Early Childhood

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.

Preschool Inclusion Series | Videos

The SpecialQuest Multimedia Training Library includes early childhood inclusion training resources. The videos and training sessions support high-quality inclusion of preschoolers (ages 3 to 5) in early care and education settings that are responsive to the priority and concerns of families. The target audiences are early childhood professional development providers, Institutes of Higher Education, family leaders, and policy makers.

Transition to Preschool

Be sure to see what’s available at ECTA.
Come to ECTA’s landing page where you’ll find a wealth of information about the transition from Part C to preschool, including federal requirements, national centers, state examples, eligibility differences to note, and more.

Writing the IFSP for Your Child

After your young child’s evaluation is complete and he or she is found eligible for early intervention services, you, as parents, and a team will meet to develop a written plan for providing early intervention services to your child and, as necessary, to your family. This plan is called the Individualized Family Service Plan, or IFSP.

Parent Participation in Early Intervention

Families, most particularly parents, are vital participants in early intervention. Your contributions are invaluable:

at the individual level where you are intimately involved in determining the services that your own child will receive; and at an organizational level determining policies and scope for EI programs.

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?

Providing Early Intervention Services in Natural Environments

Early intervention services are to be provided in natural environments to the maximum extent appropriate for the child and for the EI service itself. So–what’s considered a “natural environment”? What isn’t? This webpage focuses upon answering these questions and on connecting you with resources of additional information and best practice.

Parent Notification and Consent in Early Intervention

Parents are essential partners in early intervention. They have the right to be deeply involved at every step along the way, from evaluation of their child, to the writing of the individualized family service plan (IFSP), to helping to determine the early intervention services their child receives. Not surprisingly, Part C of IDEA includes specific provisions to support the informed involvement of parents in their child’s early intervention program.

Public Awareness and the Referral System (Part C)

Part C of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires that each State have a early intervention system that includes well-advertised processes for finding, referring, and (as appropriate) evaluating babies and toddlers suspected of having (or known to have) a developmental delay or disability.

Overview of Early Intervention

If you’re concerned about the development of an infant or toddler, or you suspect that a little one has a disability, this page will summarize one terrific source of help—the early intervention system in your state.