have time put them on and when they get soiled say too bad and don't rush to wash them try again another day. They really resent having to go back to diapers don't waste money on the pullups its too easy for them to just soil them they are so absobant they don't even notice and if your really brave. do what i did with my second through last 4. just plan a weekend of no pants let them run around in an oversized t-shirt free. if they start to pee or poo they quickly realize they have to take it somewhere else. My second oldest was nonverbal until he was 4 and i didn't even expect to start potty training him but I left him like this due to a fungal rash one summer and was surprized to find him sitting on the big toilet he was not quite two then and i just dug out some of his older brothers underwear and showed him how to take them on and off and that was it he was trained, I could not believe it.

Kristin - posted on 05/23/2009

My son was about 3 when he finally trained. He went to a home day care where all the kids went to the bathroom at the same time every day and the routine really helped him. Within a week, he was "day dry". I'm not sure what you're using to reinforce his good days, but some type of reward might be a good idea to let him know what you want him to do. Instead of punishing him when he doesn't do it, reward him when he does. Too often, we tend to tell our kids only what we don't want them to do instead of praising them for a good job. Every kid has a different trigger though, so figure out what he really likes (that isn't too expensive) and use that. :-)

Jenniefer - posted on 05/23/2009

not spanking, thats for sure. The cheerio idea worked for my cousins kid. Maybe let him walk around all day in a twenty pound diaper? Once my son realized he didnt have to cart the pee and poop around with him I had no trouble at all. Don't shame him. Maybe enlist the trained kid of a friend to add a little peer pressure?

Sonya Marie - posted on 05/23/2009

Don't fight with his don't say a thing whan he wets himself only say something whan he he go's on the potty boy take a bit longer than grils i had 4 boys and 3 grils and my last boy tryed himself