Throughout the coronavirus outbreak, nearly everyone connected to children has raised the alarm about pandemic learning loss. Parents, educators, physicians and politicians — they might disagree on solutions, but they’re all concerned about how the current educational upheaval will affect K-12 students.
By contrast, little attention has been paid to the pandemic’s effects on even younger learners.
“There aren’t a lot of people out there screaming ‘what about the infants?’” said Jack Shonkoff, a pediatrician and professor who leads Harvard’s Center on the Developing Child.
One of the best ways parents and educators can help children develop healthy brain architecture now is through “serve and return” interactions.
Practicing serve and return doesn’t require fancy toys or oodles of free time. They can occur through simple play, like peek-a-boo, or during ordinary activities, such as making a snack. In its resources for caregivers, the Center on the Developing Child outlines five steps to serve and return:
- Share the focus.
- Support and encourage.
- Name it.
- Take turns.
- Follow children’s lead for endings and beginnings.
“There's nothing magic that the government or programs can do with babies. Whatever we do has to be done by empowering and enhancing the ability of the adults who care for them to be able to provide that kind of environment.”
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