Reward Charts for Potty Training
Summary: Reward charts help to motivate children during the potty training process. Reward charts can be used to keep track of successful outcomes or good attempts.


Reward charts help to motivate children during the potty training process. Reward charts can be used to keep track of successful outcomes or good attempts. Small prizes can be rewarded for each day, week, or a predetermined amount of time of successful potty training. Children love to be awarded prizes for positive behavior. The prizes can be simple, because children’s favorite part of the reward is usually the praise they receive. Stickers, temporary tattoos, and inexpensive toys can be used as potty training prizes. Special time is a nice reward too. Special time could include any of the following activities: outdoor play time, story time, indoor playtime, game console time (to play video games), family game time, or television time. A small treat such as an M&M works well too. Small prizes and reward charts encourage a positive outcome during the process of potty training. Girls and boys both enjoy being rewarded, so reward charts can be used for any child.

Rewards charts can be homemade, bought, or downloaded for free from many web sites online. Small foil star stickers make a nice addition to most reward charts, as do smiley stickers. You can always just draw a star or smiley face on the chart too. Some potty training reward charts look similar to board games; they have a path that leads to the final goal. Successful attempts or outcomes are marked along the path until the final goal is reached. When the goal is met, then the child receives a prize. Once a child is fully potty trained, you can present them with a Potty Training Award Certificate. Potty training award certificates can be found online at numerous web sites. The awards can be downloaded for free. Potty training certificates are a great way to finish a successful potty training period.

A reward chart for potty training will only work if a child is ready to potty train. Rewards alone will not make a child learn to use a potty. A child will show signs that they are ready to learn how to use the potty. Children show behavioral, cognitive, and physical signs when they are ready to learn. Check the following list of signs, to see if your child is ready to learn how to use a potty:


Behavioral signs

• Pulls his pants up and down on his own.
• Expresses interest in family member’s bathroom habits.
• Is able to focus on one activity for five minutes.
• Takes off soiled diaper, or tries to get you to change him.
• Grunts, squats, or exhibits obvious signs before soiling his diaper.
• Tells you that he has to go potty.
• He desires independence; wants to be a big boy.
• He imitates older siblings.
• Feels proud of his accomplishments.
• Is generally agreeable or cooperative.
• Does not resist learning new things.

Cognitive signs

• Can follow basic instructions.
• Understands what urine and stool are even though he may call them different names.
• He understands what it feels like to have to go potty; he can hold it until he reaches a bathroom.
• Appreciates praise and doing the right thing.

Physical signs

• Has good coordination.
• Has a period of 2 hours or more between each wet or dirty diaper.
• He urinates a larger quantity at one time, rather than small amounts many times.
• He has predictable bowel movements.

Children are ready to potty train at varying ages. They can be ready as early as 15 months or as late as 3 years. In some cases, children are ready even earlier or later than those ages. The average age range for successful potty training is 18 months to 2 ½ years. Girls are generally ready to learn before boys, but not always. Every child progresses at their own rate. The above signs will help you to determine when your child is ready to learn. Your child should exhibit at least four behavioral, cognitive, or physical signs before trying to learn how to use the potty.

Potty training is an important part of growing up. Mastering the potty provides children with some independence. Potty training is great for parents too; no need to buy expensive diapers and wipes any more. Potty training is great, but a child has to be ready to learn. If you find yourself getting frustrated with a child who is actively refusing to use the potty, then it may be time for both of you to take a break from potty training. Your child will not be able to learn to use a potty until he is ready. Until then, all of your hard work will only frustrate the both of you. Too many negative emotions during potty time will cause a child to associate negative feelings with using a potty, which can hinder his potty training progress. It is better to stop and take a break from the whole process, until you are both ready to try again with a positive attitude.

Before you begin potty training, you should gather all of the supplies you will need. You may want to have the following items on hand: potty chair, several pairs of underwear, a reward chart, stickers for the chart, small prizes to use as rewards, and a basket of books by the potty to entertain your little guy while he is on the potty.