Key Principles and Practices for

Providing Early Intervention Services in

Natural Environments:
Reaching Consensus

Joicey Hurth & Lynda Pletcher;

National Early Childhood TA Center
Grace Kelley;
South East Regional Resource Center
December 3, 2007
 Today’s Purpose
• Share and review work completed by CoP
Work group
• Compare participants current practices in
their state’s to the agreed upon principles
and practices
• Discuss how this work could assist their
state to enhance services
• Discuss strategies and next steps
 Introduction
OSEP sponsored TA Community of
Practice-Part C Settings:
www.TACommunities.org

• Sponsored by the Office of Special Education

Programs, US Dept. of Ed.

 This community facilitated by: National Early

Childhood TA Center (NECTAC); Southeast Regional
Resource Center (SERRC) and Region 6 Parent
Information and Training Center (PTI)
 The Identified Need
• Examine the various “models” of providing services
in natural environments- how are they the same?
• Reach consensus on key principles (foundations)
• Identify the research-base on effective practices
• Identify common practices and leanings that the
research , model development projects and the
“wisdom ”from the field suggest
• Describe the agreed upon practices that are “model
neutral”
• Describe some examples of how would you know
this practices is being implemented
 Community Of Practice Workgroup On
Principles and Practices In Natural
Environments
Group of volunteers came together after
national meeting in 2006 to form workgroup:
Susan Addision, Betsy Ayankoya, Mary Beth Bruder, Carl
Dunst, Larry Edelman,Andy Gomm, Barbara Hanft, John
Hoffman, Cori Hill, Joicey Hurth, Grace Kelley, Anne Lucas,
Robin McWilliam, Stephanie Moss, Lynda Pletcher, Dathan
Rush, M’Lisa Shelden, Mary Steenberg, Judy Swett, Nora
Thompson, Julianne Woods, and Naomi Younggren

•Conference calls
•“Think Tank” working meeting in July 2006
•Provided input and edits on the various documents
 Work still to be completed:

– Determine various uses of the current materials

and develop some written guidance
– Identify the skill sets necessary to implement
practices
– Review existing training and or other resources
for “matches”- what's already out there in states?
– Find a grant to pull together existing (or write)
training resources
– Work with state’s systems through a variety of
methods to address policy/procedures and
training issues for overcome barriers to
implementation
 Four Documents and the Status

• Mission and Key Principles of Early

Intervention Services ( 5th and Final Draft)
• Seven Key Principles & Looks Like/Doesn’t
Look Like (3nd Draft)
• Agreed Upon Practices For Providing Early
Intervention Services In Natural
Environments (5th and Final Draft)
• Research that Support Key Principles (2nd
Draft)
 Mission and 7 Key Principles
of Early Intervention Services

• MISSION- The overarching reason for

an early intervention system of services
•PRINCIPLES- the foundations or beliefs
which support all our work with children
and families
 Looks/Like Doesn’t Look like
• Key concepts behind the principle

• Examples of what the principle might look like in

practice

• Provides descriptions of what it “doesn’t look like”

because too often such practices are still being used

• Can be use as a training tool

• This is not a consensus document but workgroup

members provided many of the examples
 Example of A Principle & Key
Concepts

5. IFSP outcomes must be functional and based on child and

family needs and priorities

Key Concepts:
• Functional outcomes improve participation in meaningful
activities
• Functional outcomes build on natural motivations to learn and
do; fit what’s important to families; strengthen naturally
occurring routines; enhance natural learning opportunities.
• The family understands that strategies are worth working on
because they lead to practical improvements in child & family
life
 Example:
III. The primary role of the service provider in early
intervention is to work with and support the family
members and caregivers in a child’s life.

Looks Like Doesn’t Look Like

• Using professional behaviors • Being nice to families and

that build trust and rapport and becoming their “friend”
establish a working partnership
with families.
• Providing information,
• Training families to be “mini”
materials and emotional
therapist or interventionist
support to enhance family’s
natural role as the people who
foster their child’s learning and
development.

See Hand-out
 Agreed Upon Practices
• Intended for any service provider to use from
the beginning of their involvement with
child/family
• Reflects Consensus of Group
• Model neutral
• Reflective of research, practice and “wisdom
from the field and families (evidence based
practices)
• Includes legal requirements
• Document is divided into three sections of
Service delivery
 Agreed Upon Practices, (cont)
• Numbered statements are what a provider
“should” do
• The first numbered statement in each section
sets the stage for the more detailed, bulleted
statements that follow
• Bulleted statements are examples of the
behaviors- how you would see this practice
being implemented?
• This is NOT a checklist of everything, but
there is a “flow”.
 Sample
First Contacts with Families from
Referral to the IFSP Meeting

1. Become acquainted and establish rapport

 Use social behaviors that are warm and welcoming
and respectful of family culture and circumstances.
 Balance the time listening to the family with sharing
information.
 Ask what language the family usually speaks (mode
of communication) and if any family members may
want an interpreter. Explore their level of comfort with
written documents.
 Express willingness to explore family concerns and
work with them to find solutions.
 Research that Support Key
Principles
• Very much a draft document
• Citations suggested by work group
• Needs verification
• Currently available:
– A searchable annotated bibliography on the NECTAC
Inclusion Web page
– A compilation of the “top 10” articles recommended by
the Researchers/Trainers on the Natural
Environments Call Series
 Instructions: Group work on
Practices:
1. Look over your assigned section
2. Use worksheet to jot down practices
and behaviors you do, or think your
providers do, now. Rate
3. Note links to training materials,
guidance documents policies
procedures you already have in place
that would support these practices.
4. Discuss at the table
 Report Out

• Of the practices,which are happening well

in your state or local program?

• Which of the practices are not happening?

• If Not/ Why not?

 Discussion

• Potential use of these Documents in

current form/changes?
• Further development? For what purpose?
• How do we build on this work?
 Documents available for
dissemination
• Located on:
• www.nectac.org/topics/families/families.asp

• Feedback or comments:
Lynda_pletcher@unc.edu
• Please let us know how you are using
documents
 Resources
• Link to annotated bibliography http://
www.nectac.org/inclusion/search/inclubibintro.as
p

• Link to state documents (guidelines and

Policies) http://
www.nectac.org/inclusion/legis/stlegis.asp
• Link to National Conference Call series
http://www.nectac.org/~calls/2004/partcsettings/
partcsettings.asp