Description
Some children just haven''t read the parenting books. The harder you try, the worse it gets.
There''s a hidden contract at the heart of parenting. It''s the idea that if parents just get it right, their children can be made to do what they want. Manuals explain how to make it very clear to your children what you want them to do - and how to respond when they don''t cooperate.
With the right rewards and consequences in place, parents are meant to ensure that their children stay under control. That''s Time Out and the Naughty Step (for the little ones) or grounding and withdrawing screen privileges (for the older ones). If that doesn''t work, parents are told to be more consistent. But what happens if your child is even more consistent than you?
For every so often, along comes a child who hasn''t signed the contract. They don''t buy in. When they are put on the Naughty Step, they refuse point blank to stay there. Promises of stickers and rewards get you n