How to Practice "Serve and Return" With Your Child
Everyday interactions can have a big impact on developing brains throughout childhood, starting even before babies can talk. Scientists call this Serve and Return. A child serves by showing an interest in something and the adult responds in a supportive way. 5 Ways to Practice Serve and Return 1. Share the focus When a child is interested or curious, you can see it. It could either be by pointing at something, or by making a sound, or by moving hands and legs excitedly, or simply by smiling. 2. Support and Encourage You can return a child’s serve by saying a word of encouragement, for example, a full hearted thank you, or broad smile, or repeating the baby's motion, or bringing the object of baby's interest closer to them. Playing with a child and engaging them helps them to know that their thoughts and feelings are understood. 3. Name it When you respond to a child's serve by naming what they are doing, seeing or feeling, you make important language connections in their b...
