Early Intervention Strategies for Success

Sharing What Works in Supporting Infants & Toddlers and the Families in Early Intervention

 

The Parent says “You’re the expert. You tell me.” – What Do You Do?

Posted on March 25, 2014 by in All, Engaging Families, IFSP Development, Practical Strategies, Service Coordination, What Would You Do?

At the initial IFSP meeting, Amada’s parents listen quietly as the other team members discuss their daughter’s development with them. Amada’s parents have been relatively quiet during the IFSP meeting, offering little input so far. They agree with any suggestions that other team members have. When asked about what goals they have for their daughter, they …

Do’s & Don’ts for Managing an Unclean Environment

Posted on March 19, 2014 by in All, Intervention Visits, Practical Strategies

Visiting all kinds of environments is one of the things that I’ve always loved about early intervention. No two days or two visits are ever the same. Along with this flexibility comes the unpredictable nature of the environments in which we find ourselves. You can easily drive from one home that is pristine to another …

Letting It Go…Role Release and Why It Can Be Hard

Posted on March 11, 2014 by in All, Engaging Families, Intervention Visits, Practical Strategies, Teamwork

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 …

Fading Yourself Out of the Picture…

Posted on March 06, 2014 by in All, Engaging Families, Intervention Visits, Practical Strategies, Service Coordination

From the first time we meet a family or begin working with a child, we need to be thinking about how we can fade ourselves out of the picture. This seems like an oxymoron because we’re there for a reason – to help. There’s such a fine line between helping and creating dependence, and I …

The Child Completely Avoids You…What Do You Do?

Posted on February 25, 2014 by in All, Engaging Families, Intervention Visits, Practical Strategies, What Would You Do?

You’ve been seeing Max and his grandmother for 3 visits now. On each visit, Max completely avoids you. He scoops up his toys and scurries from the room. This grandmother tries very hard to bring him back but he cries each time.  Last week she was able to get him to stay on her lap …

Walking the Parent-Professional Boundary

Posted on February 18, 2014 by in All, Engaging Families, Intervention Visits, Practical Strategies, Teamwork

Establishing and maintaining professional boundaries is an ongoing and important process for every early interventionist. Because interventionists work so closely with families, the boundaries between the parent-professional partnership and friendship can become blurred. This can happen for both people in the partnership, but it is ultimately the professional’s responsibility to maintain the boundary.
Consider this real …

Tips for Working with Interpreters

Posted on February 04, 2014 by in All, IFSP Development, Intervention Visits, Practical Strategies, Service Coordination, Teamwork

Today we hosted a fantastic Talks on Tuesdays webinar on culture and cultural competence, presented by Cecily Rodriguez from the VA Dept of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services. The webinar will be archived on our Talks on Tuesdays 1014 page soon if you missed it. Several questions related to working with language interpreters were asked …

Guiding Parents during IFSP Development

Posted on January 30, 2014 by in All, Engaging Families, IFSP Development, Practical Strategies, Service Coordination

Will, the service coordinator, is sensing that Malika, Jeremiah’s mother, is feeling overwhelmed after the assessment. Malika has agreed to proceed with developing Jeremiah’s IFSP, but when they get to discussing possible outcomes, she becomes quiet and tells the other team members to put whatever they think Jeremiah needs to learn on the plan. Will …

A Bug Infestation in the Home…What Do You Do?

Posted on January 14, 2014 by in All, Engaging Families, Intervention Visits, Practical Strategies, Service Coordination, What Would You Do?

Scenario #1: Each time you visit with Mehki’s family, you notice cockroaches crawling around the floor and on the walls. You’ve had to swat them off of Mehki and away from yourself many times and are becoming increasing concerned. Mehki’s mother says that there’s nothing they can do about the bugs because the neighbor has …

EI Practitioners + Childcare Workers = Dream Team!

Posted on December 19, 2013 by in All, Intervention Visits, Practical Strategies, Teamwork

Most practitioners in Early Intervention are going to visit a child at a childcare facility at some point. Admittedly, walking into a childcare center can lack the warm appeal of entering a home. The hug from the child at the door and the parents’ appreciative greeting are often replaced with an impersonal, and perhaps wary …

VCUE Logo, ITC Log, Infant Toddler Connection of Virginia Logo and Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services