As the mother of two daughters, my recollections of the potty-training years conjure up visions of many tiny pairs of panties sporting Disney princesses or flowers. Even sopping wet (which they were quite frequently), they were pretty darn cute.

My friends with little boys had hampers filled with the male equivalent: miniature briefs decorated with superheroes or Thomas the Tank Engine. But aside from the underwear, do our children experience potty training differently because of their gender?

The prevailing myth is that girls tend to ditch the diapers sooner than boys. There is some truth to this, says pediatric psychologist Peter Stavinhoa, Ph.D., but the reason is not understood. Stavinhoa is the co-author (with Sara Au) of Stress-Free Potty Training: A Commonsense Guide to Finding the Right Approach for Your Child. He believes that the pace at which a child trains has more to do with temperament than gender. "Understanding your child's budding personality can help guide you toward strategies that may be more effective, and may help you avoid those that can make things worse." (For example: a so-called "goal-directed" child might follow a parent's suggestions willingly, while a "strong-willed" child could turn everything into a power struggle.)

That said, there are some ways to address the undeniable differences in equipment between boys and girls when teaching potty etiquette:

• Let your child of the same sex see you do your business. I know, it's annoying and a little degrading, especially when the bathroom should be the one place where you are fully entitled to just a few minutes of peace. But it's so important to be a role model and take advantage of "teachable moments" -- and there's no better time for your child to see how it's done than by watching mommy or daddy relieve him or herself. (I think it's OK to ask a child of the opposite sex to stay on the other side of the door since there's no inherent educational value.) Not only do kids want to emulate their similarly-gendered parents, but they'll learn some valuable skills, such as: that girls need to wipe from front to back (stress the importance of this for health and hygiene's sake) or that Daddy stands up to pee (though Stavinhoa says there's no need to force a boy to stand up if he prefers sitting down).
• Promote "Nakedtime," as Stavinhoa calls it, because, even though it means your kids will pee on the floor (a reason to limit this activity to carpet-free zones), they'll get a close-up view of the stuff that will eventually be going in the potty and where it comes from.
• Make it fun. Both boys and girls respond better when parents have a positive attitude about the process. Let them go with you to select a potty -- and of course, to purchase their first pairs of superhero briefs or princess panties.

**Check out more from Christina Frank on her blog, Living in Splitsville.