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Mom Figures Out How to Get Young Kids to Stop Interrupting

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Every mom knows the feeling of being interrupted by their child, especially when they’re in the toddler stage. And as much as mothers love their kids, interruptions like, “Mommy, mommy, mommy!” and “Excuse me, excuse me, excuse me!” can be slightly amusing at best and super annoying at worst. But mom-and-dad blogging team Jessica and Jeremy Martin-Weber claim that they have finally found the solution to getting their young children to stop interrupting them.

“We have taught our children to demonstrate when they have something to share by gently laying a hand on our arm if we are speaking or listening to someone else at that moment,” Jessica wrote in a Facebook post for their website Beyond Moi. “So they know we’re aware they want to say something, we physically respond in some way such as putting our hand over their hand or gently touching their back or holding their hand.”

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Seems simple enough, right? It’s worth noting that the concept of kids using gentle physical touch to indicate they have something to say is not entirely new. Use of hand signals in these situations has been a practice over many years in some schools as well as organizations like Cub Scouts.

It’s also worth mentioning that the use of hand signals in these situations has drawn criticism from some parents. One mom, writing for Huffington Post, even described the practice of holding hands until there’s a pause in the conversation as “soul crushing.” The writer in question explained that her daughter either forgot what she was going to say or lost any interest in sharing her thoughts.

“Their enthusiasm lives in the present moment and when they need to express that enthusiasm, it needs to happen immediately,” she wrote. “There is nothing wrong with that. Sure it’s a little chaotic sometimes, but I’d rather that than to squash their enthusiasm!”

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Clearly, this practice is not for everyone. And certainly, there are other methods out there for getting the kiddos to settle down, such as respectfully asking them to wait until the other person is done talking.

What are your thoughts on the hand signal? Too harsh, or just genius?

h/t RedbookMag.com

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