Parenting Skills
Learn effective, evidence-based skills for parenting oppositional children.
The Power of Positive Attention
Many of these skills are based on a simple principle: behavior that gets attention is behavior that will be repeated. By giving lots of positive attention for good behavior and minimizing attention for negative behavior, you can powerfully shape your child's choices.
A cornerstone of improving the parent-child relationship. This involves spending 5-10 minutes of one-on-one time with your child, letting them lead the play without any commands, questions, or criticism. The goal is to give them your undivided positive attention.
Example:
During "Special Time," if your child is building with blocks, you sit with them and watch attentively. You can describe what they are doing ("You're putting the blue block on top of the red one.") but avoid instructions ("Why don't you use the green one?").
Practice: Plan Special Time
Schedule and log your one-on-one time to build a consistent habit.
Your Special Time Log
You have no logs yet.