Please vote on whether I bother tackling this one and how?

[Jimjamskeepingoffvaxthreads]

DS1 has started weeing in the sink. Most of the time he goes on the toilet, but if he comes in and someone is on the toilet then he goes in the sink instead . He has been taught to use the urinal at school and I guess is getting confused. He doesn't seem to realise he shouldn't be doing it.

if I see him doing it I obviously say "no sit on toilet", but without making too much fuss because if he thinks it gets me going he will be at it all the time.

So do I ignore it and just redirect, and hope it goes away or do I try and put together a photo social story with pictures of toilets, urinals and sinks. Or do something else? It's not really a problem behaviour yet, but obviously if he starts weeing in sinks all over the place then it will be totally unacceptable. I'm worried that actively tackling it will make him realise its forbidden (as he really will do it all the time yet, and it will be the kitchen sink as well I just know it). So I want to be really careful before I do anything. School said he hasn't done it there yet, but is generally fascinated with pouring liquids at the moment and toilets.

Hi a social story might be good, especailly ffif you have used them before but could you ask school for some symbols (I've found his to be successful with some of the parents I work with) and go for a simple phrase like
'Taps on sink wash your hands'
'sink is for a wash, toilet for a wee'
there are symbol vocabularys for PSHE which have some quite graphic pictures of pooing, weeing etc. If you have no joy I would be happy to print some and send them to you.
Really with things like this anythings worh a try to nip it in the bud early on.
HTH

Thanks peachygirl. I have some symbol programmes here and was thinking of something like that. Good idea to ask school. I think he is flushing a lot at the moment there so that could potentially be annoying them! Will add it to the clinical psych list as well. Will be able to ring her next week.

Another vote here in favour of tackling it now. No advice about how to go about it but it sounds as though Peachygirl's strategy is a good one. Good luck. :)

I am very worried about drawing his attention to the fact he shouldn't be doing it, because then he will do it all the time and find it hilarious.

Honestly when I thought of my life as a parent I never thought for one moment I'd be making up pictures books of bloody toilets sinks and urinals!

Maybe you should emphasise that he should use the toilet (and then gets to flush it wahey!) rather than saying anything at all about the sink..... I think I would just do what you are doing now, redirecting with simple explanation. Maybe some pictures of the toilet, flush, washing hands in the sink..... We used to have a short and simple picture sequence in the bathroom with a star for each stage and then reinforcer. I'm not so sure how worth it was to do tbh. It was fine when someone was always with him and "working" on it iyswim but over time he chnages his toileting habits all the time, irk!

yes the flush does go down well.

jimjams- we have stickers down the loos at school for small boys to aim at. I think they change colour or something. Could you get hold of something like that and then incorporate it into either a social story or a chart with your symbols

Is your school a special school robinpud? Could I be nosey and ask what type? I suspect the sticker thing would be a bit beyond him, and he'd either completely not notice, or end up only weeing if there was a sticker, or alternatively wherever he saw one.

I think I'm going to just redirect if I see it happening in a low key way. Been thinking about the toilet sink book etc and I think he'll just stim over it, I dount he would notice anything else on the page (I have spent this morning trying to read a magazine with a picture of a washing machine on the back and it keeps being snatched out of my hands).

I suppose I could do a PECS type interactive book- sink- wash, toilet wee - symbols he has to put on to a strip below the picture...... Hmmmm.

I have heard of putting ping-pong balls in the toilet to aim at and to reinforce!

jimjams- not a special school