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Early intervention services are offered as part of the public school programs in many states. Any family who suspects a child, biological or adopted, is in need of any pre-education services will be screened and evaluated upon a parents request.
The goal of these services are to identify learning disorders or other issues as early as possible and help young children be ready to start school on time and on target. The best way to find out about the services offered to you is to contact your local grade school and ask for the Early Intervention Services contact information.
In many cases you will find your public school offers early intervention services to children as young as 2 years old. Typically, there will be a testing and screening process which may include a home visit so someone can see the child in their normal environment. At that point the person screening will decide if there is cause for father evaluation meaning the person did see reasons to consider the need to provide a child with services.
If the person screening your child recommends more evaluation the child will usually have testing done in a structured environment. If this person does not feel there is any reason to offer services families will have some rights to appeal. In general however, children who appear to need some intervention services are usually identified very easily by the person who visits your home.
Testing is somewhat difficult for parents to understand but we have to have confidence in the assessments made. Generally, an ultra-sound hearing test is taken to rule out any chance of hearing loss. A child’s security in the environment is observed (this is a wonderful indication of attachment difficulties) and several specific tests are taken by the administrators. Parents complete several work sheets of questions about a wide range of factors. Receptive and Expressive language skills are a common issue with many children. Large and fine motor skills may need some therapy. Sensory disorders can often be identified very early and common sensory issues can be included in the intervention program.
In most cases the services are free and require some involvement with the parent. A child may qualify for a one hour a week group class with mom’s participation. While in the class mom or dad are shown several methods and techniques that will help with the child’s specific needs. It is a wonderful attachment situation for adoptive parents of young toddlers.
If parents do not qualify for early intervention services I recommend finding a play group or co-op day care group to become involved with newly placed toddlers. Mommy and me swim classes and other parent and toddler classes are wonderful attachment bridging exercises. The child learns to enjoy the world and trust you to be there with him or her.
If you feel your young toddler may qualify for early intervention services contact you local elementary school or school district office and ask how to access the early intervention services for young children. You might also look for a local YMCA or your local recreation center for classes you and your toddler might enjoy taking together.
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For more information about parenting special needs children you might want to visit the Families.com Special Needs Blog and the Mental Health Blog. Or visit my personal website.