Potty learning policy

Hello everyone. Hoping you could share your potty learning policy? More specifically, at what level do you request they be at home before coming to daycare (in a pull up, for example). I get the feeling lately parents are of the assumption that I will handle it. Of course, as soon as they can I am working on them pulling up their own pants/dressing in preparation. But, they have no idea that this, in fact, is the hardest place, in fact to train from scratch...or am I wrong? Ewwww, there is nothing worse than changing a poopy pull up, in my opinion:(
Thanks much!

The pull ups that undo on the sides, IMO, are no different than a diaper so it doesn't bother me lol. The cheap ones that you have to rip are more of a pain in the butt but still doable.

I request that the child ....

- is able to pull up and down their own clothing
- is ale to tell me that they have to go pee/poo
- is able to go 2 full consistent weeks without an accident in their pull up before they can come to daycare in underwear

I toilet train beginning the first business day after their second birthday but I have some prerequisites.

First, a child must be able to independently pull their pants up and down. I remind parents when their child is about 18 months that independent toileting cannot be taught if a child can't pull their own pants down.

I also require that when toilet training, real underwear is worn. No pull-ups.

Parents are told that they are expected to work jointly with me. If they have changes going on at home, if a parent is away at sea (military town), if renovations are going on, this is not the time to begin.

They are also reminded that this is a process. Once we begin, we don't quit and revert back to drapers. When their child was learning to walk, and stumbled and fell, they didn't consider stopping the encouragement to take those few steps, they didn't tutt and roll their eyes when their child faltered and they understood that some days would be better than others. Same thing with toilet training.

I do encourage parents to try and begin at home over a weekend. Two parents to one child means more likely they will catch the signs their child needs to go. I also tell parents that if they aren't willing to invest their time in helping their child with this, when there are two to one child, then it's not realistic to expect me to either when there is one person to 6.

Thank you ! Great advice. I like the concept of no pull-ups/diapers (and no reverting back); however, I have a carpeted playroom and am having a panic attack just imagining the accidents. Do you have them wear the thick underwear?

No - not thick underwear or training pants, and I am carpeted too. But what I do, is move the free play into the dining room which is large and tiled, for the first week. Once I can gauge if a child is going to be quick to learn or not, I might extend it.

I too do not use pull ups ever...such a waste of time and money and really unnessecairy IMO and experience.

I do not have a set age that I start toilet training as every child is different and I base my judgement on each individuals readiness versus age. I also encourage leaving boys till closer to 2 1/2 but I'm always keeping tabs on all the following signs of readiness too.

They have to be able to do the following...

1. Verbalize their need to go to the toilet
2.Independently pull down and up their pants and underwear
3. bowel movement needs to be at regular times...this is a sign that they are physically able to control their bowel movement better. If their BM is still at random times then toilet training is not right at that time.

Parents have to be 100% committed and I make it very clear that if they are not going to follow the EXACT same methods as me then I will not do it at all. I can't count how many times a child has shown up in a pull up, or a parent tells me that they went on a long car ride so put them in a pull up...I could literally scream at these parents....drives me crazy.

I also make it quite clear that I take the lead on how toilet training is carried out which pretty much all my past parents have been happy with as they felt daunted by the prospect of the whole thing. I explain that I have 5 children to care for, sometimes multiple kids training at the same time and I am with their child sometimes as much as 10 hours a day versus their hour in the morning and couple of hours after work plus weekends.

I have no issue being the one who starts from scratch with the kids, but if a parent is able to take a few days off or start when I am on vacation if it coincides like that, then that's a good start but honestly if I'm the one who puts the initial good start into it, it usually results in more success.

At daycare I require cloth training pants or pullups until they go atleast 2 weeks without any accidents. At home I encourage the parents to have them only in underwear and be very active in potty training. I know that the process would be quicker in just underwear at daycare but with 5 other kids to care for I can't ensure that the potty training child won't poop or pee on the floor - which is a major sanitary concern.

I totally see it as a process that involves 100% parental commitment and the understanding that the child won't be potty trained in a week. I have a 2 year old dcg that we have been working on potty training all summer and she is ALMOST there. But I don't stress about it and tell my daycare parents the same.

I wait until parents decide to train, I insist on pull ups. I let parents know the child has to have a understanding of the appropriate words and that I do not run a child to the potty every 20 minutes. I do not mind assisting with clothes in the beginning and always start a potty chart with rewards , but I feel when a child is ready it can be as easy as a weekend and your done !! I have trained my own five that way and have had 3 in dayhome trained the same way. It is useless to try if the parents are not onboard !
I believe potty training is best approached stress free and discuss potty training at interview so there is no surprises when the time comes!!

I agree with secondtimearound. Potty training starts at home not at daycare. Once a parent tells me they are starting at home I start taking the child once or twice a day here. I also don't start this until after the child is 2. I prefer if a family stays in diapers off the start as I find that usually the child is not really ready to start and doesn't really understand what is going on. Once they have practiced at home and had some success (not just putting the child on and the child accidentally goes) then I ask that we switch to pull-ups. Once a child is in pull-ups I will start taking the child more often, assist with clothing. I don't ask the child if they need to go. My whole group regardless of age goes at certain times during the day. I get the potty training child on board with that schedule. Once a child learns to tell me they need to go and has a dry pullup for 2 weeks then we can transition to underwear. I will not sit a child on the potty constantly all day, I will not allow them to come in underwear until I have approved it and they need to show an interest or I don't bother. IMO the parents should be doing most of the training in the evening (going naked or in underwear, getting used to the potty). I also don't use a "potty". I do have a toilet seat that has a built in child sized seat.