Potty Training Your Child - A Parent's Guide

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1 Southern Seven Head Start Parent Newsletter Children Need Love!!! March, 2015 Experts agree that parents loving attention helps children develop physically, emotionally and intellectually. The foundation of school success is the feeling of security, self-respect, and competence children gain from being loved by their parents. Being loved makes children believe in their worth. Being loved helps children through hard times, but above all, it makes the good times even better. Love also leads to good discipline. Many people think discipline is the same thing as punishment. But discipline really means teaching. When you show your child how to behave responsibly, you are disciplining them. Love is the reason parents discipline. They want children to make good decisions and become successful. Listed below are a few tips to help you discipline lovingly: Explain limits Use Praise Enforce Rules Consistently Criticize Privately Use Consequences, and Give responsibilities Love means expecting the best. It is hard to imagine anything more powerful than parents love. When parents show love through actions and words, kids develop selfconfidence, achieve success in and out of school and become loving people themselves. Love is simply the most valuable gift a parent can give. Angie Messmer Early Childhood Administrator Thank You!!! I d like to take this time to thank all the Head Start families for taking time to meet with your Parent Coordinators to complete the Family Partnership Agreements. Taking time out of your busy schedules is greatly appreciated. Remember, when the goals you set seem to be hard to keep working on, help and support is here at our agency. Parent Coordinators are more than happy to work with all families in obtaining resources in order to meet your individual goals. As part of the Family Partnership Agreements, we ask that families meet twice a year with our Parent Coordinators in order to record your progress. Parent Coordinators will be reaching out to you once again in order to set dates to meet with all Head Start Fami- lies. We look forward to meeting with you all to see the progress you have made towards meeting your goals! Laura Molina Social Services Coordinator

2 Toilet training is something that all of our kids must master. I get so many calls from parents regarding toileting that I thought I would share a few tips. Even before your child is ready to try the potty, you can prepare your little one by teaching about the process: Use words to express the act of using the toilet ("pee," "poop," and "potty"). Ask your child to let you know when a diaper is wet or soiled. Identify behaviors ("Are you going poop?") so that your child can learn to recognize peeing and pooping. Get a potty chair your child can practice sitting on. At first, your child can sit on it clothed. Then, he or she can sit on the chair with a diaper. And when ready, your child can go bare-bottomed. If you've decided that your child is ready to start learning how to use the potty, these tips may help: Set aside some time to devote to the potty-training process. Don't make your child sit on the toilet against his or her will. Show your child how you sit on the toilet and explain what you're doing (because your child learns by watching you). You can also have your child sit on the potty seat and watch while you or one of his or her siblings use the toilet. TOILET TRAINING Establish a routine. For example, you may want to begin toilet teaching by having your child sit on the potty after waking with a dry diaper, or 45 minutes to an hour after drinking lots of fluid. You may be able to catch your child peeing. Only put your child on the potty for a few minutes a couple of times a day, and let your child get up if he or she wants to. Try catching your child in the act of pooping. Children often give clear cues that they need to use the bathroom their faces turn red, and they may grunt or squat. And many kids are regular as to the time of day they tend to have a bowel movement. Have your child sit on the potty within 15 to 30 minutes after meals to take advantage of the body's natural tendency to have a bowel movement after eating (this is called the gastro-colic reflex). Remove a bowel movement (poop) from your child's diaper, put it in the toilet, and tell your child that poop goes in the potty. Make sure your child's wardrobe is adaptable to potty training. In other words, avoid overalls and shirts that snap in the crotch. Simple clothes are a must at this stage and kids who are potty training need to be able to undress themselves. Some parents like to let their child have some time during the day without a diaper. If he or she urinates without wearing a diaper, your child may be more likely to feel what's happening and express discomfort. (But if you opt to keep your child's bottom bare for a little while, you'll probably need to keep the potty close by, protect your rugs and carpet, and be willing to clean up.) When your son is ready to start peeing standing up, have "target practice." Show him how to stand so that he can aim his urine stream into the toilet. Some parents use things like cereal pieces as a sort of bull'seye for their little guys to try aiming at. Offer your child small rewards, such as stickers or time reading with Mommy, every time your child goes to the potty. Keep a chart to track successes. Once your little one appears to be mastering the use of the toilet, let him or her pick out a few new pairs of big-kid underwear to wear. Make sure all of your child's caregivers including babysitters, grandparents, and childcare workers follow the same routine and use the same names for body parts and bathroom acts. Let them know how you're handling the issue and ask that Page 2 S7HD/HS Parent Newsletter

3 TOILET TRAINING (cont.) they use the same approaches so your child won't become confused. Above all, be sure to praise all attempts to use the toilet, even if nothing happens. And remember that accidents will happen. It's important not to punish potty-training children or show disappointment when they wet or soil themselves or the bed. Instead, tell your child that it was an accident and offer your support. Reassure your child that he or she is well on the way to using the potty like a big kid. And if you're torn about when to start the toiletteaching process altogether, let your child be your guide. Don't feel pressured by others (your parents, in-laws, friends, siblings, coworkers, etc.) to begin. Many parents of past generations started potty training much sooner than many parents do today. And it all depends on the child. Kids will let parents know when they're ready. Tips for Toileting-Kid s Health- Cynthia Tremblay Special Needs Coordinator Praise Pointers Many parents find that well-thought-out praise given over time can actually be a more effective discipline technique than punishment. Below are a few praise pointers taken from the Pocket Parent by Gail Reichlin and Caroline Winkler. Praise specifically rather than generally: I appreciate how carefully you put the socks in your drawer is better than Good girl. Praise the effort rather than the overall performance: Children who receive specific praise for their effort are more likely to repeat the behavior. Thank you for working so hard at picking up your toys. Praise with words that reflect your values: This is one of the best ways you can teach your child the values you hold dear. For example, say I noticed your patience and determination as you were building your fort just the way you like it. You must feel really proud of yourself. Avoid praising with words like best, smartest, or prettiest : Although these are positive words, if used often they can actually feel like pressure to the child as he tries to live up to the perfection or extraordinary expectations he feels you have placed on him. Praise with words that your child has some control over, like creative, funny, musical, kind, or truthful : For example, I appreciated you being truthful in admitting how the window got broken. In this way a parent can guide a child in learning right from wrong without pressuring or criticizing him. Praise your child - it s a good thing to do and will help build your child s self-esteem. Janice Taylor Family Involvement Coordinator Page 3

4 School Readiness Each month, we submit fun activities you can do at home with your child to promote School Readiness. This month, we have submitted two activities, and the first one is coordinating with Southern Seven Head Start s School Readiness Goal # 11: Learning about themselves, their family, community and their environment: 1) regulating and understanding emotions; 2) and 3) writing and identifying their name and letters of the alphabet. The second activity coordinates with Southern Seven Head Start s School Readiness Goal # 5: Children will be able to name and recognize 10 Colors: 6) children will be able to name and identify, and draw 8 basic shapes, and 4) children will be able to automatically count to at least 30. February: You've Got Mail! Have your child draw a picture and "write" (or scribble) a note to himself/herself. Address the envelope and write the return address. Talk about why you write a return address and why it is important to know your own address. Put a stamp on your letter and explain why. Take the letter to a mailbox or the Post Office and ask: "How long do you think it will take for the letter to come back to us?" See if you are right. Have writing materials ready to use by making a writing box. Decorate a shoebox and put writing materials in it such as: pencils, crayons, note pad or scrap paper, scissors, glue stick, scraps of yarn or cloth, old greeting cards, stickers. You can keep this in a special place in the house for writing/ drawing projects. Take the writing box with you when you travel (by car, bus, subway, and plane). Other Ideas: Lift the flap on an envelope to make the shape of a "house." Write your address on it and have your child decorate it. Put it on your refrigerator. Send a card or letter to a friend or relative. Have your child draw a picture of someone they love and mail it. This is a good opportunity to talk about feelings: loving someone, missing someone, being sad, being happy or mad, etc. Related Books: Letter to Amy by Ezra Jack Keats Mailing May by Michael O. Tunnell Dear Mr. Blueberry by Simon James Page 4 March: March Around The House Walk around your house looking at colors, shapes, and numbers. Count the windows, the steps on the stairs, the number of rooms, chairs, etc. Look for shapes and colors in your home. Say "Let s find a square" or "Let's find things that are red." If colors and shapes are new to your child, place something red in her hand and say "That's red. Let's find other red things." Or, "This is a square. Let's find other things in the house that are square." Other Ideas: Write large numbers from one to five on a piece of paper. Next to the number one, put one little ball of clay or play dough, next to the number two, put two little balls of clay and so on. Have your child count the balls and use a finger to trace the number. Related Books: The Doorbell Rang by Pat Hutchins Red is Best by Kathy Stinson / Spanish version: Rojo Es El Mejor Afro-bets Book of Shapes by Margery Brown Color Box by Dale Ann Dodds Jennifer Parks Education Manager S7HD/HS Parent Newsletter

5 Recruitment & Enrollment We are busy working with families to obtain applications for Head Start next year. At each site, we have a display that will show you how many applications we need to have so that we can fill that site up for next year. If you haven t seen this at your site, please check it out and watch it grow. During March, several of our sites will be hosting Taste of Head Start Days. This is a way for new families to come in and view our program on a typical day, and if they are interested in applying for services, we will have plenty of staff on hand to assist with the application. Please feel free to let others know about this day and/or stop in and share your Head Start experiences with a new family. Below is the schedule for our sites. Evening appointments are also available if needed. Anna, Jonesboro, and Home Base (at Anna center) March 12 th from 9 a.m. -2 p.m. and 5-7 p.m. Brookport March 25 th from 8 a.m. 12 p.m. Vienna March 24 th from 9 a.m. 2 p.m. Cairo March 20 th from 10 a.m. 4 p.m. Egyptian March 18 th from 10 a.m. 2 p.m. Hardin County March 26 th from 9 a.m. 2 p.m. Pope County March 25 th from 10 a.m. 2 p.m. Metropolis March 26 th from 9 a.m. 2 p.m. Rustic Campus April 2 nd from 9 a.m. 3 p.m. If you are not new to Head Start and next year will be your child s 2 nd year in the program, your child is already on our list for next year. We may need some new health information but you don t have to do anything else as far as the application goes. If next year is your child s 3 rd year of Head Start, your family s Parent Coordinator will be contacting you to schedule some time to update your information. We are REQUIRED to do this if it is your child s 3 rd year in Head Start. We will be having transition meetings with the parents of Little ones in Early Head Start that will be turning 3 soon so we can begin the process of applying for Head Start. If your child will not be 3 prior to September 1 st, your child is good to go for next year. I know this is a lot of information to digest, so if you have any questions, please feel free to contact your Parent Coordinator or you may call me at the Administrative Office. If you have any younger children that will be old enough for our program for next year, make sure to get some time with your Parent Coordinator to complete the application process. Attendance I hope this nasty flu and weather has finished its course in Southern Illinois. This winter has been very tough on our little ones and days of operation. Please remember proper hand washing is the key to a healthy immune system and take extra precautions while traveling on the roads during any type of weather system. Congratulations to the following classrooms for maintaining at least 85% attendance for the month of December: Anna - Classroom A Cairo - Classrooms C and G Jonesboro Head Start Metropolis - Classrooms A, D, E, & H Mounds - Classroom A Vienna - Classroom A Congratulations to the following classrooms for maintaining at least 85% attendance for the month of January: Anna - Classrooms A, B, D, E, & F Cairo - Classrooms C & G Egyptian - Classroom A Metropolis - Classroom D Mounds - Classrooms A & D Pope - Classroom A Sharity Gaddis ERSEA Manager Page 5