1-2-3 Magic: Training Your Preschoolers and Preteens to Do What You Want! (With Thomas W. Phelan, Ph.D.)

Description

This 1990 production has been getting good words on Web parenting message boards and for good reason: it works. Dr. Thomas Phelan, a clinical psychologist, developed the program for his own children when they were young and in the thralls of hyperactivity and sibling rivalry. The two-hour show features his explanation of the program interspersed with dramatic scenarios and parent testimonials. The corny vignettes and repetitive testimonials are somewhat extraneous, but the nut of the information is invaluable. Phelan urges parents to get away from explaining everything to kids, who aren't listening to you anyway, he says, but he's not a spanking advocate either. His approach is rational and simple: counting and then time-out. You've done that, you say? Well, watch the tape and see what you're doing wrong. His method has been honed by parents and teachers who have come back to him with refinements. These include ways to encourage kids to start good behaviors once the bad behaviors are under control. Phelan is personable and dryly funny (think parents as wild-animal trainers), and the absence of a hard- sell tone makes watching this production a pleasant experience. --Kimberly Heinrichs