The Basics of Potty Training

The Basics of Potty Training

March 2nd, 2010 by admin  |  No Comments

Every mother looks forward to the day when she will be free of diapers, but the thought of taking on potty training can scare even the bravest mother into grabbing another box of Pampers instead. Teaching your toddler to use the potty doesn’t have to be a scary proposition; just be sure your little one is ready, and have the right tools at your disposal.

Is Your Toddler Ready?

No matter how ready you are to ditch the diapers, potty training will only frustrate you both if your child isn’t ready to learn. These are some of the signs your toddler is ready:

  • Tells you when her diaper needs changing and shows discomfort with being wet
  • Stays dry for a few hours at a time during the day, wakes up from naps dry
  • Able to pull her pants up and down
  • Shows interest in using the potty, and understands what it is for
  • Can recognize the need to go

Choosing a Potty

Ready to train? Then it’s time to choose a potty. There are two potty options: small potty chairs that sit on the floor, and potty seats that fit over the toilet. Most experts recommend the potty chair to start. Toddlers learning to use the potty will be more comfortable if their feet can touch the floor, especially for bowel movements.

Potties offer many different features. Look for one with an easily removable container for waste that is also easy to clean. If you are training a boy, look for a large enough guard to keep urine from going over the seat and onto the floor. Some potties have a seat that comes off and can be used on the toilet. Others convert to step stools for hand washing. If possible, narrow down your choices and then let your child have a say in the final pick to help get her excited about using it.

The Final Touches

Before you sit your big kid down on the potty for the first time, there are a few more things you will need. Pick up some big kid underwear (again, you’ll find your little one more willing and excited if he can choose), some flushable wipes, and some potty-time entertainment such as new books. The day before you are ready to start, talk to your toddler about it, and explain what is going to happen and what your expectations are.

There are a number of different schools of thought on how to get a toddler to use the potty. Some parents use rewards such as small treats or a sticker chart. Others use heaps of praise. What all successful parents have in common are persistence, patience, and consistency.

It’s Potty Time!

When you are armed and ready, it’s time to sit your little one down on the potty. Don’t expect results right away. Give him a few minutes, and if there is nothing, try again soon. Set a short interval between attempts, fifteen to twenty minutes. If you are consistent and stick to the plan, it won’t be long before you are celebrating your first success! When he has an accident, express mild disappointment and move on. Remember that toddlers learn as much from accidents as they do from successes.

Potty training doesn’t happen overnight, and every child is a little different in how quickly they will catch on. Some kids will get it in a few days, and others may take a week or more. Don’t give up! Soon, your diaper days will be only a memory.

Talking to Your Baby: An Important Learning Tool

Talking to Your Baby: An Important Learning Tool

March 1st, 2010 by admin  |  No Comments

The first sound that a baby recognizes is his mother’s voice. In the womb, it is the sound that is most frequently and easily heard. From birth, a newborn will respond readily to this familiar sound, and it has the power to soothe, comfort, and calm. As the baby grows, both parents’ voices also have the power to teach. Talking to your baby is the best and easiest way to encourage his language development.

Why Talking Matters

For most parents, talking to their baby comes naturally. Greeting him in the morning, encouraging him at new tasks, and even holding one-sided conversations are all things parents do without thinking. Eventually, the baby starts to talk back, first with simple sounds and then with more complex vowels and consonant combinations that will eventually become words. What most parents don’t realize is just how much impact they are having on baby’s language development, just by talking to him every day.

The Truth about Baby Talk

While you might feel a little silly using baby talk with your infant, it actually helps your child to learn language if it’s done the right way. You may have heard that using baby talk can be detrimental to language development. The truth is that it really depends on what you mean by the term “baby talk”. Some parts of what we know as baby talk are good for language development, and others are not.

It’s important when talking to your baby to use the proper words for things, so that he can learn them. Your baby may call his bottle a “baba”, but although it may be cute, you should continue to respond with the correct word to encourage him to learn it. It isn’t necessary to correct the improper pronunciation, but be sure that your child hears it pronounced correctly. When it comes to sentences, keep it simple or it will be difficult for an infant to pick up the words. Use short sentences with fewer words, and don’t say more than you need to at once.

When you hear the term baby talk, you probably think of speaking in a very sing-song cadence with a pitch that rises and falls. It may seem instinctive, but there’s good science behind it. Research shows that babies respond well to this tone, much better than monotone speech, and learn to recognize words better.

Labeling and Learning

The concept of pointing out and labeling objects when talking to babies isn’t a new one. Parents have been doing it since the birth of language. But recent research shows that there is a new dimension that can really help your child to pick up new words. In their recent bestseller NutureShock authors Po Bronson and Ashley Merryman reveal the concept of “motionese”. It’s a simple idea – just move each object around in the air while you name it, drawing her attention and keeping her focused on that object. This easy to use tip will help your baby pick up new words faster.

The authors of NutureShock also share research supporting the theory that how much you talk to your baby is just as important as what you say. The more you speak to her, the quicker language will develop. Furthermore, how much you respond to your baby’s vocalizations is important too! Respond to her attempts to communicate with you as much as you possibly can, and you will see, or rather hear, the results.

Talking to your baby is the most important tool any parent has to teach language and improve communication. With a basic understanding of what works and why, parents can maximize the effect of every spoken word.

Choosing the Right Books for Your Child

Choosing the Right Books for Your Child

February 28th, 2010 by admin  |  No Comments

Reading books with your child is crucial to his development of language skills, and of course, literacy. But the children’s section at a bookstore or library can be daunting, with thousands of books to choose from. Luckily, there are a few simple things to look for based on your child’s developmental stage.

From Birth to Twelve Months

In the early months of life, babies are drawn to high contrast images and more than anything to human faces. Eyesight is still developing, and babies focus best at a distance of about a foot. Choose books with simple, large images with contrasting colors, especially black and white, and simple patterns. Books with a lot of close-ups of faces are a wonderful choice at this age.

After about 6 months old, your baby will start to interact a lot more with toys, people, and books too. In addition to wanting to touch books and turn pages, you will probably catch him chewing on books as well, as babies at this age explore the world with their mouths. Because your little one is now so hands – and mouth – on, look for sturdy board books that can withstand baby’s attention.

This age of learning by touch is the perfect time to introduce books with tactile features, such as a book about animals that offers fuzzy patches of fur for little hands to feel. Your baby will also start to recognize familiar images of things that are a part of his daily life, so books that include simple images of these things are a great choice.

With baby learning to sit up in the tub, this is also the age to check out bath books. Books made of waterproof materials, with simple stories and colorful images will make bath time as much about learning as it is about fun.

The Second Year

Around the time your baby smashes his first birthday cake, you will be noticing great strides in language and communication skills. At this age, the words in the book will start to become more important. Look for repetitive, rhythmic and rhyming text, and simple stories involving everyday things. Images are still important too! Look for colorful illustrations that help to tell the story, and that she can start to associate with the text.

As the second year of your child’s life unfolds, she will be learning at a very fast pace, and books are an important part of improving vocabulary skills. Books that have only a few words related to what is on the page will help her to recognize and learn the names for the objects pictured. It’s a great time to start a dialogue about the book by having her point out what she sees on the page.

Toddlers and Beyond

Further into the toddler years, your child will start to enjoy the story as much as the images. Understanding the text and being able to ask questions, point things out and even read along as familiar books are committed to memory, children at this age become truly active participants in reading. You will even start to catch her repeating the words to the story aloud while thumbing through the pages without your help. This is a great time to choose books with more involving stories. Books that address common childhood hurdles and fears are a good choice, and as her sense of humor develops, funny stories will be a hit.

Choosing the right books is not hard when you are aware of how age and development play a role in reading. With the wide selection available in bookstores and libraries, the possible choices are endless, and so is the fun you can have reading with your child. Still need a little help deciding? Take a look at this comprehensive list of the best books by age from Parents magazine.

How Reading Aloud Benefits Your Child

How Reading Aloud Benefits Your Child

February 27th, 2010 by admin  |  No Comments

Reading is one of the most important things you can do with your child, and the list of benefits is long. By reading to your baby from early on, you will give him a head start on literacy and language skills as well as expose him to whole new worlds of knowledge. And on top of all this important learning, reading is also a wonderful chance to enjoy quality time together.

A Time for Bonding

Holding your child in your lap to read a book is important bonding time for both of you, and it will help to encourage a love of books and reading. Your baby will learn to connect reading with love and comfort, and he will look forward to the quiet time spent cuddled with you while enjoying a good story. Reading offers a one on one experience with your child that he will come to treasure, and develops a deep connection that will last a lifetime.

Developing Language Skills and Vocabulary

Reading aloud to your child introduces him to all the basics he needs in order to learn how to talk. Your child will hear new sounds, which will help him figure out how to pronounce these sounds and form them into words. While it might be a long time before you hear complete sentences from him, your baby is already picking up the concepts of sentence structure and grammar both from your speech and from the books you read aloud to him. Children who are read to are more likely to begin reading at a younger age, as they have developed a familiarity with and love for the written word, and have more advanced language skills.

Expanding Knowledge

You may not be able to take your child to visit a farm, to another country, on a cross-country journey by train, or sailing on the ocean. But with books, she can experience and learn all about these things right at home. Reading about a variety of topics gives her a wider knowledge base, which will serve her well later in life. Choosing the right books will also offer you the opportunity to teach your child about different cultures and places; this in turn sets the stage for teaching opportunities about diversity. This is one of the many ways in which books can help you to instill values and ethics in your child.

Preparing for School

Learning to read is a basic and necessary skill in school, and the better prepared your child is the stronger her chances of success. Reading to your child helps her to learn the most basic concepts of literacy, like being able to tell words from images on the page and knowing that the words go from left to right. Not only will she already have a good foundation for learning to read on her own, but she will also have learned to listen, as well as to sit still and pay attention. These abilities are all vital to your child’s academic success. Research has shown that children who are read to early do better not just in reading, but in all their studies.

Reading to your child is so important to her intellectual development that the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends you read to your child daily from 6 months of age. However, there is no reason to wait until 6 months; you can start reading to your newborn right away. Even if your baby falls asleep, or is more interested in playing with the book or chewing on it than in reading it, making books a part of her day will set her up for a lifetime of literacy.

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