Birth to 2 years: Once a child in this age range has qualified as a child with a disability, the focus is to provide support and services in the areas of need for the family and child. When a child from birth to age 2 has been identified as having a disability, a team is required to create an Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP). An IFSP should include:
- Child’s present physical cognitive, communications, social/emotional and adaptive development levels and needs
- Available resources, priorities, and concerns of parents
- Major result expected (outcomes or goals)
- Early intervention services the child may receive
- Where and how often the services will be provided
- Who will pay for the services (Costs are generally determined on a sliding scale)?
- The name of the service coordinator who will oversee the process
- Steps that will be taken to support the transition to the next phase
- Timelines
- Assistive Technology
- IFSP Template: EI-1(fillable)extended_1.pdf (ne.gov)
- IFSP Instructions: EI-1 (Instructions)_0.pdf (ne.gov)
Building a Meaningful Transition Plan
Creating Positive, Goal-Oriented Relationships with the Family
One of the most important steps educators can make is building a working relationship with the child’s family. The caregivers or parents of a child with a disability know that child best. Their input for the child’s goals in transition are imperative and should always be considered during the transition process. Here are some tips on creating positive relationships with families.
Focus on Child Development
Everyone, at all ages, goes through transitions in life. Transitioning from morning routines to school, moving to a new town, changing jobs or careers, or from recess to class, transitions are all around us and is happening all the time. Any time we experience change in our life, we are simultaneously going through a transition. Children go through a lot of transitions or changes daily and is often more challenging for a child with a disability. They are learning how to explore new environments and interacting with new people every day. Focusing on developmental skills for children with or without disabilities can increase their ability to transition smoothly from activities and life events. Teachers canhelp identify skill deficits and identify strategies to help improve a child’s ability to transition. Below is a table that shows some of the main areas of child development.
|
Area |
Description |
|
Cognitive |
How children think, learn, understand, solve problems, and remember |
|
Communication |
How a child learns to speak sounds, words, and sentences. This can also include learning sign language and body language. |
|
Social and Emotional |
How children learn to create relationships with others and cooperate with people around them. This also includes how a child learns to express and understand emotions, as well as emotional regulation and how to respond to others’ emotions. |
|
Physical |
The way children learn to move and use their muscles. Large motor skills like sitting, standing, walking, maintaining balance, and changing positions can be evaluated in physical movement as well as small motor skills like using hand muscles to eat, drawing, grabbing a toy or item, eye contact, etc. |
|
Adaptive |
The child’s ability to dress, eat, and take care of oneself. |
*Table adapted from childcare.gov
By reviewing the table above, teachers can pair with families to create developmentally appropriate goals and plans to support a child in many areas around transition. It is important to use data and make plans individual to the student and family needs.
Resources:
Special Education | Disability and Cerebral Palsy | CerebralPalsy.orgCerebralPalsy.org/
Special Education Transitions | Six Transitions | CerebralPalsy.orgCerebralPalsy.org
IFSPweb | Nebraska Early Development Network
Nebraska Resources | Nebraska Early Development Network