Week 16: Make a When/Then Plan
Make a When/Then Plan — Capstone Week 2
Last week you picked one repeat problem and figured out what may be underneath it. This week you make a plan.
Kid version: a When/Then Plan.
Toolbox phrase: a protocol.
The reason this helps is simple: when a hard moment shows up, it is easier to follow a plan you made earlier than to invent one while you are already upset.
This week you write a small plan card with three parts:
- When this happens...
- Then I will...
- I will know it helped if...
By the end of the week, you should have a plan you can try next week.
This week's idea in kid language: "When this happens, I will do this. I will know it helped if this gets a little better."
- This week is structured design. The plan should be written, not just talked about.
- Lead with When/Then Plan. Offer protocol, trigger, default response, and check as toolbox terms.
- A good plan is small, specific, and testable.
- The plan must focus on the learner's actions, not on controlling someone else.
- Do not chase perfect. Make something small enough to try next week.
Week at a Glance
| Prep time | ~15 minutes |
| Materials | Telemetry Log, paper, pencil, large paper or index card for the protocol document, baseline data from Week 15 |
| Key vocabulary | When/Then Plan, protocol, trigger, check |
| Difficulty | Moderate to Advanced |
Facilitator Preparation
- Have the Telemetry Log and the Week 15 baseline data accessible.
- Have a clean piece of paper or index card ready for the protocol document. The document should be small enough to look at quickly — no more than a single page.
- Review the student's diagnosis from Week 15 before the session. Hold the root cause in mind so you can steer them toward designing for that, not the surface symptom.
Help the learner write a plan they can actually use.
A common mistake is writing a wish instead of a plan. "My brother will stop" is a wish. "When my brother grabs my pencil, I will say one sentence and move away" is a plan.
Protocols should focus on learner-controlled actions. They are not secret tests, traps, or experiments on other people.
If a protocol depends on tricking, watching, exposing, pressuring, or controlling someone else, redesign it. The plan should be something the learner can do openly, safely, and stop easily.
For Younger Learners (Ages 8–9)
Simplest version of the concept: "Today we are writing a plan card: when this happens, I will do this."
What to shorten or skip:
- Skip most formal vocabulary.
- Keep it to two or three short steps.
Adapting the activities:
- Make a colorful plan card.
- Practice it out loud like a script.
Journal alternative: Draw the plan as a three-panel comic.
What success looks like: The student has a short plan they understand and can say out loud.
Guided Session 1
The Plan Card
Learning Goal
By the end of this session, the student can:
- write a plan with three parts: When, Then, Check
- connect the plan to the deeper reason from Week 15
- understand that a good plan describes their own actions, not other people's
Activities
1. The Plan Template
Write this template on a piece of paper or index card:
WHEN/THEN PLAN v1.0
TARGET FRICTION POINT:
___
ROOT CAUSE (from Week 15):
___
THE PLAN:
WHEN:
When this specific thing happens...
___
THEN I WILL:
...I will do this exact action.
___
CHECK:
I will know it helped if...
___
WHEN I'LL TRY THIS PLAN:
___ (specific times, days, or situations)
BACKUP PLAN (if the default doesn't work):
___
2. The Three Parts Explained
WHEN: This has to be specific and easy to notice. Bad: "when I'm upset." Better: "when my brother grabs something off my desk" or "when I walk into math and want to avoid asking for help."
THEN I WILL: This has to be one action you can actually do. Bad: "make my brother stop." Better: "say one sentence and walk to the kitchen."
CHECK: This has to be something you can notice. Bad: "everything is better." Better: "the argument stays under three minutes" or "I ask for help once instead of staying silent."
3. Writing the Plan
Now write the actual protocol for the student's friction point. Use the template. Get specific.
Example:
TARGET FRICTION POINT: I keep getting into fights with my brother before dinner.
ROOT CAUSE: My capacity is low at 5:30 because I haven't eaten a snack, AND my brother often grabs my stuff right then.
WHEN: It is around 5:30 PM and my brother walks into my room or grabs something off my desk.
THEN I WILL:
- Take one long exhale (4 in, 6 out).
- Say "please ask first" in a normal voice.
- If he doesn't put it back, get up and walk to the kitchen.
- Don't engage further until after dinner.
CHECK: Did the interaction stay under 3 minutes without yelling? Did I keep my voice normal?
WHEN I'LL TRY THIS PLAN: Every weekday between 5:00 and 6:00 PM.
BACKUP PLAN: If I notice my battery is at a 3 or below by 4:30, eat a snack BEFORE 5 PM. The protocol works better when capacity is already topped up.
Notice the plan is small. It does not solve the whole sibling relationship. It gives the learner one deliberate move for one repeat moment.
Guided Session 2
What Could Go Wrong?
Learning Goal
By the end of this session, the student can:
- imagine how the plan might fail and why
- identify weak points before trying it next week
- make one or two small improvements before deployment
Activities
1. The Uh-Oh Check
The formal toolbox phrase is pre-mortem. Kid version: What could go wrong?
Ask the student:
"Imagine it's next week and the protocol totally didn't work. What might have happened?"
List every possible failure mode. Common ones:
- I forgot the protocol existed in the moment.
- I tried to follow it but my hijack took over before step 1.
- I got hijacked too fast — the trigger happened and the protocol skipped.
- I followed it the first time, but then I gave up after one fail.
- Someone else's behavior made it impossible.
- The protocol turned out to address the wrong root cause.
Each of these is a real risk. This check lets you patch weak spots before next week.
2. Patch the Weak Spots
For each major failure mode, add a fix to the protocol:
- "I forgot the protocol exists" → put a copy of the protocol in a spot I'll see (in the Telemetry Log, on my desk, on my phone background).
- "I got hijacked too fast" → make step 1 something my body can do automatically (the long exhale). Practice it 5 times this week in calm states so it's automatic.
- "I gave up after one fail" → the protocol is for the WEEK, not for a single attempt. Failures are data, not reasons to quit.
- "The protocol addressed the wrong root cause" → that's why we'll do a post-mortem in Week 18 and iterate.
Update the plan card with the patches.
3. Final Walkthrough
Have the student walk through the protocol out loud, from trigger to check, as if narrating what they'll do:
"It's 5:35 PM. My brother walks in and grabs my pencil. My body wants to yell. Instead, I take one long exhale. I say 'please ask first.' He doesn't put it back. I stand up. I walk to the kitchen. I sit at the table. I don't engage."
This rehearsal makes the plan easier to use in a real moment.
Age-Banded Emotional and Social Learning Goals
- Ages 8-9: Use a short plan card with one trigger, one action, and one simple check.
- Ages 10-12: Use the full When/Then Plan and connect the plan to root cause, body clues, and repair choices.
- Ages 11-13 optional extension: Add guided work on audience, accessibility, attribution, revision, or digital examples when those details genuinely fit the learner's project.
Calm Strategy Practice
A calm strategy is not a magic button. It gives your brain and body a little more space before you choose what to do next.
The goal is not to hide feelings or make a learner look calm for someone else. The goal is to practice safe choices so the plan can actually run when the hard moment arrives.
Possible calm strategies:
- slow breathing
- counting
- stretching
- walking
- drawing
- journaling
- using a fidget or sensory tool
- asking for a break
- drinking water
- naming the feeling
- finding a quiet space
- talking to a trusted person
- using a visual scale
- listening to music when appropriate
- using AAC, cards, or gestures to ask for help
Different strategies work for different people. A strategy that helps one learner may annoy or overwhelm another learner. The goal is to build a menu of safe choices.
Social Problem-Solving Moves
- Pause before reacting.
- Name the problem without blaming.
- Name what each person might feel or need.
- Think of two possible choices.
- Choose a safe and respectful next step.
- Repair harm if needed.
- Reflect on what could work better next time.
Learner sentence frames:
- "I felt ___ when ___."
- "I need ___."
- "I think the problem is ___."
- "One fair solution could be ___."
- "Can we try ___?"
- "I'm sorry for ___. Next time I will ___."
- "I need help solving this."
The goal is not to force children to apologize before they understand what happened. The goal is to help them notice impact, take responsibility when appropriate, and practice repair.
Independent Practice
Goal
Practice the plan in your head every day so it is easier to use next week.
Activities
1. The Daily Rehearsal
Each day this week, read your protocol out loud once. Walk through what you'll do, step by step.
This is not busywork. Rehearsal makes the plan easier to use.
Minimum viable version (younger learners): Read your protocol card aloud every morning and every night. That's enough.
2. A Small Test Run
If your trigger happens this week (and it probably will), try the protocol! Don't worry about doing it perfectly. The point is to test it once, even if it falls apart halfway through. Record what happened:
- Did the protocol fire?
- Which step did it break down at?
- What surprised you?
- Anything to patch before next week's full deployment?
The goal is not to do it perfectly. The goal is to see whether the plan is usable.
The protocol design is fully solo. The protocol itself describes YOUR actions, not anyone else's — no partner needed for design or execution.
Telemetry Log
Add the full plan card to your Telemetry Log. Include:
When/Then Plan v1.0 with all sections from Session 1
What could go wrong: ___
Patches I added: ___
Daily rehearsal log:
- Day 1: ___
- Day 2: ___
- Day 3: ___
- Day 4: ___
Any real-world tests this week:
- What happened: ___
- Where it worked: ___
- Where it broke: ___
- One thing to patch before Week 17: ___
Sentence starters for younger learners:
- "When ___ happens, I will ___."
- "I'll know it worked if ___."
Low-writing options: draw the trigger, make a tiny card, or rehearse orally.
Reflection Questions
- Did writing the plan down change how you think about the problem?
- Which step will be hardest in a real moment?
- What might need to change after you try it?
Check for Understanding
After this week, check whether the learner can:
- Show the plan: "Read me your When/Then Plan."
- Explain the design choices: "Why this plan and not some other plan?"
- Identify weak points: "What is the most likely way this plan breaks?"
If the learner can do at least 2 of these, they are ready for Week 17.
Related Tools
- Use the When/Then Plan Card in Student Tools and Printables to keep the plan concrete and student-controlled.
- Use the Facilitator Safety Guide if a proposed plan starts drifting toward secrecy, manipulation, or control.
Pause and Notice
Ask:
"Does this plan feel small enough to really try?"
That is the right question. A plan does not need to be impressive. It needs to be usable.
This week's takeaway: A clear plan is a gift from calm-you to future-you.
Spiral Review
- From Week 3: "Step 1 of most protocols should be a regulation move — a long exhale, a cold splash, anything that helps the body shift out of full reactive mode. The protocol can't run if the panic brain is fully in charge."
- From Week 10: "Your protocol may include a boundary. The three boundary parts (behavior / request / follow-through) can plug directly into the protocol's default response."
- From Week 15: "The protocol must target the ROOT cause, not just the surface symptom. Re-read your 5 Whys results to make sure."
Use a short plan card: "When ___ happens, I will ___." Add a simple check: "Did it go a little better?"
Have the older learner add one number to the Check section, such as how many times they want to use the plan or how much they want the intensity to drop.
When/Then Plan, protocol, trigger, check, what could go wrong?