Did you see 7-year-old Molly Wright's TED Talk on how every child can thrive by five? Molly perfectly articulates everything BY5 is striving to do locally and even demonstrates how a parent's engagement—or lack thereof—with their child can affect the child's stimulation.
In the video, Molly talks about a concept called "Serve & Return." What exactly does this mean?
Serve & Return is essentially recognizing cues from your child and responding with a shared interest or with information. Harvard University's Center on the Developing Child outlines how to Serve & Return in five simple steps:
Recognize the serve: Notice if your child is pointing or picking something up.
Return the serve: Support and encourage their interest.
Give it a name: Identify and name what your child is focused on.
Take turns: Keep the interaction going by patiently waiting for your child to respond to your returned serve.
Practice beginnings and endings: Let your child indicate when they are no longer interested, allowing them to lead the interaction.