Jackie receives a call from Tate’s mother, Mrs. Comer. Mrs. Comer is really frustrated because she feels like she’s not benefiting from her visits with the physical therapist. She tells Jackie that she feels like all Alex (the PT) does is ask her questions. She says “I don’t want to just be asked questions that …
Coaching: It’s About More than Just Asking Questions!
Feeling Inspired! – What’s Inspired You Lately?
First, let me thank Lisa Terry for the idea for this post! Lisa posted “Feeling inspired” on our Facebook page during the Early Intervention Institute we hosted on Tuesday. I couldn’t agree more so decided to “borrow” her words! Thanks Lisa! 🙂
In the past 2 weeks, I’ve had the pleasure of attending and presenting at …
What if YOU had an IFSP?
This is an exciting time of year for many of us. You may be shooing your own children out the door on the first day of school (hooray for 5th grade at my house!). You may be saying goodbye to some families and welcoming others into your program. It’s a great time to reset yourself too, get …
Can Service Coordinators Use Coaching?
Answering this question with a “Sure you can!” makes the answer sound simple, but if you’re a service coordinator you may be finding that using coaching strategies isn’t as easy as you thought. In Virginia, we’ve heard from some service coordinators that coaching is not a good fit with what they do. We’ve heard that …
Adult Learning Principle #1: Making Intervention Immediately Relevant
We could call this one the “what’s in it for me?” principle. We know how we are…as adults, we usually pay attention to information that is most relevant to our current situation. We tend to remember information that is most immediately useful, skills that get our needs met, and strategies that we can practice right …
Adult Learning Principle #2: Linking New Learning to Prior Knowledge
If we think about the best way to make the biggest difference in a child’s development, it makes sense that we will be most effective by working through the child’s most familiar people. Those familiar people, parents and caregivers, are the key to success. Positively impacting the child’s development is the reason for early intervention …
Top 5 List for Adopting Coaching Practices
Is this you? Are you learning about using the coaching interaction style and finding that you’re stressed by what you think you’re supposed to be doing? How many reflective questions should you ask? Which question is the right one? Am I allowed to make suggestions or even interact with the child anymore???
First, take a deep …
Letting It Go…Role Release and Why It Can Be Hard
Maybe you’ve been working in early intervention for many years and you’re great at what you do. Or perhaps, you’re brand new to the field and eager to try out your skills. In either position, it can be a struggle to get out there and find that you need to release your role to someone …
The Focus of the Visit is Not on the Child…What Do You Do?
You’ve been working with Brenda, Emma’s mother, for several weeks now. She is a mother who, from the very first visit, seemed hungry for adult interaction because, as she says, she’s “stuck at home all day with her kids and no one to talk to.” At each visit, you hear about her relationship with her …
Developing & Promoting Early Intervention Expertise – What Interventionists Can Do
I could tell you that a great way to cultivate early intervention expertise is to take a workshop, read a book, join a community of practice or go to a conference. In fact, that’s how the first draft of this post read. The more I thought about this topic, though, the more I realized that …