IFSP

Buzz | “Bread and Butter” Topics of Parent Centers (& Parents)

What concerns and questions do newcomer families often tend to have when they learn that their child has a disability? These, shall we say, are the bread-and-butter of topics that Parent Centers so often address. This Buzz connects you with easy-to-share introductions to and explanations of what many newcomer families need to know. New Parent Center staffers may also find these materials a useful crash course in basic topics related to children with disabilities.

Basic Steps of the Early Intervention Process

This 5-page handout from CPIR shows the 8 basic steps of early intervention, with brief summaries of each step. You can use this handout when introducing families, professionals, and community members to the state’s early intervention system for infants and toddlers with developmental delays or suspected disabilities. Steps 1 and 2, for example, are when the child is referred to the early intervention system, which then evaluates the child to see if he or she does have a delay or disability and is eligible for services. Moving through the steps thereafter, the process ends with Step 8, when the child exits early intervention upon reaching the 3rd birthday.

This handout was created as part of CPIR’s training curriculum on early intervention, Building the Legacy for Our Youngest Children with Disabilities. CPIR is pleased to update it to 2022 and provide it anew, as an accessible PDF and in Word. Read more about the handout and download it here.

Return to School | Child Find and Early Intervention Services

This webinar for Parent Centers focuses on important guidance from the U.S. Department of Education. Presenters from OSEP review the new Part C guidance documents: (1) Return to School Roadmap: Child Find, Referral, and Eligibility; and Return to School Roadmap: Provision of Early Intervention Services. The Department issued the guidance interpreting the requirements of IDEA in response to requests from a diverse group of stakeholders, including Parent Centers. Both roadmaps are also available in Spanish, as is this webinar.

Provision of Early Intervention Services for Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities and their Families

The Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) at the U.S. Department of Education has released yet another guidance in its Return to School Roadmap series–this one is called Provision of Early Intervention Services for Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities and their Families under Part C of IDEA. The 11-page document focuses on the development and implementation of Individualized Family Service Plans (IFSP), the written plan for providing early intervention services to an infant or toddler with a disability and the child’s family. The questions and answers addressed are intended to provide guidance and to identify the relevant requirements and options for flexibility for the State lead agencies (LA) and EIS providers when faced with unprecedented programmatic circumstances resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read more about this Q&A, see a list of the questions addressed, and connect with this and other guidances in OSERS’ Return to School roadmap series here, at CPIR.

Writing the IFSP for Your Child

(more…)

Babies & Toddlers

The birth of a child is an exciting, life-changing event. A beautiful new baby comes to your house, family, and neighborhood. It is a time for celebration. But what happens when this new child has a disability? What if there are health problems? What if, as time goes by, it seems as if the child isn’t learning and progressing as quickly or easily as other children? What do you do?

Overview of Early Intervention

(more…)

Requesting Prior Written Notice

There are times when you, as a parent, may want to communicate in writing with your child’s school about some problem or concern with your child’s education or well-being. Because the Parent’s Guide is so long, we decided it would be more convenient to our readers if each of the letters discussed in the guide was also available separately, to make reading and printing individual letters easier. This page presents a model letter or email you might write to request that the school provide you with prior written notice.

Lead Poisoning

(more…)

Module 1: The Basics of Early Intervention

(more…)