Intervention Services

This chapter introduces the reader to the different types of intervention available. This includes state-based early intervention services as well as the supports available through the public school system. Information on services provided by the public school system will be discussed including how to set-up an individualized education program, what steps to take if you are told your child does not qualify for school-based services, and whether you should consider grade retention. Private therapies and therapeutic preschool programs also will be discussed. Strategies to help you recognize when an intervention might be based on pseudoscience will be presented along with tips for identifying good quality information, including research articles that might be relevant for your child.

Handling Practical Issues

This chapter reviews practical issues that arise when raising a child with a developmental disorder. Answers are provided to common questions. This includes advice on how to capitalize on the power of praise, how to support your child getting a sufficient amount of sleep, and how to manage screen time. Safety issues are discussed including how to handle wandering behavior and the importance of proactively alerting emergency responders to your child’s needs. Options for participating in extracurricular activities are reviewed. Strategies for boosting independence in completing daily living skills, such as chores and self-care activities, are discussed.

Managing Your Relationships

Having a child with a developmental disorder can be very isolating and stressful. Taking care of yourself will help ensure that you are more easily able to help advocate for your child’s needs and available to help support their skill-building. If you find yourself struggling to cope, alert family, trusted friends, and your healthcare provider. Consider ways to get all caregivers involved in your child’s life (significant other, relatives) on the same page as consistency helps children make progress more quickly. Common issues surrounding friendships will be discussed, including friends who start avoiding you as well as friends who want to help, but do not know what you need. Tips for communicating with your other children including navigating differences in expectations as well as common playtime issues are reviewed.

Development: What You Need to Know

Early and intensive intervention is one of the most powerful tools we have to combat developmental disorders, but developmental issues are frequently identified much later than they should be, often because a “wait and see” approach is recommended during early childhood. The power of early intervention as one of the key tools to support your child’s development will be discussed. Developmental milestones are reviewed along with common patterns of development. Development may occur unevenly across skill areas and spurts in skill building are common, but regression, or loss of skills, is not. The higher risk of developmental issues in boys also will be discussed.

Potential Areas of Concern and How to Address Them

Organized alphabetically, this chapter will introduce you to some of the more commonly encountered areas of concern. Medical, behavioral/emotional, cognitive, and academic concerns are reviewed here. This includes attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety, autism, epilepsy, executive functioning difficulties, language disorders, learning disabilities, motor problems, and premature birth. Commonly encountered terms are explained, the signs of different conditions are reviewed, and things to watch for are highlighted. Frequently asked questions about how to support development across a variety of different areas are answered and strategies are provided to help you maximize your child’s development.

Coping With a Diagnosis

Having confirmation that your child is developing differently is devastating, but you must hold on to hope. Children often surprise us with their resiliency and also with their ability to achieve things we never thought possible. Research consistently shows that the earlier any developmental issues are identified, the more time you have to address them. So, allow yourself a little time to grieve and then start taking action to help your child. When your child has a developmental disorder, skill-building will often happen more slowly so you need to be patient with your child and also with yourself as you implement strategies to help with development.

The Diagnostic Process

A developmental evaluation can be a powerful tool for obtaining a thorough overview of your child’s development and determining whether any diagnoses are appropriate. Evaluations can be done with very young children (and even in infancy), so waiting for an evaluation until your child is school-aged often means missing out on valuable intervention time. The more information you have about your child’s difficulties, the more effectively you can address them. The process of identifying the type of provider needed will be discussed with an emphasis on how to vet providers to help ensure a quality evaluation. The components of an evaluation along with information on how to interpret the results of standardized testing will be discussed.