Parents would like to think that potty training for boys is pretty much the same as that for girls, except for anatomical differences, yet there are a few factors that end up distinguishing the two. The first is that the age at which boys should be trained is generally later than that for girls. Potty training problems can arise more often for boys, and make them take longer to achieve success, if the process is begun too soon. It’s simply a fact that, in general, girls reach the necessary maturity before boys do.

Part of the reason why the schedule is somewhat later for boys is that they don’t mature physically as early as girls do. And they also take longer to become mature emotionally.

Parents forget that this is such a big alteration in the way children have lived their lives to this point and they need to be capable of facing and dealing with such a major change. Physical and emotional maturity must coincide with the intellectual understanding of what is going on.

The anatomical differences between boys and girls come into play as well, when potty training for boys. Boys, in essence, need to learn two different methods of using the potty, rather than one. Toilet training for boys involves learning to sit on the potty first of all, and then later on adding the extra skill of standing up and aiming properly when urinating. Trying to learn both at the same time can be confusing, which might add extra time, so usually they learn the sitting down method and learn to stand later. Either way, it may take extra time for both methods to be learned completely.

It may sound too stereotypical to suggest that potty training for boys can also be affected by the sheer energy with which boys conduct their lives, but this may be an occasional factor. Boys have sometimes been known to be so intensely interested in their play or other activities that they haven’t even realized they should be heading into the bathroom. They may also need to be enticed into the toilet training process with more interesting products that can keep their attention. Parents need to be aware of all the extra factors involved in training boys, so they can avoid frustration and achieve success.

Did you know there are differences between toilet training boys vs girls? Find out more at Toilet Training Tips.