ABSTRACT
Baby Doll Circle Time is an innovative approach that supports adults in providing the individual, intense social connections and attunement opportunities that build children’s neural connections. Baby Doll Circle Time occurs in two phases. In phase one, therapists, teachers, caregivers and/or family members learn to engage children in one-on-one activities during times when touch and eye contact naturally occur. As a second phase, adults incorporate specific and focused doll play in the daily routine. During this group time, children experience similar neural firings as they re-enact the same play scenarios with the baby dolls. The key to Baby Doll Circle Time’s interventional power lies in the fostering of attachment through individual play with a loving adult that is then mirrored in group play with the dolls. Baby Doll Circle Time is used extensively in Early Head Start, Head Start, preschools, home child care, therapeutic interventions, and both public and private kindergartens.
