Ming explains hand pulling, when a child grabs your hand to get what they want. It's common in speech-delayed and autistic kids because it works. Instead of letting it become a habit, teach them to tap and wait for your response.
What is hand pulling is when your child wants something from you and they take your hand and they lead you towards the place that the desired item is at. So hand pulling itself is already a form of communication. Your child needs help from you and therefore make you grab that thing for her. There's a reason hand pulling is actually a common trait within speech delayed children and also autistic children. And the reason is that it's very effective. How much more obvious can it be that a child wants something from you by just taking your hand? We live in a society where talking is the norm. Therefore we need to teach our children how to communicate effectively and appropriately in order to cope with the society. When this happens at home, you have to be careful that the hand pulling is becoming a routine. In order to get rid of hand pulling, you have to get rid of the whole routine. And how do we do that? Is by teaching them a different gesture. And more often than not, the best one is to start with tapping. Tap, tap, tap. Hey, I want something. When you teach them to tap instead of pull, it makes the child wait for your response. Instead of them actively trying to get what they want by just keeping pulling.
