Hi
I'm looking for some advice about how to help my 5yo understand why some of his behaviour in and around toilets is a bit inappropriate. He's been fascinated by toilets for years and potty trained just after his 2nd birthday. He's bright and chatty and likes to talk to adults when we're out. In public toilets he will ask people if they're going to the loo, if they've been, why they've been, etc. He'll also tell strangers that he's been to the loo which was kind of cute when he was little and got him lots of praise but now makes people a bit uncomfortable. And he will announce details of toilets (which ones have accessible cubicles, whether they have urinals, etc) as a topic of conversation. This last bit bothers me less - it's just something he's interested in - but I'm struggling to help him understand that people don't want to talk to strangers about their toilet habits. I've been emphasising that "toilets are private" but he doesn't seem to understand why it's inappropriate and I'm not sure how best to explain.
It's also starting to slightly edge into a safety issue in that he increasingly wants to go alone into the gents when we're out together (I'm his mum) but will go with the door open, wander out of the cubicle before he's pulled his pants up, and engage strangers in conversation throughout. I don't want to scare him with the "stranger danger" thing, and I'm always in earshot (and would go in to the gents to retrieve him in an emergency) but I feel like I need to start the conversation.
