Teaching a child to take care of his bodily functions in the toilet is an important part of growing up and understanding how the body works. At home, parents can guide their children in matters of identifying signs that they need to urinate or defecate and cleaning themselves up afterwards, as well as proper etiquette for using the facilities and keeping them clean and orderly every time. These help make the child comfortable about using the toilet or bathroom, and more adept at looking after their bodily functions without the help of an adult.
At school, however, children need to follow the rules for toilet breaks—they cannot simply go whenever they feel the need to since they have set schedules for class. But while setting rules for toilet breaks is conventional practice, children must also feel that they are not being unnecessarily pressured into holding their bodily functions back, which could cause children to develop negative attitudes toward toilet use, or even develop certain physical conditions, in the case of children with specific health needs.
Children must be taught that there are appropriate times to use the toilet while at school, under normal circumstances. Here's how teachers and personnel at learning and child care centres can help teach positive toilet visit habits in kids:
Allow one child to use the toilet at a time. Children may want to visit the toilet with the company of a classmate or two, and while there is nothing inherently wrong with this activity, it can create the possibility of students learning to take breaks in groups so they can spend longer times with their friends, away from class. To prevent this from happening, teachers can emphasise that only one child at a time can go to the toilet so that there will be minimal disruptions for everyone in the class.
Set a specific amount of time that a child is allowed to spend for a toilet break. This helps the child learn to take care of his bodily needs properly, within a sufficient amount of time, without being away from class for too long, so as not to miss important lessons.
Devise a system that makes use of toilet passes. Children must understand that toilet breaks are meant precisely for toilet visits only, and not for loitering around school grounds or purposely missing out on class time. This helps guide children in using the allowed time for toilet visits only.
Make a record of children who visit the toilet. Children might use their toilet breaks because they are feeling sick or are having health problems, so teachers must be able to keep a record so they can monitor their students' activities and conditions.
By setting up a reasonable system for allowing children to use the toilet while in school, children learn to look after themselves, become mindful of time away from class, pay attention to their bodily needs, and respect facilities at school.