7
DISCIPLINING YOUR CHILD IN
PUBLICHow to Handle Grocery Store Meltdowns and
Other Embarrassing SituationsWE NOW MUST COME to grips with the worst nightmare of every parent:
what to do when your child misbehaves in public. No one wants to
look like a child abuser in the candy aisle of the local grocery store.
And kids—even very young toddlers—seem to have automatic radar
that can sense psychological vulnerability in anxious parents.
Once they have learned the mechanics of the 1-2-3 program, many
parents worry about being in public where there is no time-out room.
The good news is this problem can be solved without too much
difficulty. The bad news is that a worse problem is lurking in the
shadows, and deep in her heart every parent knows what that problem
is.