Some children respond to both day and night potty training simultaneously, but for the most part day potty training is the most effective to begin with. Then, as your child begins to master daytime potty training you might consider introducing night time training. Generally, the following outline of potty training works well for most children.

First, begin with daytime potty training. Introduce your child to the potty, set up a reward system, and begin praising your child for each successful trip to the potty. Keep in mind that your child will have some accidents while potty training and you should just take these in stride. Also let your child know that he is learning and it is ok if he doesn't get it right the first time, but as soon as he feels the urge to go potty to let you know or go on his own. While your child is potty training you will probably want to use training pants or pull-ups. That goes for at night, too. However, your child might feel as he is succeeding with the potty during the day that he wants to wear big boy underwear. He may also refuse to wear pull ups at night. So, here is how you should handle the situation.

Let your child know that he is sleeping with big boy underwear on and that it does not like pee or poo. So, if he wakes up at night it is ok to yell for you to help him go to the potty. More than likely your child will sleep through several accidents and cause some extra sheet washing for you, but night time potty training will occur in its own time. Using a plastic sheet underneath your child's regular sheets will help protect the mattress. Remember, to always support your child and praise him for successful potty training. But, if night training is not going very well tell your child that he must wear a pull up until he has seven dry nights in a row. At that point he can start wearing big boy underwear to bed. Many times this will work without too much resistance to ensure that your child gets the hang of night time training without having too many accidents!

If you are lucky then your child will be able to daytime and night time train at the same time. But, the majority of parents don't find this the best way to go about it. Generally, children will learn to go potty during the day and as they gain confidence then night time potty training may begin. You really have to gauge your child and see what is working for him and what is not. No child is the same so don't let stories from other parents, even your own, affect your decisions. Make sure your child is in charge of potty training and you simply support him whenever he decides he is ready to learn to potty train whether at night or during the day.