Searching for child care for your young children can be nerve-wracking. There are many things to take into consideration when looking! Common considerations tend to be safety, affordability, hours of operation, and proximity to work or home. One thing that may slip your mind is how the provider approaches potty training. This is important if you have a young child in the process of potty training or who will start potty training soon. 

Most children start to show signs of being ready to potty train between 18 months and 2 years of age. If the child can communicate that they need to go, seems interested in the toilet, is able to get their pants up and down, and can stay dry for longer periods of time (around two hours), they may be ready to start. Many centers really start encouraging potty training around age 2. 

Questions to ask

Child care centers with age-segregated rooms are likely a bit stricter and less flexible with their potty-training process. In-home providers will be a bit more lenient with potty training policies. Here are some helpful questions you can ask about potty training:

• Are their toilets easily accessible and of a reasonable size for the children to use?
• Do the teachers have a potty-training plan in place? 
• Will peers also be potty training?
• Does the provider change diapers/try to get kids to use the restroom at certain times each day?
• Are kids able to get to the toilet quickly if needed?
• How is the provider willing to work with the child as they start and continue the process?  
• Do they use any type of reward system? 

Important tips once you make your decision

It is vital that parents and providers work together to make potty training a success. Child care centers and most experienced in-home providers have experience in this difficult process and may actually have more knowledge and suggestions to help than the parents do. It is important to stay consistent. Consistency with young children is necessary in order to be successful. 

Dress your child in a way that encourages potty training. Onesies that snap are not conducive for potty training. Bottoms that are easy to pull up and down are the best thing to wear. Also, remember to send clothes with your child. Accidents will happen—that is a given. Be sure to send several changes of clothes for when they do. It may be a good idea to send some pull-ups as backup for nap time or particularly rough days.

When looking for child care for your young child, be sure to ask about potty training! Having a plan ahead of time and knowing how your provider handles this process will make it smoother and less stressful on everyone. Contact a child care center like Tomorrow's Child Preschool for more information.