How to Potty Train a Girl

Last Updated on January 22, 2024 by Allison Lancaster

One of the toughest things to do as a parent is potty training our kids. A child learning to sit on the potty on their own is a big deal. Let’s look at some tips for potty training a girl and how you can achieve potty training success!

By the time you finish reading these potty-training tips for girls, hopefully, you’ll feel like an expert ready to take on this life-changing task.

When to begin potty training

There are some experts who tell you that you should start potty training a girl when they are 18 months old. While some girls are fully ready for that transition at that age, most aren’t typically ready until they are 2.5 to 3 years old judging from the comments I have seen on Facebook.

Most experienced parents will advise you to wait until your child shows signs of being ready to be potty trained. A little girl will show you signs that they are ready to start by trying to copy you in the bathroom by squatting down and/or grabbing at your diapers.

How to Potty Train a Girl

One of the first moves you want to make with potty training a girl is the mother needs to let her child see her using the bathroom. Be sure you show them the proper way to do things including washing their hands. Daughters want to copy their mothers as much as possible when they are little. They also want to prove that they are independent at a young age.

You want to get her own potty as soon as you can. And at this point, a child is ready to put on their training pants. Yay!

This way she can truly copy you as you’re using the restroom. Some parents move the potty around from room to room with the child to get them used to sitting in it.

However, some parents feel that can lead to more confusion and not help with the child getting into the routine of using the bathroom in the proper setting. I do recommend investing in a travel kid’s toilet seat for when you are going to be away from home for an extended period.

Potty Training Tips for Girls

One big tip for potty training girls would be to give them something to look forward to once they conquer using the bathroom with no accidents. For some, it’s the big day out to shop for fancy underwear and a dress. For others, it could be that one item they’ve had on their wish list for some time. Either way, a reward chart for something like this tends to go a long way.
Be sure that when your child does have an accident that you stay positive. Please do not make your child feel shame for having accidents during the potty-training process. Accidents are a rite of passage!
If you do lose your cool with your child over it, make sure you apologize immediately. The reason for stressing this detail is because this can truly set a child back from being able to be potty trained. Learning to be potty trained is a significant learning process for your child AND you!

While you may be blessed with potty training your child within a three-day to a week time frame, most kids take a much longer time frame to be done. It can take up to three weeks to a month to fully potty train a child.

Make sure your child is always wearing easy to remove clothing during this time. The easier the clothes are to get off the higher the success rate of their trip to the potty is. Some parents have been known to let their children run around naked. If you’re comfortable with that idea, it may be easier to help your child.
Some kids respond well to using a potty-training chart. If you’re an organized person and can consistently reward your child with this method, then this will certainly have some added benefits for your child to see their progress.
There are several resources online that may help with the potty-training process too. Be sure to check out the Preschool Inspirations list of the Best Potty Training Songs for Children.