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Team-Based Early Intervention

In Arizona, a team-based approach is used in the provision of early intervention services. A team lead is identified as the primary partner with the family and is a professional who has expertise relevant to the child’s needs and the outcomes on the Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP). The team lead’s focus is on collaborative coaching of families as the primary intervention strategy to implement jointly developed, functional IFSP outcomes in natural environments with ongoing coaching and support from other team members. The team lead does not meet all the service needs of the child. The other team supports the team lead, through regular team meetings and joint visits with the family. Families participate in the team meetings through in-person attendance, calling-in to the meeting, or asking the team lead to share their questions/concerns.

Team-based early intervention services are based on the following principles:

Natural Learning Environment Practices

Natural learning environments practices involve the same everyday routines and activities as typical or non-disabled peers.  These are family-identified activities that focus on learning, more than just locations, promote parent’s abilities to identify interests and activities and to increase the number, frequency and depth of learning opportunities.

Infants and Toddlers with disabilities, like their typically developing peers, participate in a variety of natural learning opportunities throughout their day. These include: Eating, Sleeping, helping with laundry, going out - shopping, to family events, having books read to them, playing with parents, caregivers, siblings and peers.
 

Primary Coach Teaming Practices

After the evaluation and the completion of the Child and Family Assessment, the team develops child and family outcomes.  These outcomes are then reviewed as the team uses the Choosing the Most Likely Team Lead Tool.  This tool assists teams to look at concerns expressed by the family, preferences expressed by the child’s physician, the identified natural learning opportunities, the child’s diagnosis, and the individual knowledge and skills of the team members.  Teams not only identify the Team Lead, but how other team members will support the Team Lead to achieve the outcomes identified on the IFSP.

Coaching Practices

AzEIP teams use coaching to promote the parent’s participation in activities or experiences and to strengthen existing and promote new competencies. Coaching practices engage parents in a discussion of the previous joint plan. Coaching practices involves four specific activities: Observation, Action, Reflection, and Feedback and Joint Planning.

Frequently Asked Questions

What professionals are on my family’s team?

One member of the team will be your Team Lead. The Team Lead is the early intervention specialist on the team with the skills and knowledge that best fit with what your family wants and needs. The Team Lead will be the main team member who works with your family and will make sure that the skills of other professionals are used. The other team members, who may work with your family, directly or indirectly, to support an identified concern, support the Team Lead. Since early intervention is individualized, your Team Lead may be different than another family’s Team Lead.

How will team-based early intervention services be different for my family?

Your family will not be visited by a series of different people, each working independently of each other. Instead, each family has access to an entire team of early intervention professionals that communicate and work together. Team-based early intervention uses everyday family routines and activities as an opportunity for learning. During your family’s IFSP meeting, you and other members of the IFSP team will discuss what your family wants, what you are already working on, and any concerns or interests you may have about your child’s development. Together, you and your team will decide what services and team members are needed to help you make those things happen.

What is a Team Lead?

One member of the team will be your Team Lead. The Team Lead is the early intervention specialist on the team with the skills and knowledge that best fit with what your family wants and needs. The Team Lead will be the main team member who works with your family and will make sure that the skills of other professionals are used. The other team members, who may work with your family, directly or indirectly, to support an identified concern, support the Team Lead. Since early intervention is individualized, your Team Lead may be different than another family’s Team Lead.

What is a team meeting?

Team members will meet and share information with each other at least quarterly or more frequently, if needed. You can participate in those meetings as much as you like. You will not have to relay information from one team member to another, because they will be talking to each other on a regular basis.

Can you give an example of how the team might work together and with my family?

Early intervention is designed to support parents and caregivers in their everyday routines. By working together, your team of professionals will use what they know about early childhood development to support you and your child during everyday activities and routines that matter most to your family. Here is an example of Team-Based Early Intervention:

Katie and her family develop an IFSP outcome to have more successful mealtimes. The IFSP team (which includes the family) decides that Joan, an Occupational Therapist, will be the Team Lead for Katie and her family and will have 16 one-hour visits over the course of three months with the family. Joan visits the family during a mealtime or snack time to observe, ask questions and coach the family to help make mealtime successful. As the Team Lead, Joan, together with the family, comes up with ideas and strategies to support Katie’s participation in mealtime and include all areas of development that occur during this activity.

At the start of the next session, Joan asks Katie’s family how things have been going since their last visit, she asks if the family has tried any of the ideas or strategies that they talked about at the last session. This is an opportunity for Katie’s family to share any new or continuing challenges. Joan asks Katie’s family if they have any of their own suggestions or things that they want to try. Joan and Katie’s mom are wondering about the way Katie sits in her highchair.

At the weekly team meeting with the other team members for Katie’s family, Joan receives coaching from the Physical Therapist to help her think about the needs of Katie when she sits at the table during mealtime. Joan and the physical therapist decide it might be helpful to ask Katie’s family if they could visit the family together. The service coordinator, team lead, and the family review and revise the IFSP to include a joint visit with the physical therapist. During their Joint Visit, the Physical Therapist provides support to the family as well as to Joan, the Team Lead. The Team Lead continues to visit the family and together, they work to support Katie’s participation in mealtime.

What is coaching?

The team uses coaching to support parents to help their child learn and grow. Coaching is an interaction style between people that provides a structure for learning. Early intervention is designed to support parents and caregivers in their everyday routines. An early intervention professional may ask you questions to learn what you have already tried and ideas you may be thinking about. Together you will share information, observe one another try new things and come up with a plan with the strategies to practice as part of your daily activities.

What if I still have questions?

Your service coordinator will be able to answer questions regarding team-based early intervention services. The following resources are also available:

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