Early Intervention Strategies for Success

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

 

You call to schedule the first intervention visit and the child’s father answers the phone. He says, “Hold on, let me get my wife…”

During the assessment, the father comes home for lunch, opens his front door, sees three strangers sitting in his living room floor, takes a quick glance at his girlfriend, then quietly closes …

Since September 11, 2001, more than two million troops have been deployed to a war zone (i.e., Iraq and Afghanistan) (Strengthening our Military Families, 2011). The duration of deployment varies and can last longer than 12 months in some instances. The number of deployments also varies and can tally up for service members during their …

You call Rordan’s mother for your monthly contact to check on services and ask her how things are going. She sheepishly tells you that Rordan has made little progress with his crawling and that she doesn’t think he likes physical therapy much. When you ask why she thinks he doesn’t like it, she tells you that …

Consider this quote: “When we know the facts about people, we know what they are. When we  know their stories, we know who they are.” (John Quincy Adams)

We gather tons of facts in early intervention. We ask exhaustive and often intrusive questions about medical history, resource needs, financial information, priorities for the child’s development, daily routines, etc.  …

You’ve probably met Isaiah before. In his child care classroom, his teacher struggles to keep him at the table long enough to complete the finger painting activity or to finish his meal. He’s constantly on the move, climbing and pulling toys off the shelf. At home, his parents find it challenging to play with him …

When you first meet Xavier’s family, you learn that he and his mother live with her parents. Xavier’s grandmother “keeps” him during the day while his mom is at work. Xavier’s mother is very interested in early intervention but her mother is not. The grandmother thinks that he will talk when he’s ready and that there is nothing …

Here in VA, we are so excited to release our new video series entitled Early Intervention: A Routines-Based Approach! These videos were professionally produced, are less than 7 min each, and are available for FREE on our professional development website or on our YouTube site. I’m going to give you a quick description of each video below. I encourage you …

Breaking Up Is Hard To Do
So, I’m at the office and I can’t help but overhear a Service Coordinator on the phone with an early intervention provider making the call – you know, the break up call. She tried everything to soften the news – scheduling conflict, goodness of fit, it’s not you, the family thinks …

We’re really good, in early intervention, at the “what ifs…” – especially when it comes to adopting new practices. When a practice feels unfamiliar or even contrary to how we were trained, it’s so easy to jump to the “what ifs” and feel like there are many reasons not to use the new information. Often, though …

The educator knocks and Malik’s mother answers the door. They introduce themselves then move out to the backyard where Malik and his sister are playing in the sandbox. The educator sits down and says “So, Mom, is this one of Malik’s favorite things to do?”

Wait…did you notice anything wrong with this picture?
Using Parent’s Proper Names …

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