Toilet training doesn’t rank high on many mums list of ‘fun things to do with toddlers’ let’s be honest. So anything that could potentially make the job easier is welcome. Step up ‘Toilet training Bing! Every mum will know who Bing is- the bunny that is bigger than his dad/carer/childminder – Flop! He gets a bit worked up about things but good old Flop helps him work things out, as after all ‘it’s no big thing Bing’. So hopefully the idea of toilet training will be no big thing for our little ones either! This new ‘Toilet Train Bing‘ play set is ideal for helping little people learn about using the loo, flushing, and why we shouldn’t hold it when we do need to go!
Bing himself is a soft toy that talks when you squeeze him, and he comes with a little toilet of his own to sit on. The idea is that Bing plays happily saying different phrases and then will give a warning that he needs to use the loo! Then he needs to be sat on his own little toilet where he will relieve himself- phew! However on the odd time that your child might not get him to the loo on time (possibly because their sibling has pinched the loo… whoops) Bing will have a little accident, and his pants will turn yellow! With any luck your kid will learn to get him on the loo pronto with no time to spare, and then transfer this valuable life skill to their own toilet habits! Including flushing the loo!
Now in our house Athena is and old hat at the using the loo business, and Arlo is showing some signs (like standing next to the toilet and peeing on his own feet) so I am trying to gentle introduct the idea of sitting on the potty or toilet and trying not to make the whole experience seem like a big deal. Having a talking Bing to play with has definitely helped- even if he just finds it HILARIOUS that Bing wets himself so maybe won’t want anyone to laugh at him if he ever does… not that we would of course! He likes to make him sit on his little blue throne, though so far doesn’t want to sit on his own little potty! It’s early days though! Athena has also rather sweetly been telling Arlo all about the toilets at preschool (she just left and he will start last year) and that ‘it’s not scary, everyone does it Arlo…’
Anyway, Bing comes out with lots of phrases that your kids will recognise, including asking if they want to play games like Hide and Seek, and asking them to ‘stop the game for the toilet train’, and ‘you need to pee pee before you play’ which a good life lesson really! The science bit- there is a magnet in the toilet that tells the Bing doll that he is sat on it (or not) and the ‘wee’ is actually a light behind his underpants.
Designed for kids of 2 and up I think even past toilet training Toilet Train Bing would still be played with as many of the sounds are to do with different games. The set retails at £31.99 and needs 3 aaa batteries, though they come included.
If you’ve got a child who really loves Bing then take a look at our Bing & Sula talking friends review, a year on and these two are still played with almost daily!
I roll my eyes at potty training toys or gimmicky potties that play music, because it confuses little minds with playtime and makes other parents feel inadequate when they can’t afford or refuse to part cash for garbage that has the only use of prying money from wallets and pressure from grandparents who are easily fired up over new-fangled rubbish. Pants with characters on them work much better, from memory I would have preferred products marketed that are good for cleaning up pee – because that’s most likely what any parent during potty training will be doing in its early stages.
If you want to potty train your toddler, introduce them to knickers or underpants, let them hold them, ask them if they want to try them on, explain its what big children wear. If they really aren’t interested, its ok to try another day. If they put them on, tell them how good they look and offer lots of praise, it goes a lot further than bribery. If they don’t like the underpants don’t leave them in them because they can end up holding themselves and making themselves ill. One alternative is to use cheap brand nappies that let them feel uncomfortable when they wet themselves, but don’t leave them in them all day to be uncomfortable, they just need to learn what wetting themselves feels like. Do not scold or punish them for wetting themselves because it will lead to more difficulty learning potty training.
If your toddler can’t tell you they are wet or need something, they are NOT ready for potty training and it is damaging to their learning psychology to force them into learning for the sake of saving a few quid or some time washing nappies (for those that use reusables.) I lost my mind at someone who suggested my child should be potty trained because she’d reached a certain age, children develop physically and mentally at their own pace – don’t let anyone tell you otherwise, you as a parent will always know your child better (My child was born premature, it does take a fair few years of slow growth for them to catch up to children born later.)
If you struggle with toilet training during the week, I would recommend trying when you have time at the weekend – offer a lot of watered down squash, they’ll soon want to pee and that’s the perfect time to show them the potty when you don’t have to go out somewhere.
Don’t worry about poop, they’ll learn that once they’ve mastered pee.