Early
intervention is a topic I am passionate about due to the impact I have seen it
make on children I have personally worked with over the years. Being able to
assist a child and their family with finding the resources and implementing the
plans to be able to create a higher potential for growth and development is
what being an early educator is all about.
While
living in Alaska a child was in my classroom that suffered from seizures in
utero and was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy. The child was carried to term and
delivered, however there were times the child was deprived of nutrients and the
brain was not fully developed. When he was to be moved from the infant room in
hopes of helping become more mobile I was the room they choose due to my
patience and knowledge of working with children with development delays and
disabilities. He was two years old
entering my classroom which was normally a pre toddler room ages varied from 11
to 24 months.
When he
began in my room he wore glasses he was legally blind, but with the glasses he
was able to distinguish some forms and had heightened sense of taste and
hearing. He was unable to walk he got around through a form of crawling or
moving in a hunched sitting position. He was thriving through his height and weight
he was in the 90th percentile for his height his weight was slightly
lower than average due to be unable to chew his food we has on protein shakes
and smoothies.
Prior to
his transition to my classroom the parents,
the director, myself and his speech and occupational therapist created
an action plan to try to challenge and push him to begin to physical develop.
It was a tough rode and there were many obstacles and lots of tears from
everyone, but through the continuity of care and the therapist we were able to
create some strides.
He was in occupational therapy and
the therapist had him fitted for what we called his “scuba suit” . It was a
neoprene jump suit he wore that
compressed his muscles and allowed him to gain strength through giving him
better posture and pressure to keep his curricula ion what is needed to be for
gross movement. This was a newer technique and took patience and learning
through use from all involved and he hated it, until following a Christmas break
when holding on to his dad’s hand he walked into my classroom. I burst in to
tears and he was smiling ear to ear. The intervention and tiresome times were
paying off.
The scuba suit was a nightmare at
times, but it was what then allowed for him six months later to walk alone with
a walker and began to slowly cruise through the classroom. This is what research and supporting the
early intervention is to a more unseen extreme, but we were able to get him to
a place where he was able to gain some mobility and even begin to create sounds
for speech. This is and will always be why I do what I do.
