North Carolina Early Learning and Development Progressions: Birth to Five

Domain: NC Foundations for Early Learning: Health and Physical Development (HPD)

Subdomain: Self-Care

Goal: Children develop independence in caring for themselves and their environment.

Skill Progression: Toileting

Age: 42-48 Months

Click here to go to all skills for ages 42-48 Months.

Manages toilet seat, toilet paper, and flushes

Situations for Observation of Skill

Interview the adult and observe the child’s bathroom habits. Toileting is dependent on family expectations and background, and cultural differences. Type of diaper used also impacts feeling of wetness, so children who wear pull-ups may not feel wet.

Elicitation Strategy

See if the child spontaneously uses good hygiene in the bathroom.

Behavior Observed

If hygienic bathroom practices have been taught, the child is independent in bathroom practices.

Routines-based Intervention (Embedded Instruction)

Consult with early childhood educators and parents about the child’s hygiene in bathroom practices. Talk about teaching the importance of good bathroom habits for health and the need to be considerate of others.

 North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, 2015

©2015 by the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/.