Customer Reviews

Time to Pee!

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

We're using this book during a potty training marathon with our rather willful 2-year old. It has helped him put words to the positive feeling he gets when he succeeds ("I feel proud", he says, beaming.) The text is presented in a fun way, in the form of celebratory signs and banners paraded by supportive mice. His older brother enjoys sounding out the words, so it's nice to have a book they both can enjoy. I haven't used the stickers and chart yet (he's not to that stage yet) but I remember hand-making something similar for his older brother when we were working on consistency -- it worked like a champ!

Before he wowed the world with not-very-scary monsters and before the term "knuffle bunny" entered the American lexicon, Mo Willems began his career with two almost simultaneous picture books. The first of these was the incredibly popular and award winning, "Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus". The other was the far more instructional, "Time To Pee". Obviously Mr. Willems must have understood that there is a significant gap in quality toilet training picture books out there. Though suspiciously similar in some ways to "Ten Minutes To Bedtime" by Peggy Rathmann, the book is an effective helpmate to those parents facing the inevitable toddler v. toilet battles to come.

The book is a sort of instructional guide for kids. A countless multitude of endlessly helpful mice hold up banners, signs, printed parachutes, etc. to tell kids exactly what to do when they get, "that funny feeling". Children are told not to panic and that this is the perfect time to show their maturity. Just go to the bathroom and follow some simple steps. Lift the lid (good thinking there!), remove underwear, sit or stand, use toilet paper afterwards, flush (again, good thinking), and wash your hands. That done you can continue with whatever it was you were doing. "At least, until you get that feeling again...". A small mouse positioned next a suspiciously yellow puddle holds a sign that reads, "P.S. Don't worry if you don't get it right the firest time - you'll get another chance".

What a relief (ho ho) this book is after all the other awful potty training books out there. I won't name them by name. They know who they are. It's fun to see exactly what the objections to this book have been over the years. No book that talks about issues with kids (be it a death in the family, sex-ed, or the first day of school) is ever universally loved. Everyone has their own opinion on how to best convey certain ideas to very young people. Taking a gander at some of the professional reviews of this book, I see that some aren't fans of the ways in which the mice communicate. I mean, they never actually speak directly to the viewer and their disjointed sentences could be confusing. They're not, but they could be. Another objection states that it sends a rather mixed message to have an entire mousey band playing on top of the toilet seat when the kids come in. Due to the fact that this is just one picture and that the very first instructions tell kids to LIFT that same seat, I'm not seeing any problems here.

I think Mr. Willems' choice of language was perfect when it came to designating kids toilet roles. Some reviewers have sneered at the sentences, "Boys can stand. Girls should sit". I don't think there are going to be that many parents out there who disagree. I mean, if you want to teach your little girls to stand, all power to you. That's your prerogative. But boys really do have a choice either way (hence the use of "can") and girls really do not have a choice (hence the "should"). Duh. I mean, we're dealing with pretty basic stuff here. These sentences have nothing to do with gender roles and everything to do with the construction of the human body.

Now think back to the toilet training picture books of your own youth. Can you conjure up any that were particularly useful to YOU when learning as a child? No? That's probably because there weren't any. And there aren't many today either. This book doesn't have the sly understated wit found in so many other Mo Willems' stories, but it fulfills a very big need and does so perfectly. Be sure to check out the sequel, "Time to Say Please!" as well. I'm still a little suspicious when I consider how mighty close this book is to "Ten Minutes To Bedtime (which, quite frankly, is better illustrated) but I'm gonna give Mr. Willems the benefit of the doubt here and recommend "Time to Pee" heartily. A good gift and a great book.

As a professional Child Counselor, I recommend this book and own it. The reason for this book, is to teach children how to use the restroom in a polite way. Eating, sleeping, and using the bathroom are learned behaviors.

The author writes very simplistic, and the pictures are eye-catching. Wonderful book

I think this could be the very first book about going number 1!The art, the story, the subject matter -- all beautifully put together. Educational, rewarding and even comes complete with fantastic and fun stickers to use in the encouragement of your child's learning process (mine's not there yet, but with the help of this book I know she will be soon!). This is more than just a learning tool, it is a great book and one I foresee reading together for many years to come. A Classic!

My daughter's daycare had this book and I saw how much she loved reading it so we bought one for home, too. It was great while she was potty training. We talked about the messaging on each page and what was happening. The illustrations are really cute (we like to joke about how the mice are having a party on the potty) and the copy is fun and real world. It does come with cute stickers and a chart but she was never into them.

The cool thing is now that she's interested in reading, we're using it to learn how to spell words. They're mostly pretty short and the boxes around each one help separate them so they're easier to read. She just turned 3 so simplicity is key. Plus, it reinforces the potty training message and anything that helps keep her potty trained is a good thing!

We love Mo Willems, so I was really excited to buy a potty training book from her series. We were a little disappointed with the content...its a little confusing. It probably would have been better if she made two gender appropriate books as opposed to just one book. However, the sticker chart that is included inside the cover was a big plus. My daughter really looked forward to placing stickers on it each time she used the restroom. If nothing else it was great for the positive reinforcement factor....if you are a little bit crafty, you could probably make your own sticker chart at home and skip the book entirely.

My two-year old son loves this book. He isn't potty trained yet, but we're working on it. This book has certainly helped. When he uses the potty, we say 1-2-3 Pee!, which is from the book. And he's thrilled about getting a sticker for the enclosed sticker chart each time he goes. We're Mo fans! We also love "Time to Say Please" by Mo Willems.

I gave it three stars because the drawing are cute and at least it's a fun way of getting the message across that when it's time to "go", at least go to the bathroom. However, this book really doesn't deal much with the grim mechanics that all we parents have to teach our children about. Most of the content is about getting the child in the bathroom, but there are only four pages dealing with what the bathroom is all about and exactly what to do there. Another book full of cuteness that puts almost the entire burden of training back on the parent.

My 2-year-old and I think this book is okay. The art work is a little hard to follow for me, although my son doesn't seem to have a hard time. He likes the poetry of it. It isn't a great potty training book, per say, but nevertheless, an okay purchase. One part I don't like is pushing the standing up to pee for boys, I prefer to start him out sitting and progress to that once the actual going in the potty 100% of the time is established.

My father bought this book for my 1 1/2 year old son, who loves it. He brings it over for us to read together time and again, and he's now interested in everything to do with the potty. I happen to be a big Mo fan, but if nothing else, this book is obviously working in getting my little one on his way out of diapers.