Parent/Caregiver Coaching
Early Intervention
Early intervention (EI) is the process of providing services and supports to infants, toddlers, and their families when a child has, or is at risk for, a developmental delay, disability, or health condition that may affect typical development and learning. (ASHA https://www.asha.org/practice-portal/professional-issues/early-intervention/)
A child’s developmental needs can be best addressed when they are identified early and services can begin (Guralnick, 2011; Parlakian, 2018).
This service is appropriate for:
Families who are concerned about their child's communication development and choose to utilize insurance or pay out of pocket.
Children up to four years of age.
What is a Parent/Caregiver Coaching Model?
Parent/Caregiver Coaching teaches primary caregivers the 'why' and 'how' to use evidenced based language-building strategies during everyday activities and interactions with their child.
Parents and primary caregivers have the greatest impact on a child’s early language, social, and literacy skills. This integrated model of therapy helps build a child’s communication abilities with the most important people in their lives and in the home environment.
How does Parent Coaching work?
Following the assessment, we will discuss the structure of sessions in more detail, but this is the general format:Your child must be in the sessions, however it will be you and I talking most of the time.
- We find a strategy that will be the most effective for your child's language development and the easiest to immediately implement into daily routines.
- During sessions I explain the 'why' behind the strategy, provide models for 'how' to utilize it, and then give guidance as parents/primary caregivers practice using this strategy in the session.
- Each session we check-in and discuss how the strategy is going, then add to or stick with the same strategy.
You can think of this process like building a home. We start with a strategy that will be the foundation and build from there.
Is feeding therapy part of this service?
If you have feeding concerns, we will evaluate to determine if difficulties your child is having with breast feeding/bottle feeding, transitioning to solids, eating certain foods, or picky eating in general is related to a myofunctional disorder. If it is then, yes. We will:
- Assess for tongue and lip ties and provide the appropriate referrals if a release is needed
- Facilitate natural feeding, chewing, and swallowing movement patterns
- Build a diverse diet
- Establish healthy jaw, face, and airway development
The Process
1. Book a Consultation - Your consultation will help determine if services are the best course of treatment and/or help guide you to the most appropriate services. This can be in person at our office or via telehealth.
2. Schedule an Evaluation - Evaluations are 90 minutes, these are typically done via telehealth, though in person is also available.
3. Build a Treatment Program - Following an evaluation, if your child is demonstrating needs in the area of communication or feeding, we will work together to build a treatment program. All programs are based on:
- Family centered goals
- Supports the child's success in their natural environment
- Collaboration with other service providers
- The most effective research based strategies integrated into daily routines
4. Schedule Regular Sessions - Sessions are scheduled weekly or every other week. This gives you time to work on the strategy covered in the previous session. Sessions are 50 minutes, telehealth or in-home is available depending on needs and location.
