Simulation is a surprisingly effective way to help your child practice the behaviors you want to see, by turning them into fun, pretend “games” or role-play situations. In this lesson, Dr. Kazdin explains how creating safe, low-pressure practice opportunities—like the “tantrum game”—helps children repeatedly try out new behaviors, build habits, and generalize those skills to real-life situations. By combining antecedents, clear expectations, enthusiastic praise, and playful challenges, simulation makes behavior change both practical and enjoyable for families.
Learn how to design and use simulations to help your child develop positive behaviors through repeated, stress-free practice.
🎯 Learning Objectives
• Define simulation and understand how it supports behavior change through repeated practice
• Identify key components of an effective simulation: antecedents, modeling, praise, and playful challenges
• Learn how to turn everyday behaviors into calm, fun, pretend games for your child
• Understand how simulation builds habits and transfers skills to real-world situations
• Apply simulation techniques to a variety of behaviors like tantrums, getting ready for school, and bedtime routines
📚 About the Course
Everyday Parenting gives you access to a toolkit of behavior-change techniques that will make your typical day in the home easier as you develop the behaviors you would like to see in your child. The lessons provide step-by-step instructions and demonstrations to improve your course of action with both children and adolescents. Among many techniques, you will learn how even simple modifications to tone of voice and phrasing can lead to more compliance. The course will also shed light on many parenting misconceptions and ineffective strategies that are routinely used.
The key to the course is practice. It is not enough to know the strategies; you have to do them to reap the rewards. Using the techniques on a temporary basis will lead to permanent change.
Chances are your parenting is perfectly fine and working the way you would like. But if you have any frustrations with your child or would like improve your effectiveness in changing your child’s behavior, these videos will be a very useful guide.
📺 Watch the full playlist on YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLh9mgdi4rNeyEGNxBvNdOVlianDYgWuc9&si=WvX4JltzYzj7faKi
🎓 Enroll on Coursera for assessments and a certificate: https://www.coursera.org/learn/everyday-parenting
🌐 Explore more learning opportunities on Yale Online: https://online.yale.edu/courses/everyday-parenting-abcs-child-rearing
