Early Intervention and Inclusion Assignment 2022

Running head: EARLY INTERVENTION AND INCLUSION
1
Early intervention and inclusion
Name
Institution

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PART A: WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP WITH FAMILIES.
Family-centered practices are those practices that include families in service delivery systems
by ensuring that they have control over the decisions that are made about their children. This is
important because the family is one constant feature in the child’s life and they are more aware
of the child’s needs and abilities. Children living with disabilities require special care and
sometimes professionals are hired to assist in their care. Having a partnership between the family
members and the professionals is essential in the child’s development. Both the families and the
professionals are expected to work together to ensure that the needs of the child are met.
The practices involved in working in partnership with families can be described using a
number of components including:
The family professional partnership
This kind of partnership shows how united people undertaking a similar task can be by being
goal-driven, having mutual mindsets and being respectful to one another. What ensures success
in the collaboration between professionals and families is how well they communicate with each
other. Communication is the most important aspect, but its success is also dependent on respect,
commitment, trust, skills, and equality (Bottcher, 2016). These aspects should be used to foster
understanding and coordination between the two groups.
Communication is important, with the emphasis being placed on equality, where both the
parents and professionals need to communicate at the same level. This is usually a challenge
since most times professionals are given the upper hand. The professionals need to trust the
parent’s judgment so that they can provide the right support to the child through building trusting
relationships and ensuring there is proper delineation of roles (Demmeyer, 2016).

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One of the challenges that this partnership face is a lack of understanding by the parents. The
parents usually have difficulty forming a partnership with the professionals. Parents often feel
like they are forced to work with the professionals and most of the time feel like they are not
ready to open up to them. Professionals also face their own problems in the partnership since the
training they undergo is usually on how to work with the children, not the parents. There is often
confusion on what role both sides should play, and the fact that both parties have different
priorities is also a challenge (Vickerman, 2018). These challenges can be solved by
communication between them, where both sides take time to listen and recommend best practices
to make the partnership work (Emond, 2019).
The nature of help and giving
There are three elements related to the nature of help given. These are the knowledge and skill
of the professional that helps when interventions need to be implemented, the relational element
which involves the professional being a good listener, empathetic, compassionate and respectful
and the last element being the participatory aspect of both the family and the professional.
Individualized practice
The individualized practice involves creating an individual family service plan for each
family. This is important to ensure that the services provided to the child are effective. It fosters
partnership between the professionals and the families and ensures that both collaborate in
helping the child. The individual family service plan is designed by looking at the families and
the child’s needs, strengths and goals.

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Mobilizing community support and resources
This helps families come up with strategies that help the child to cope with and influences
their wellbeing. In order to enhance interaction support and communication between the children
and their families there is need to connect the families to the local community resources. Doing
this actively influences how the parents and children interact and boost the child’s development
(Reddy, 2010).
Partnership with families in family-centered practices provides benefits not just for the child
but for the entire family. The parents are able to become more aware and satisfied with the roles
they play in the child’s life. They feel empowered since they are active participants in the child’s
life and the wellbeing of the entire family is increased. The families are able to build their lives
together, including that of the child (Julie, 2014).
Children living with disabilities require special attention and their care has an impact on the
entire family. When families are included by the professionals in the child’s life through
partnerships, the professionals assist them by acknowledging that the families are capable of
taking care of the child despite the challenges they might face, and also show them that they are
ready to learn about how to care for the child’s needs from the family members (Gentry, 2016).

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PART B: PARTICIPATION AND BELONGING: INCLUSION IN PRACTICE
CHILD RELATIONSHIPS
Child relationships can be described as how a child interacts with those around them. They
can happen between them and their educators or with other children. Children need to form good
relationships with adults who are responsible for their care and for nurturing them (Back, 2014).
This contributes to a child’s wellbeing, ensuring that they feel valued by them and become more
confident. The child’s relationship with these adults directly affects how they develop.
Their relationship with other children is equally as important. A child will relate well with
other children who have similar interests as them. This relationship in time fosters the
development of a friendship between the children. When children have friends they are more
likely to choose each other during playtime since they have more fun when they are together.
There is also an increased chance that they will get involved in challenging and complicated
tasks together (Ardianingsih, 2017). Young children are also very open-minded and can easily
understand the concept of diversity. It is easier for them to include children with special needs in
their group of friends as compared to older children.
Our center recognizes the importance of child relationship and fosters this by ensuring that the
educators relate well with the children by:
 Encouraging the children to play so that they can develop their skills and participating
in playgroups with them.
 Understanding the children’s creativity by incorporating their ideas during playtime
and in their daily routines.
 Ensuring that the children gain a better understanding of themselves through
communicating with them.

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 Taking part in person to person interactions with the children regardless of their age.
 Encouraging them to form social interactions and develop proper communication
skills through communicating with other children especially during playtime.
 Encouraging the children by supporting them so that they can be able to learn through
various opportunities that are presented to them.
 Teaching the children the importance of diversity
 Teaching them about their rights and how to respect the rights of others.
The educators directly interact with the children by joining them in play, engaging them during
learning, listening to their ideas and sharing their ideas with them. Through these interactions,
the children are able to openly interact with others and build trusting relationships with them.
They are also able to learn from each other and support the work that other children do. They
learn important lessons such as how their actions can affect other people.
PRACTICE YES NO SOMETIMES ACTION
All children engage with
educators and interact in
meaningful ways that support
learning.
1. Educators are involved in the
children’s activities such as
playtime.
2. The educators are responsible
for teaching all children during
lessons.
Educators join in children’s
play and sit with them during
routine activities such as lunch.
1. The educators are expected to
participate fully in the children’s
playtime
2. They are also present during

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routine activities since the
children require constant
supervision.
Children form friendships with
each other based on mutual
interests.
1. The children are exposed to
various activities so that they can
be able to discover their interests
and identify the children they
share these interests with.
2. Group activities are
encouraged during playtime so
that they can be able to play with
each other.
Children with additional needs
participate in play with
typically developing children
1. special equipment for children
with additional needs is provided
so that they can freely participate
in activities with other children
2. The children are taught about
inclusivity so that they can learn
about the importance of diversity
and can freely include every
child in their activities.
Visiting consultants include
typically developing children
in activities.
1. The consultants that visit
should be well equipped to be
able to deal with the needs of all

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children.
2. Different types of consultants
should be encouraged to visit.
Educators support children to
understand their behavior and
the impact of this on others.
1. The children are involved in
group activities where they are
required to work with other
children.
2. During their interaction with
the educators, they are taught
how to relate with others around
them.
SUMMARY
Interaction with educators.
The educators are aware of the importance of their interaction with the children in relation to
creating meaningful relationships with them hence they ensure that they have maximum
interaction with the children at all times. They are actively involved in their activities such as
playtime and lessons and ensure that the communication between them and the children remains
open by actively listening to their ideas and incorporating them where necessary.
Interaction during playtime and routine activities
The educators are involved in the children’s play activities such as participating in singing games
and solving puzzles with them. They are encouraged at this time to be attentive to the children
since playtime is important for the development of the children. They are also present during

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routine activities and interact with them during these times too so that the children are able to
learn from their observations at all times.
Formation of friendships
The children are introduced to various activities so that they can be able to broaden their learning
and also so that they can identify the activities that they are interested in and those that they are
good at doing. They are given group activities to do so that they can be able to identify the
children who have similar interests as them as this fosters the formation of friendships between
them. During playtime, they are introduced to games that require group efforts so that they can
learn how to work with others, especially since playing in a group encourages them to take part
in more challenging activities.
Children with additional needs
Equipment for children with additional needs is provided such as wheelchairs and walkers so that
they are able to participate freely in activities that other typically developing children participate
in. They are given support by the educator where they require help to carry out activities that
prove difficult for them.
The children are also taught about diversity and the importance of inclusivity in all the activities
that they do. They are actively encouraged to include everyone in their playgroups, including the
children with special needs. The children are also made aware of the needs that these children
have so that they can be cautious when engaging them in their activities.
Visiting consultants

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At times the consultants who visit the center are experts in a particular field and hence only
include children related to that field in their visitation. Most of the consultants are invited to
work with special needs children and they exclude the typically developing children in their
visits. There is, therefore, a need to ensure that these consultants include all children in their
visits so that the children not only feel included but learn about how to include and work with all
the other children. There is also a need to ensure that the consultants who visit the center are
diverse and are specialized in different fields so that all the needs of the children are met.
Learning about behavior
The children are actively involved in group activities where they can easily see the effect of their
actions on other people. The activities they are given to do involve group decisions so that the
children are taught about the importance of teamwork. They are also given lessons about how to
behave around other people.
PART C: UNDERSTANDING AND CREATING AN INDIVIDUAL FAMILY SERVICE
PLAN.

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1. Who might attend your child’s IFSP meeting and why?
Individual family service plans are planning documents that are prepared so as to help in the
development of a child, as well as the implementation of practices that have been put in place
while considering the child’s needs (Scott, 2017). The IFSP”s main goal is to support the child
and the family, hence the decision of who will be present during creation of the plan relies on the
child’s family. It is important to include all those who play an important role in the child’s
development so the people likely to be there are (Webster, 2016),
The child’s family- these are the people who know the child best and are aware of her needs.
They are also a part of the child’s life that will remain constant throughout her development.
Her speech pathologist- the work of a speech pathologist is to assess, diagnose and treat any
problem that a child or adult may have related to language, social communication, speech or
cognitive-communication (ASHA, 2019). Due to Mackenzie’s Autism Spectrum Disorder, she
has trouble communicating and she is still learning how to use language. Thus the speech
pathologist is an important part of her development.
Her early childhood special educator- these educators work with children who have delays
in their development (Bruens, 2018). They adjust their teaching methods to suit the child they are
teaching. Mackenzie is still a child despite her condition, and early childhood education is an
important part of childhood development.
Her psychologist- psychologists study the mental process and behavior of their patients
through observing, interpreting and recording how they interact with those around them. In order
to track Mackenzie’s progress in development after the implementation of the IFSP, her
psychologist needs to be involved in the process.
2. Briefly describe the IFSP process of your chosen child.

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It is important to arrange the meeting at a place and time that is convenient for the family,
hence their view on this will be asked. In order to make them comfortable at the meeting they
will be asked positive questions first, such as describing a day in their lives (Birtwell, 2016). The
family will be made aware of what to expect, i.e. those who will be involved in the IFSP, the role
that each person will play, the amount of time the meeting will take and when the document will
be ready for them to collect (Lin, 2014). Some of the questions they will need to be prepared for
will include how they want Mackenzie’s future to be, her likes and what they are proud of seeing
her do, any concerns they would like discussed, how helpful the services they have been
receiving are, and what they would like to focus on regarding Mackenzie’s development in the
short term. The family will also be informed that they have a right to privacy, and they do not
have to share information if they don’t want to (Neil et al, 2014).
The professionals will also be required to prepare information on observations they have
made about Mackenzie, summarizing her development and suggesting ideas on how to facilitate
inclusion.
The next step will be an assessment for inclusion, which will be done by the professionals.
This step is important since it will influence how Mackenzie’s family will interact with the
professionals (Webster, 2016). It will also determine what Mackenzie will consider herself
capable of doing. Mackenzie and her family will be included as active participants in this step.
Next, the goals and strategies will be set, drawing from the answers the family had given from
the questions they were asked as well as from Mackenzie. The goals will need to be clear and
achievable. They should also be relevant and support should be given to Mackenzie by both her
family and the professionals so that she will be able to achieve them. The strategies that will be

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identified will need to be flexible so that it would be easy to change them if needed in order to
achieve the goal.
The final step will be the preparation of the IFSP document.it is important to have an
agreement on the people responsible for carrying out each role so that what is in the IFSP
document will be done (Webster, 2016). This will involve maintaining communication with the
family regularly.
3. What might be two realistic goals that the parents have for your chosen child as well
as realistic goals that the child’s parents have for the family in general?
It is important for the family of the child to focus on their hobbies and interests when setting
goals for them. Their strengths and abilities should also be considered so as to ensure that the
goals are realistic (Geisinger, 2017). Mackenzie enjoys color coordination and looking at books,
and she is able to say a few single words. One of the goals could be for her to be able to identify
and name a few colors. Since she is already able to use some tools to feed herself and cut up
cheese and fruit, another goal could be for her to be able to feed herself using a spoon.
Some of the goals that Mackenzie’s parents can have for the family can be for them to be able
to understand her needs by the little amount of communication she is able to do using the picture
communication symbols, and for them to be able to understand how to prepare Mackenzie’s
meals since she is very particular about the kind of food she eats.
4. What will you do as an early childhood educator to help the family achieve their two
goals for their child? For each of the two goals described, what will you do to help the
family achieve its goal?

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In order to help Mackenzie identify and name a few colors, I can work with the family to help
her combine two things that she enjoys doing, color coding items and looking at books. Buying
her color themed books and showing her videos that teach about color by arranging items of the
same color in one place can help with this.
Training her to use a spoon on her own will require patience and help. Since she is already
able to use other tools it shows that using a spoon on her own is not impossible. I will encourage
the family to first give her food that is easier to eat with a spoon before moving on to yogurt or
pasta. She can also practice by using tools shaped like a spoon such as a spade during her
playtime.
For the family to be able to understand Mackenzie’s needs they will need to spend time with
her so as to understand what each symbol on the picture communication symbols means. They
can then observe any patterns she has when she asks for certain things and be able to relate them
in future so as to understand what she needs.
Preparation of her meals will also require them to be more acquainted with her so that they
can understand what she likes and what she doesn’t like. They can always ask the parents when
they are not sure and learn as time passes.
5. What information and support might the parents want/ need prior to their
transition to your center? What community supports and resources might you be able to
connect them with?
Since Mackenzie is a child with special needs who had mostly been getting support from her
parents it is normal that they would have questions to ask about the center before they transition

EARLY INTERVENTION AND INCLUSION 15
to it. The parents might want to know what services the center offers and if they cater to children
with special needs like Mackenzie. They might ask about the equipment available for use by
special needs children and how accessible they are. They might also need to know my experience
in dealing with children with special needs, especially if I had ever worked with a child who had
autism spectrum disorder and her family before. They might also ask about other families that go
to the center, to find out if they would fit in there or would feel out of place if their child was the
only one with that particular disorder. They might also want to know about the kind of support
they would get from the community. The community support and resources that I could be able
to provide them with would be connecting them to community support group that would help
motivate them and provide support for Mackenzie. Formal support groups for children with
autism spectrum disorder could provide help by connecting them with schools and early
intervention centers, medical facilities, professional help such as that of pediatricians and
therapists, religious and home support and support from state and local government departments
(raisingchildren.net, 2015). It is important to make the parents of the child comfortable so that
they can participate in the IFSP fully for it to benefit the child
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