April 6, 2026

At the Early Childhood Summit at Wayne Finger Lakes BOCES, the slide deck ended—but the learning didn’t. The room of early childhood professionals got up from their chairs and circled different stations of play materials, swapping ideas about how to adapt them back home. This educator lab was a place to handle the props, try the written prompts, and practice the ideas behind serve and return before bringing it to the children they support.

For Rachel Moore, a school-based advocate integrated at Lyons School, the concept landed immediately. She facilitates playgroups daily but mostly for older kids. “I do a lot of social-emotional learning activities with older kids, but not much with younger kids,” she said. Hearing the simple principles of serve and return reframed what she could do in the earliest grades—without new budgets or fancy gadgets.

That was the point. Infant–Toddler Play Days, a Healthi Kids offering, began with a straightforward request from local parent and resident leaders who wanted free, welcoming opportunities tailored to children age zero to three, in places families already go. The team adapted an earlier neighborhood model used with school-aged children so that it was geared for the very youngest. They made sure the kits were both portable and a flexible format so that it could be hosted by partners in libraries, recreation centers, YMCAs, parks, and more.

“Children learn best through play,” said Early Childhood Project Coordinator Anna Laurenza. “We want families to use these little moments—singing together, naming feelings, taking turns—as back-and-forth interactions that build relationships.”

Participants experimented at six simple stations, the same stations families would see at a public Infant-Toddler Play Day:

  • Conversation Station — Picture cards and babyfaces books prompted talk about emotions, pointing, labeling, and turn taking. Skills: attention, working memory, self-control, emotional literacy.
  • Song Station — Nursery rhymes like Wheels on the Bus and Twinkle, Twinkle invited call and response and imitation—great for modeling serve and return timing. Skills: language, memory, rhythm.
  • Pretend Play — Dolls, bottles, scarves, and pretend food supported caregiving scripts and shared stories. Skills: social understanding, problem solving, creativity.
  • Hide & Seek — Stacking boxes, Bluey & Bingo puppets, and a soft “What’s Inside?” cube turned peek‑a‑boo into practice for working memory and anticipation. Skills: memory, regulation, coping with surprise.
  • Sensory — Bins with varied textures, colors, shapes, and sounds, with prompts like “find something soft” or “something that rattles.” Skills: sensory exploration, fine motor, inclusive play.
  • Creativity — A paper roll, crayons, and magnetic/foam blocks—with explicit permission to color outside the lines. Skills: originality, planning, playful persistence.

Each station includes signage—clear, plain language panels that explain the why behind each activity and model the five steps of serve and return (share focus; support and encourage; name it; take turns; practice endings/beginnings).

“Parents want to learn more—if the sign is there, they’re going to read it,” Laurenza noted. “They want to know just how impactful what they’re doing is.”

For Stephanie David, who helps lead Healthi Kids’ early childhood work across the Finger Lakes, the Infant-Toddler Play Days are joyful, and strategic.

“Relationships—those nurturing back and forth exchanges—are the center of everything,” she told the group. “When kids feel safe, they can explore, and that’s how learning takes off.”

Healthi Kids didn’t create a new service but is meeting parents and providers where they are with portable kits, loaners, and ready to use signage. There’s also an option to co-host or simply share the materials list so partners can build their own. The idea itself, David emphasized, “came directly from our parent and resident leaders” who named a gap for the youngest children and asked for free ways to play with caregivers.

“All important learning throughout early childhood takes place through the context of play,” said David, underscoring that responsive, reliable adults are a powerful protective factor when families face stress. That connection to infant and early childhood mental health—the social and emotional well-being of children from birth to age five—is intentional.

The message resonated with Michelle Zimmer, who serves as an optimal health coordinator in three Newark School District schools. “I run a lot of play-based therapy groups and infant-toddler book clubs,” she said. “I really enjoyed the presentation—the part about infant mental health really resonated with me.”

Because the kits are modular and portable, Healthi Kids can host, loan, or help you build a set—then support you to integrate the stations into toddler times, family nights, outreach tables, and outdoor pop‑ups already on your calendar. “We can partner in whatever way works—bring the kit, leave a kit, or just share the resource list so you can put one together,” David said.

For professionals ready to go deeper, scholarship supported infant–early childhood mental health core trainings are offered in June and September in partnership with the New York State Association for Infant Mental Health and allied providers.