Your Child’s Development and Early Intervention
For parents that are raising a child with any type of disability, it is important to monitor their child’s development from the earliest possible stages. Talk to your primary pediatrician if there are areas of concern, or to find ways to help your child live a happy and fulfilled life. RISE also provides information to help you work with your family physician to achieve this goal. Here are two articles regarding development and the importance of early intervention:
What Are The 5 Stages Of Child Development?
Child development usually occurs in stages, with the majority of children hitting specific developmental landmarks by the time they reach a certain age. If a child does not achieve these milestones, early intervention services may be required. These five stages include:
- Newborn: During this stage, the newborn should exhibit automatic responses to external stimuli such as touch or noise, and will cry to indicate a need.
- Infant: In the first year of life, infants should be able to control head movements and bring their hands together. Progress should be shown towards being able to sit without support, babble and respond to a name. Between nine and twelve months old, a baby can pick up objects, crawl and may even be able to stand with support.
- Toddler: Between one and three years, toddlers should be capable of walking without help, climbing stairs and jumping in place. They begin to exhibit small motor skills such as holding a crayon, stacking blocks, and following simple instructions.
- Preschool: From three to five, children begin to strengthen their fine and gross motor skills. They can throw a ball overhand, skip and hop, stand on one foot, dress themselves, and draw a person with features.
- School: During the school years, from six to twelve years old, children are capable, confident, independent, responsible and able to form peer relationships.
See the full child development article at: https://riseservicesinc.org/5-stages-child-development
What Is Early Intervention?
Parents of children with special needs can provide their son or daughter with a healthy start to a full, productive life, but it can sometimes be difficult to accomplish that on their own. Early Intervention includes a variety of services that seek to guide parents and children through the early development stages, and give families the tools they need to set their child off on a solid life path.
Children up to the age of 36 months may be eligible for early intervention services if they exhibit symptoms of developmental delays, or have conditions such as Cerebral Palsy which may cause them to be at risk of such delays in the future. Extensive evaluations are used to determine whether children qualify for early intervention. Specialists can then tailor the services provided, such as speech therapy, physical therapy, occupational therapy, or special development instruction, to meet the specific needs of each child. These services continue until the child reaches the age of three.
See the full early intervention article at: https://riseservicesinc.org/what-is-early-intervention
If you think that your child is not meeting appropriate developmental goals, or may be in need of early intervention services, contact RISE to learn about the early intervention services and the wide variety of developmental services we offer for people with disabilities, including day programs, employment assistance, managed care, residential settings, and home and community based services.
