Plan B 117Davis (starting to pack up his Legos): I’m not taking a
swim lesson, so don’t try to make me. Look! I told
you the Legos were going to break apart!
Mother (switching to the new problem): Let’s think of
how we can transport the Legos so they don’t fall
apart. Thanks for trying to work this out.
Davis: I wasn’t trying to work it out.
Mother: Well, you did a good job anyway.Is the swimming lesson problem solved durably? Not
yet. That problem should be the topic of a Proactive Plan
B discussion within the next few days so it gets solved
once and for all.There’s much more to cover about Plan B, but you’ve
been given a lot to digest already. And upon first reading
about the Plans, many adults come to some instanta-
neous misconceptions. So let’s get a few things cleared
up before they cause trouble.
Many people have the misconception that the CPS
model requires that they suspend all of their expecta-
tions in order to reduce their child’s explosions. It sounds
something like this: “So let me get this straight, I’m sup-
posed to drop all my expectations so my kid doesn’t
explode anymore?” Wrong. Dead wrong. Expectations are
a good thing, especially the realistic variety. The CPS
model does require that adults (1) consider whether,