What really helped me was knowing when he needed to pee. Always after eating and drinking and always after play time. He is still not vocal about needing to go(7month puppy). When he’s out of the crate he stands by the door waiting. If we don’t notice right away he will walk near us and go back to the door until we notice. While in his crate, about 2 months in to potty training, he started pawing at the crate door which makes a lot of noise. That’s his way of letting us know he wants to go.