1. Toilet Training for Children with ASD
Presented by:
Tracy Palm, MS, BCBA

2. When should I start Potty Training?
Does your child seem interested in the potty chair or toilet?
Can your child sit and get up from a potty chair or toilet?
Does your child imitate his or her siblings using the toilet?

3. When should I start Potty Training? Continued
Can your child stay dry for 1-2 hours?
Does your child have a communication system?
Is the child uncomfortable in soiled clothes or a soiled diaper?
If can do at least 3-4 or these things then they are likely ready to start potty training.

4. Motor Skills That You May Need to Teach
Sitting down and Standing up
Whipping Motion
Pulling their underwear up and down
Tearing Toilet Paper
Wadding up the Toilet Paper
Pulling their pants up and down

5. Cognitive and Verbal Skills To Teach
Saying “potty”, You can teach it through sign, pictures or vocally
Following simple instructions (“Sit down”, “Stand up”, etc.)
Imitation
Responding to positive reinforcement (rewards)
Understanding cause/effect (if/then statements)

6. Communication/ Visual Aids
Using visual aids can really help children learn the steps to new task such as toliet training.
Keep the visual aids simple (few words, easy to see pictures)

7. Before Beginning…
Rule out any medical problems before beginning potty training.
Too much or too little urination or painful urination.
Holding urination or BM
Chronic Diarrhea
Urinary track infections
Constipation

8. Getting Started Find out your child’s schedule.
Track your child’s toileting behaviors over a week.
Figure out how long does your child typically stay dry.
Figure out if there are certain times that you child normally urinates or has a BM.

9. Using Reinforcement
Find several reinforcers (things the child likes). A preference assessment maybe helpful to do at this time.
Only allow access to the reinforcers if the child successfully uses the potty.
Reward desired behaviors very quickly (3-5 seconds)

10. More on Reinforcement
Regularly evaluate if the reinforcers are working. If you are not seeing the child do the behavior more then you need to change something up.
If your child can not understand if/then statement you can use visuals to show the child what they will earn.
Pair the reinforcers with the desired behaviors even if the child does not understand the if/then correlation.

11. When should I put my child in underware?
As soon as possible!
Diapers and pull-up often make it harder for your child to realize that they have gone to the bathroom.
If your child is having too many accidents to put them in underware all the time then you can try putting the underware on underneath the diaper or pull-up.

12. Method to potty train at home and the classroom
Modified version of Foxx and Azrin’s Toilet Training in Less Than a Day

13. Steps to follow
The child should wear regular underpants during the day. Diapers or pull-ups may only be worn at night.
Wearing diapers increased accidents.
Keep the bladder full by giving the child as much fluid as they can drink.
Go to the bathroom every 15 – 20 minutes and stay on the potty for about 5 minutes or until they go on the potty.
Have the child sit on the potty during training.
Do fun activities while the child is sitting.
Provide reinforcement and praise immediately if they go on the potty.
If they don’t go on the potty, put clothes back on and allow them to leave the bathroom.
Prompt them as little as possible to pull up their pants.

14. Every 5 minutes, check the child to see if they are dry. “Are you dry
If they are dry reinforce and praise immediately.
If they are wet say in a flat tone “You’re wet, you go pee pee in the potty.” Then follow the positive practice procedure.
Increase time between dry checks as potty training progresses.
When the child self-initiates consistently (goes to the bathroom without prompting from you), stop scheduling potty time.
If they self-initiate one time and never again, start scheduling potty time again.

15. Bowel Training
This will take much longer to teach
Do not use positive practice procedure for BM accidents.
Prompt the child to clean up the mess (put BM from underwear in toilet).
State, “we go poo poo in the potty.”
If the child has a regular bowel schedule, sit on the toilet during this time.
Teach boys to stand while urinating after the child is consistently voiding and having BM’s on the potty.
Teach child to request for potty once child is self-initiating for one month with no accidents.
Block access to the toilet and prompt the request.
Do not require the child to request during the training process.

16. Positive Practice Procedure
This procedure may be different for each child, some do the procedure once while some do it five times.
At the location of the accident state “You’re wet, you pee pee on the potty”.
Direct the child to the bathroom, prompt them to pull down pants, sit and pull wet pants up.
Return to location of accident.
Repeat steps 1-3, 1-5 times (depending on the child).
After the last practice, change the child into dry clothes.
Have the child clean up wet spot on floor and put away wet clothes.
Do not provide a lot of attention at this time and maintain a flat nonreinforcing tone. The positive practice procedure is not fun for the child.

17. Going out in public
Go to a frequently visited store and do not plan to get needed items during this trip.
Fill child’s bladder before departing so they will need to use the bathroom when you arrive at the store.
Walk the child to the restroom when you arrive to the store.
Show the child the toilet and see if they will initiate.
If they do not, use minimal prompts for toilet use.

18. Classroom adaptations
If there is no bathroom in the classroom pair a potty picture with the process of going to the potty. This is done by showing the child the picture then taking them too the potty. Take the picture with you as well. Show the child where the picture is kept.
A potty alarm can be used to immediately notify someone if the child is starting to go to urinate.
You may need to take the child to the restroom more frequently then in other environments.

19. Visual and Verbal Prompts
Read potty books with your child during the day.
Have potty parties with a wetting doll.
Watch toileting videos.
(Elmo)
(Daniel Tiger)
Have the child fill in some potty phrases from their potty book about their reinforcers.
Run water & pour water while the child is sitting on the toilet.
Sing a chosen potty song each time you take the child to the bathroom.

20. Potty Book example

22. Problems and Hints The child does not want to sit on the toilet.
Reinforce small steps towards sitting on the toilet.
Enter room, stand 2 feet away from toilet, stand next to toilet, touch toilet, etc.
This may take some time but be patient.
Model the desired behavior yourself, with a doll, or in a book.
Cover the toilet seat and remove gradually by cutting larger holes.
Sing a favorite song while sitting.

23. The child is afraid of flushing.
You flush and gradually have them stand closer and closer. Reinforce for each step closer.
Listen to the sound at other times away from the toilet and reinforce listening to it at different volumes.
Let the child know when you will be flushing.
Verbal – “Ready, set, flush, all done, wash hands.”
Visual schedule

24. The child will only have a BM in a diaper.
If constipation is a problem seek help from a doctor.
Keep a daily log of BM’s and body cues.
Play in the bathroom during time of BM, when body cues are present place the child on the toilet (with a diaper on if needed).
Identify a strong reinforcer and only allow access to the reinforcer for a BM on toilet.
When child has a BM on the toilet (with or without the diaper, depending on the child) give child reinforcer immediately.
After several successful BM’s with the diaper on, cut a small hole in the diaper. Increase the size of the hole until the diaper is removed.

25. Things to Remember Consistency is important!
Reinforce desired behaviors quickly!
Teach and train prerequisite behaviors like pulling pants up and down, sitting, responding to reinforcement, etc.
Do not use diapers except when sleeping when starting to potty train.
Tarbox, R.S.F., Williams, W.L., Friman, P.C. (2004). Extended Diaper Wearing: Effects on Continence in and Out of the Diaper. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 37,

26. Resources Toilet Training in Less Than a Day, Azrin & Foxx
Autism Speaks
Applying Structured Teaching Principles to Toilet Training, TEACCH