Early intervention is a system of services that helps babies and toddlers or preschoolers with developmental delays or disabilities. Early intervention focuses on helping eligible babies, toddlers, preschoolers to learn the basic and brand-new skills that typically develop during the first 6 years of life, such as:
- physical (reaching, rolling, crawling, and walking);
- cognitive (thinking, learning, solving problems);
- communication (talking, listening, understanding);
- social/emotional (playing, feeling secure and happy); and
- self-help (eating, dressing).
Early intervention is intended for infants, toddlers and preschoolers who have a developmental delay or disability. Eligibility is determined by evaluating the child (with parents’ consent) to see if the little one does, in fact, have a delay in development or a disability. Eligible children can receive early intervention services from birth through the third birthday (and sometimes beyond).
For some children, from birth | Sometimes it is known from the moment a child is born that early intervention services will be essential in helping the child grow and develop. Often this is so for children who are diagnosed at birth with a specific condition or who experience significant prematurity, very low birth weight, illness, or surgery soon after being born. Even before heading home from the hospital, this child’s parents may be given a referral to their local early intervention office.
For others, because of delays in development | Some children have a relatively routine entry into the world, but may develop more slowly than others, experience set backs, or develop in ways that seem very different from other children. For these children, a visit with a developmental pediatrician and a thorough evaluation may lead to an early intervention referral.
At Antara, we start working with the child as early as 1 to 2 years in terms of speech, thinking, perceptual development, social skills etc. We also work with children who show developmental delays and design the intervention plan considering overall development and growth.