Join your child's world for five minutes. No teaching, no redirecting. Just be where they are.
For the next five minutes, do whatever your child is already doing. No teaching. No redirecting. Just join their world.
Sit near your child. Notice what they're looking at, touching, or doing. That's your entry point.
If they're lining up cars, line up a car. If they're spinning, spin nearby. Match the energy, not the expectation.
Copy what your child does. Use the same toy the same way. Make the same sounds. Researchers call this contingent imitation. You are showing your child: what you do is worth joining.
"You're not performing. You're saying: I see you. What you're doing matters."
When you follow instead of lead, you reduce the demand on your child's processing. They don't have to decode what you want. They just notice you're there.
Following your child's lead is the starting point of play-based, parent-led approaches. A large 2020 review of autism intervention research found these approaches had some of the strongest evidence for young children, especially for social communication and shared attention. This was measured, not guessed.
Pick one moment today. Which feels most natural?
When it's a hard moment, you don't need a lesson. Go to Right now →