ABSTRACT
Touch ‘Tactile’ describes the properties of an object. ‘Tactual’ refers to the perception of tactileness of objects. ‘Haptic’ means the active processing of information through touch of the hands and mouth. There are three levels of feeling:
l Co-active: having an object moved on the hand
In order to understand the whole picture the child has to be aware of the threedimensionality of an object. He has to explore the pressure of an item, how it feels different against a palm, fingernail or thumb. The child can be given tactile experiences passively by others, such as through massage, and co-active movement. The child can gain information actively through tactile exploration. However, it is very important not to push utensils, toys and so on into a child’s hand as withdrawal or tactile defensiveness can be increased.
