How to Teach Children Proper Bathroom Etiquette

When Kids Need to Go

• When young children need to go, they tend to be very vocal about it. While this may be OK at home, it can be embarrassing when you're out in public. Teach your little one to let you know quietly when he needs to find a bathroom. At home and away from home, teach your children to knock before entering a bathroom. When your child is a guest in someone's home, he should ask for permission to use their bathroom before doing so. School-age children need to know how to ask to use the bathroom at school. In class, kids should raise their hands and ask the teacher politely if they may go use the bathroom. If the teacher is busy teaching a lesson and says no, then your child can let her know it's an emergency if he really needs to go. If your child can wait, he can ask again between lessons or during free time.

Proper Wiping and Toilet Use

• As your child is potty training, show her how to properly use the toilet. Teach her to stay seated on the toilet until she is finished going, suggests HealthyChildren.org. Boys should also remain seated until finished, or stand still in front of the toilet, until done. Demonstrate how to wipe carefully with toilet paper or a wipe, going from front to back, which helps to prevent vaginal, urinary tract and other infections. After wiping, instruct her to flush the toilet. Older children should already know these things but may still need to learn what is expected of them when using the bathroom at school and other public places. Remind your child to go into the stall, use the toilet, wipe properly and flush -- no playing around in the bathroom.

Tidying Up

• After doing their business in the bathroom, kids should be taught how to clean up after themselves, leaving the room as tidy as it was when they walked in. Instruct boys to get into the habit of putting the toilet seat back down if they raised it up. Emphasize that wipes and personal hygiene products need to be disposed of in the trash can -- never flushed. After your child washes his hands, show him how to wipe up excess water from the counter, using a paper towel.

Hand Washing

• Finally, children need to know the proper way to wash their hands in the bathroom and why. Explain to your child that there are a lot of germs involved with going to the bathroom, such as E. coli, and these germs can make her very sick. Those germs can come from her waste, the toilet or even the door knob. When she washes her hands properly, it rinses the germs away, explains KidsHealth from Nemours. Show her the right way to wash. Turn on some warm water, making sure its not too hot, then have her use soap to lather up her hands for around 20 seconds. To pass the time, sing a short song, such as "Happy Birthday," with her to make it fun and ensure she's washing long enough. Then, rinse her hands with clean water and dry them off.