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We know that, in early intervention, collaboration between the parent and the service provider is critical for successful intervention. For years, early intervention practitioners have espoused a use of family-centered practices, which means that we partner with families, respect and encourage their decision-making, support their active participation, and focus on the child\u2019s development within the context of the family.<\/p>\n
What is less clear is how<\/em> we do these things. There has been a call in the early intervention literature for more clearly defined practices that help early intervention service providers know exactly what to do with a child and family to ensure that the family feels both confident and competent using intervention strategies when the service provider is not present.<\/p>\n As a field, there is a need to define and describe the effective practices we use so that all providers have the tools they need to help children and families meet their goals. Many of the strategies we do have focus on the work of the early interventionist during the visit with the child. We need strategies to help us focus on what the family does when we are not in the home or other natural environment.<\/em> Strategies such as these would give EI practitioners guidance in how to work with families during visits in ways that help families know what to do with their children during family activities that happen between visits.<\/p>\n To begin this discussion, here are 5 strategies that may help you help families bridge the gap between the visit and the rich activities and experiences that occur during the rest of the week:<\/p>\n What other strategies do YOU use to bridge this gap?<\/strong><\/p>\n How might you implement one of the strategies above?<\/strong><\/p>\n What challenges have you faced with focusing on family routines during intervention visits?<\/strong><\/p>\n Share you insights, strategies, questions, and challenges below. Let\u2019s learn from each other and use this opportunity to build stronger practices in Virginia!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" We know that, in early intervention, collaboration between the parent and the service provider is critical for successful intervention. For years, early intervention practitioners have espoused a use of family-centered practices, which means that we partner with families, respect and encourage their decision-making, support their active participation, and focus on the child\u2019s development within the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_s2mail":"yes","footnotes":""},"categories":[139,5,10,12,14],"tags":[37,50,58,59,62,67,68,79,86,87,96,100,112,125],"class_list":["post-5","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-all","category-bridging-the-ei-gap","category-engaging-collaborating-with-families","category-intervention-visits","category-practical-strategies-for-intervention","tag-collaboration","tag-early-intervention","tag-families","tag-family-centered-practices","tag-home-visits","tag-implementation","tag-infants","tag-natural-environment","tag-parent-professional-partnership","tag-parents","tag-research-to-practice","tag-routines-based","tag-strategies","tag-toddlers","clearfix"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"Woman](\"https:\/\/www.veipd.org\/earlyintervention\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/talk.jpg\")
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![\"Woman](\"https:\/\/www.veipd.org\/earlyintervention\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/04\/type.jpg\")
<\/p>\nNow consider the following questions:<\/strong><\/h2>\n