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Video transcript

Jennifer (mother of Olivia and Ava): Obviously you’ve got to get the child when they’re ready, don’t get me wrong they have to be a time, and also boys and girls are different.

Grace (mother of Zoe and Aiden): It needs to be a relaxing, comfortable transition for them, not a stressful and scary thing for them.

Rahnia (mother of Allirah and Ashtyn): You start to see the signs. They’ll start to show interest in their parts and, when they need to go to the toilet, they’ll start to cross their legs and pull at their pants so you know that they are starting to feel when they need to go to the toilet.

Rebekka (mother of Samson): He now will tell you if he’s done a poo. This is a very new thing he’s learnt to do and we’re quite proud of it. [Laughs]

Grace: Realising that they’ve gone to the toilet in their nappy and they’ll get a nappy and change, that’s part of toilet training.

Rahnia: They’ll start to show interest in the toilet. Like, they want to flush the toilet or they want to watch you on the toilet so that’s all the steps and signs that they are starting to get ready to go to the toilet.

Brooke (mother of Keana and Teagan): I’m just going to the toilet, doing a wee, and she’d be interested and I thought, ‘That’s good’, so we bought a little potty.

Sarah (mother of 3): I trained them with a normal toilet. All I got was a little step ladder. Every time I went to the toilet, they followed. Or I’d ask, ‘Anyone want to go to the toilet?’ and they’d say, ‘Yep, me Mum,’ and I’d say, ‘Come on then, Mum’ll show you.’

Lisa (mother of 1): I’d put him on the toilet and he’d jump up and he’d say, ‘Nothing’, and I’d say, ‘Come on’, because we had the little story about the little engine that could, you know, ‘I think I can, I think I can’, and he’d be outside in the little hallway saying, ‘I know I can’t, I know I can’t’.

Julianne (mother of 3): We really watched for him giving us indications of when he was ready to go and watched his routine.

Rahnia: In the summer I let them run around with just a top on, no pants and keep the potty around so that they can see it and hope for the best.

Tony (father of Declan and Angus): We’d keep him out of the nappy as long as possible and make sure he’s not on carpet, and we would just let him go. He would then start to get the urge. And as soon as we saw, or after mealtimes, we’d grab him and stick him on the potty.

Rahnia: Everyone would be so excited when she’d go to the toilet so she wanted to do it more and then it just kind of flowed because she saw the reaction that she got – that everyone was so proud of her.

Sarah: I got their first photos on the toilet too. [Laughs]

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Raising Children Network is supported by the Australian Government. Member organisations are the Parenting Research Centre and the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute with The Royal Children’s Hospital Centre for Community Child Health.

Member Organisations

  • Parenting Research Centre
  • The Royal Children's Hospital Melbourne
  • Murdoch Children's Research Institute

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