So I know we don’t “need” books to teach our kids to use the toilet. But we have them (most of them were second-hand gifts) and so we read them.
My Big Boy Potty. Joanna Cole, Maxie Chambliss. (They girls version is the same minus the pee-standing-up). This has artoon drawings of kids following standard format: show diapers, buy potty, try it out, learn, have an accident, move on. Why do they all show families buying a new little kid potty? Is that really part of the American ritual? This book is technically very descriptive (one Amazon reviewer was shocked that it mentioned wiping. And lots of smiles from the parents, who just happen look a lot like the Mommy and Daddy in my house, which makes it very cute.
Where’s the Poop. by Julie Markes and Susan Kathleen Hartung. This uses cute cartoon animals to encourage poop-positive attitudes. It’s good for young kids who love animals, lift-the-flap books, and who might need help learning the difference between #1 and #2. I’m not one to cry “tmi,” but this book ends with the (cute cartoon) human animal in his own bathroom habitat. With a lift-the-flap toilet lid complete with (cute cartoon) business inside. What did my child learn? To scream “don’t touch that!” when he lifted the flap, because that’s what I did the first time. Also I really squeam at the phrase “making” (instead of “going”). Also, penguin poop is pink.
Big Girls Use the Potty by Andrea Pinnington. This is a DK Publishing book with high-production photos, graphics, lots of captions and stickers. It’s photo-essay style of an impossibly cute little blond girl and her impossibly pink bathroom and underpants. To avoid the distastefulness of discussing a real human child on the toilet, the book walks us through it with “teddy” (who gets the really potty words). Then Molly in person recites the activities with more decorum. The text has good rhythm; my kid likes to sit there and “dance” as I rap the lines out. Molly gets not only a new potty but a pile of new panties, special stickers, and everything is pink. Can a potty book be bourgeoisie?
There are dozens of more titles out there I don’t have, but I think we’ve covered our own personal potty library. Any other suggestions?
