Every now and then, I come across a piece of research that leaves me feeling genuinely hopeful for the future of our work. If you work with young children, you know that the “daily grind” can sometimes make us lose sight of the bigger picture. Recently, I found an article that feels like a simplified roadmap for everything we try to achieve in Early Intervention. It outlines three specific things that have the most impact on changing outcomes for children, and it spoke so directly to my heart.
I realized this research was produced by the Harvard Center on the Developing Child. I’ll admit, I didn’t even know this specific center was a thing until recently, but when I looked into its history, I saw a name I immediately recognized: Dr. Jack Shonkoff. The name took me right back to grad school. He was the editor of a textbook I used in my early intervention classes, and his name appeared as a citation so many times in my papers that it was practically burned into my memory. He led the committee that produced “From Neurons to Neighborhoods,” a foundational report that, 25 years ago, bridged the gap between what we know about the brain and how we actually support families.
The Research: Three Principles for Change
The Harvard Center on the Developing Child, founded by Dr. Shonkoff, continues the mission of From Neurons to Neighborhoods by translating complex biology into actionable frameworks. Their current work focuses on three core design principles that they believe should guide every policy and practice involving children.
1. Support Responsive Relationships The most important factor in a child’s development is the environment of relationships that surrounds them. The research describes this as “serve and return”—responsive interactions that build a child’s brain architecture like a sturdy foundation for a house. As one supporting source explains:
“When an infant or young child babbles, gestures, or cries, and an adult responds appropriately with eye contact, words, or a hug, neural connections are built and strengthened in the child’s brain. Given the foundational importance of the first few years of life, the need for responsive relationships in a variety of settings, starting in infancy, cannot be overstated”
Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. (2017, October 6). Three principles to improve outcomes for children and families.
2. Strengthen Core Skills Beyond relationships, children (and the adults who care for them) need executive function and self-regulation skills to manage life’s demands. These are the skills that allow us to focus, plan, and resist impulses. The research notes that no one is born with these skills, but everyone has the potential to develop them through practice.
“Just as an air traffic control system at a busy airport safely manages the arrivals and departures of many aircraft on multiple runways, the brain needs this skill set to filter distractions, prioritize tasks, remember rules and goals, and control impulses. These skills are crucial for learning and development. They also set us up to make healthy choices for ourselves and our families”.
Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. (2017, October 6). Three principles to improve outcomes for children and families.
3. Reduce Sources of Stress Finally, we must address the “weight” families carry. While some stress is manageable, toxic stress—the prolonged activation of stress response systems without adult support—can actually derail healthy development. Constant stress drains the energy the brain needs for growth and makes it incredibly difficult for parents to be the responsive caregivers they want to be.
“Reducing the pile-up of potential sources of stress will protect children directly (i.e., their stress response is triggered less frequently and powerfully) and indirectly (i.e., the adults they depend upon are better able to protect and support them, thereby preventing lasting harm). Children are better able to thrive when we lighten the load on their parents so they can meet their families’ essential needs…”
Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. (2017, October 6). Three principles to improve outcomes for children and families.
Why Early Intervention is the Key
My main takeaway—and the reason I’m writing this to my fellow practitioners—is that Early Intervention serves all three of these principles simultaneously.
We don’t just work with the child; we work within the family’s ecosystem. When we sit on a living room floor and coach a parent on how to engage in “serve and return” play, we are supporting responsive relationships. When we help a family establish routines or break down big developmental goals into small, manageable steps, we are strengthening core skills. And perhaps most importantly, by being a consistent, supportive presence and connecting families to resources that meet their basic needs, we are actively working to reduce sources of stress in their lives.
Putting it into Practice
If you’re wondering how to let these principles guide your own practice or parenting, here are a few practical, matter-of-fact steps you can take today:
- Focus on the “Return”: In your interactions, wait for the child to “serve” (a look, a gesture, a sound) and simply return it with your full attention. It’s the most powerful brain-building tool we have.
- Be a “Scaffold” for Skills: Don’t do for a child (or a parent) what they can almost do themselves. Provide just enough support—a “scaffold”—to help them succeed, and then slowly step back as their own executive function skills grow.
- Simplify the Burden: For the families you work with, look for ways to reduce administrative or chaotic stressors. This might mean keeping your own communication clear and welcoming or helping them streamline a daily routine like mealtime to make it more predictable and less taxing.
- Acknowledge Existing Strengths: Always start by recognizing the skills a parent or child already uses to survive and thrive in their specific context. Building on those strengths is far more effective than trying to “fix” what we think is missing.
I hope this research gives you the same sense of hope it gave me. Our work is a vital part of building the “neighborhoods” that allow “neurons” to thrive.
References
Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. (2017, June 19). 5 steps for brain-building serve and return. https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/briefs/5-steps-for-brain-building-serve-and-return/
This resource details the “serve and return” process, which consists of responsive, back-and-forth interactions between children and adults. These interactions are described as a “major active ingredient” in building a strong foundation for the developing brain.
Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. (Accessed April 23, 2026). A guide to executive function: What is it, and how is it developed? https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resource-guides/guide-executive-function/
This guide explains that executive function and self-regulation skills act as an “air traffic control system” for the brain, allowing individuals to manage information, prioritize tasks, and filter distractions. It emphasizes that while people are not born with these skills, they are born with the potential to develop them through supportive environments.
Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. (Accessed April 23, 2026). A guide to toxic stress and early childhood development. https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resource-guides/guide-toxic-stress/
This source categorizes three types of stress responses—positive, tolerable, and toxic—and explores how “toxic stress” (prolonged adversity without adult support) can disrupt healthy brain architecture. It highlights the role of attentive caregiving in buffering children against these damaging effects.
Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. (2022, December 14). Brain-building through play: Activities for infants, toddlers, and children. https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/handouts-tools/brainbuildingthroughplay/
Focusing on the importance of play from infancy through adolescence, this resource provides age-specific activities designed to strengthen executive function and resilience. The activities are structured to allow adults to “scaffold” skill development, eventually stepping back as the child’s independence grows.
Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. (2018, February 15). Building the core skills youth need for life: A guide for education and social service practitioners. https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/handouts-tools/building-core-skills-youth/
This guide identifies adolescence as a “vital window of opportunity” for building core life skills such as planning, focus, and self-control. It provides practitioners with strategies to support youth in developing these executive function skills and suggests ways to deliver services that reduce stress.
Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. (Accessed April 23, 2026). Founding director: Dr. Jack Shonkoff. https://developingchild.harvard.edu/founding-director/
This biographical resource outlines Dr. Shonkoff’s career, including his 18-year tenure as Director of the Center and his leadership of the committee that produced From Neurons to Neighborhoods.
Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. (2017, October 6). Three principles to improve outcomes for children and families. https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/report/three-principles-to-improve-outcomes-for-children-and-families/
This report presents a science-based framework for redesigning policy and practice based on three principles: supporting responsive relationships, strengthening core skills for life, and reducing sources of stress. These principles are designed to be interconnected, where progress in one area reinforces the others.
National Research Council & Institute of Medicine. (2000). From neurons to neighborhoods: The science of early childhood development. (J. P. Shonkoff & D. A. Phillips, Eds.). National Academies Press. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK225558/
This foundational report synthesized decades of research to bridge the gap between neurobiological science and early childhood policy. It established core concepts of development, such as the idea that “human development is shaped by a dynamic and continuous interaction between biology and experience”.
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