Serve and Return
The concept of serve and return refers to social interactions between children and their parents and caregivers. These are interactions that will have a significant influence in shaping the child’s brain architecture. The ‘serve’ is provided by the child in the form of verbal cues or actions such as a cry, babble, or gesture – allowing the parent to respond by making a ‘return’ in the form of eye contact, physical interaction, and appropriate sounds or words. To use a tennis analogy, with serve and return the interactions go back-and-forth and are both engaging and skill developing. As adults provide this positive feedback it encourages children in their early years of development to practice and utilize skills such as speech and social learning.
The Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University has outlined 5 simple steps to help ensure you provide positive serve and return experiences for your children.
1. Notice the serve and share the child’s focus of attention. This will teach you about the child’s interests, needs and capabilities, helping to develop that connection and bond.
2. Return the serve by supporting and encouraging. This will reward and foster curiosity as they know their thoughts and feelings are being considered.
3. Give it a name! Naming what the child is focused on or attracted to will help them make better sense of their surrounding environment and improve memory functions.
4. Take turns… and wait. Keep the interaction going back and forth. After you return a serve wait for the child to respond. This period gives them time to form their own ideas and understanding of the situation. Having this back-and-forth and taking turns will also help to guide self-control.
5. Practice endings and beginnings. Look for and follow cues from children indicating they are ready to move on to a new activity. Allowing them to take the lead supports their independence and curiosity.
Failing to respond to a child’s ‘serve’ as they reach out will weaken brain architecture by impairing the development of social learning skills, abilities, and behaviours. When cues aren’t recognized, and are being constantly neglected by the adult, a child may begin to lose interest and ultimately capability in sending those signals and creating that ‘serve’.
Serve and return is a very easy concept to keep in the back of our minds as we engage with children and infants throughout our lifetimes. It is not only parents and caregivers who can support child development through practicing serve and return, but rather anyone at anytime who finds themselves in an environment with children.
Sources:
Harvard University. (2021). Center on the Developing Child: 5 Steps for Brain-Building Serve and Return. Retrieved from https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/5-steps-for-brain-building-serve-and-return/
Harvard University. (2021). Center on the Developing Child: Serve and Return. Retrieved from https://developingchild.harvard.edu/science/key-concepts/serve-and-return/
n.d. (2021). Serve & Return: Positive child-caregiver interactions build strong brains. Retrieved from https://www.albertafamilywellness.org/what-we-know/serve-and-return
Palix Foundation. (2014, June). Brain Architecture: Serve and Return. Retrieved from https://www.albertafamilywellness.org/resources/video/serve-and-return