Hi Michelle,
At the moment, I am working hard to stick to sitting on the potty once an hour when he’s home. Doing it before he wants to go outside, etc is really challenging at the moment while working full time/remotely alone so I am working hard to stay consistent to the once an hour. I have stopped the candy incentive and I’ve found that he loves those little party noise makers as his incentive. I went to target and grabbed a bunch of party favors for parties and filled a basket. That seems to be the winner at the moment. Right now we are at 45-60 seconds on the potty, working up. He likes to play with one of the timers while he sits. Is this ok? If he’s struggling to sit past the minute mark, is it ok to have a song playing to encourage him to sit? I plan to dive into the vault very soon for more information on this process. Thanks!
Answer:
Hi there!
You found something he actually wants. Candy isn’t automatically a reward just because it’s candy. If the party favors are motivating him, use those!
For now, keep working on the hourly sits you can consistently follow through on. We can build from there.
Yes, playing with a timer or listening to a song is okay if it helps him sit happily. Keep the actual countdown timer attached to the bathroom wall so he can see it without changing it. He can play with a separate one.
If he’s struggling at a minute, start with the duration he can successfully manage. If that’s 45 seconds, start there, then add five seconds after each successful sit. We’re building toward sitting happily for 3–5 minutes when asked, so give him achievable wins.
As soon as the timer goes off, he gets his sit reward. The song or toy can help him during the sit; the reward comes immediately after completing it.
Remember, the sit reward is different from the elimination reward. When pee or poop goes in the toilet, that reward needs to be OFF THE CHARTS and delivered immediately!
Make the potty power training your first stop in the vault, and come to my call or the BCBA call so we can talk through how this is going. Also, has he peed or pooped on the toilet yet? That helps us know where to go next.
thx!
Hi there!
You found something he actually wants. Candy isn’t automatically a reward just because it’s candy. If the party favors are motivating him, use those!
For now, keep working on the hourly sits you can consistently follow through on. We can build from there.
Yes, playing with a timer or listening to a song is okay if it helps him sit happily. Keep the actual countdown timer attached to the bathroom wall so he can see it without changing it. He can play with a separate one.
If he’s struggling at a minute, start with the duration he can successfully manage. If that’s 45 seconds, start there, then add five seconds after each successful sit. We’re building toward sitting happily for 3–5 minutes when asked, so give him achievable wins.
As soon as the timer goes off, he gets his sit reward. The song or toy can help him during the sit; the reward comes immediately after completing it.
Remember, the sit reward is different from the elimination reward. When pee or poop goes in the toilet, that reward needs to be OFF THE CHARTS and delivered immediately!
Make the potty power training your first stop in the vault, and come to my call or the BCBA call so we can talk through how this is going. Also, has he peed or pooped on the toilet yet? That helps us know where to go next.
thx!