My pups have always house trained quickly so I finally typed up my approach, acquired over the years, & saved it for forum cries for help.
1. Fixed feeding times (don't leave food in bowl all day long) is necessary if you want success.
2. Cardinal Rule: Walk dog IMMEDIATELY after eating, sleeping & playing (that third one's a bit tricky with young pups as sometimes that's only 5 mins!  ). That's when puppies get urges to go pottie. Always walk them to the same spot in the yard! The first week or so, praise with a treat and exhuberant verbal praise when done. Soon you can just give verbal praise. Bring them right back inside, because if you allow them to play afterwards, they will confuse two important concepts: OUTSIDE = POTTY; INDOORS = PLAY. Restrict play to indoors until they're fully pottie trained lest they get these two ideas reversed (one of mine did)! The logic here is if they play after doing business & then you let them in "after you're done playing with them" the Cardinal Rule (after play) kicks in again and they immediately squat to pee! There'll be time enough to play outside when they have got those two basic concepts firm in their widdle heads. 
3. In addition to the Cardinal Rule, walk them hourly the first week, then every 2 hours the next week, then every three the third week, and so on (except at night, when you walk when they wake). In other words, BEAT THEM TO THE URGE! Remember, always take to the SAME SPOT in the yard. Prior pee & poop scents will speed up the learning process. Dogs learn where to go from adult pack members. If you have an already trained adult dog, it helps train even faster!. It is vital you do not "free feed" but give food at fixed times of the day. Puppies have a strong gastro-colo-rectal response & tend to have to poop within 3-10 minutes of eating (varies with each dog). Use that fact to facilitate your training efforts!
4. Crate them (within hearing distance first 2-4 weeks) at night, whenever you're not home or can't watch them. Dogs will try hard not to soil their "den", so this works in your favor. Be sure crate isn't too large or they'll make a spot to go in the crate! When they wake up at night walk them to "the designated spot". When done, praise, treat & bring right back to crate to sleep (do not be tempted to play with them. Ride out the whining!). You will lose some sleep week 1 & 2 , but believe me, the fast results will be worth it. If they go in the crate (because you slept through their waking), just clean it up in the A.M. with no correction.
5. Accidents: if caught in the act just pick the pup up quickly, (scoop & run) say "No, pottie outside" in a firm, displeased voice and take them outside to the usual spot. (this teaches the word "outside" fast, too, by the way). Set them down and again say "pottie outside". They'll usually go on & finish the interrupted task. Praise for finishing in the right place, outside, & just clean up when you get back inside.
If found after the fact let them passively watch you clean up the urine spot with Natures Miracle saying "pottie outside" in a normal tone as you do so. If it's a poop, I pick up the poop in a paper towel with the pup watching (pups learn watching mom clean the den in the wild, don't they?), carry it outside (with pup following). Drop the poop out of the paper onto the ground & say "pottie outside" in a normal tone. That's it. Don't make a big deal of it! No harsh voice. Above all, never rub nose in urine or poop or you'll teach the dog eliminating itself is bad & maybe I better hide it better (or yuck, eat it to hide the evidence) next time! Remember, dogs live in the moment & don't connect delayed corrections with the act that occured a long time ago. But they "reshape behaviors" learning from watching other pack members and from watching mother dog "clean the den" of all the puppy poops!
Hope this helps. Sorry if I've overwhelmed you with detail. I'm a retired teacher. What can I say?  . All my dogs, including two males, have been house trained in just 1-2 months with this method. Even my rescue Zipper, picked up by animal control at 5 mos., used to going whenever and wherever, house trained in 2 months! Only the rare accident for another month, usually when I've gotten busy & forgotten to let the pup outside. Can't hardly blame the dog for those, now can I?
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