Have you ever smiled back at a giggling baby or played peek-a-boo with a toddler? Did you know you were helping build connections in that child’s developing brain? At the Center on the Developing Child, we call these responsive interactions “serve and return” because they go back and forth—like players with a ball in a game of tennis or volleyball. … [Read more...] about Serve and Return: How to Build a Child’s Brain in 5 Easy Steps
An Early Start in the Most Challenging Circumstances
Ansumana sat listening intently to her teacher before playing happily with her friends when I met her earlier this year. Just three years old, she and her older brother Bandu are students at the Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) early childhood class serving urban refugees in Kampala, Uganda. Their father, whom I spoke briefly with, told me they fled the Central African Republic … [Read more...] about An Early Start in the Most Challenging Circumstances
We Want Children Everywhere to Thrive
To thrive is to flourish, it is to bloom. For a child it means that they are able to meet their potential, to be happy, healthy, joyful, curious and strong. … [Read more...] about We Want Children Everywhere to Thrive
Let’s Support Those who Care for our Children
There is increasing evidence about the relationship between the quality of early childhood services and child development, and that process quality or adult-child interactions is the aspect that matters the most. Process quality depends on the skills and preparation of those working directly with young children and families: the early childhood (EC) workforce. This almost … [Read more...] about Let’s Support Those who Care for our Children
When Less Cash Benefits Children More
Low-income children lag behind better-off children in many developmental factors because of their socioeconomic status. These children lack investment in key nutritional, medical and educational factors. Gaps like these persist through life. A child who starts behind, stays behind. … [Read more...] about When Less Cash Benefits Children More