My daughter didn't understand what it was that she was supposed to be doing in there. She had no context for words like potty, poopoo, and peepee. Finally, my wife closed the door and personally demonstrated for her what she was supposed to be doing in there. Afterward, she used the potty. Then, it was just a matter of getting her to use it regularly and figure out the timing of the whole thing. She's now 8 and we regularly have to remind her to use the bathroom every hour or so because she waits until the last second to go. Hope it helps!