Including Children with Special Needs
Young children with developmental delays or disabilities and their families need specialized services and supports to optimize their development and prepare for later learning. These services and supports are most effective when coordinated with other services and programs in the community. IDEA Part C and Part B, 619 programs must be an integral part of each state’s early childhood education system. IDEA programs have much to contribute to systems building because of their longstanding focus on coordinated service delivery. Staff from these programs can offer resources and expertise to help build, support, and sustain the broader early childhood education system. For more information on an early childhood mixed delivery system, contact the PDG B-5 technical assistance specialist for your region.
Resources
The following video and brief present an introduction to IDEA Part C and Part B 619 requirements and share examples of how IDEA state staff and staff from other programs can work together to build coordinated systems.
Programs Serving Children with Disabilities–IDEA as A Key Component of State Early Childhood Systems
This video provides an introduction to IDEA Part C and Part B 619 requirements.
This brief provides information and resources about the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act’s (IDEA) two early childhood programs.
Additional Resources
The following are additional resources about inclusion, the use of telehealth, remote service delivery, universal design, and more.
This resource is a This web page provides information on state Part C and Part B, Section 619 programs with the latest information on funding and guidance during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Inclusion of Children with Disabilities in Early Care and Education Settings
This presentation shared 2019 data on the inclusion of children with disabilities in early care and education settings using the most recent data from the IDEA 616 and 618 data collections and the Head Start Program Information Report.
State Early Childhood Inclusion Self-Assessment
This self-assessment tool that provides a framework for examining key aspects of state infrastructure that are useful for promoting high-quality inclusive practices, programs, and policies.
Preschool Inclusion: Challenges, Solutions, National Trends and Resources
This webinar contains national data on the extent to which preschoolers with disabilities are receiving their special education and related services in general early childhood settings alongside their typically developing peers.
Supporting Inclusion of Children with Disabilities in Child Care Settings
This webinar held by a national early childhood organization that contains information about the concepts and key resources for collaboration between child care and early childhood special education/Cearly intervention.
Early Childhood Inclusion: A Summary
This brief that summarizes the Joint Position Statement on Early Childhood Inclusion of the DEC and NAEYC.
Early Childhood Inclusion: A Joint Position Statement of DEC and NAEYC
This joint position statement highilghts the benefits of inclusion of young children with disabilities, and developing policies and procedures to support implementation of inclusion for young children with disabilities throughout the state’s mixed delivery system.
Characteristics of Preschool Special Education Services and Educators
This brief and data tables that present national information on the preschool services funded by the IDEA and provided by local school districts and schools.
Quality Indicators of Inclusive Early Childhood Programs/Practices
This resource is a compilation of checklists and tools about how to implement and monitor quality inclusion in early childhood systems for ages birth through five.
State Medicaid & CHIP Telehealth Toolkit
This toolkit to help states increase rapid deployment of telehealth capabilities in their Medicaid program including to pay for services for young children with disabilities in their Individuals with IDEA Part C early intervention and Part B Section 619 preschool programs.
Remote Service Delivery and Distance Learning
This web page is a compilation of information for state early intervention Part C and early childhood special education the IDEA Part B, Section 619 programs.
IDEAs that Work, Toolkit on Universal Design for Learning
This toolkit that contains information focused on increasing states’ capacity to provide rigorous assessment, instruction, and accountability for students with disabilities, as required under the IDEA, using universal design for learning principles.
Practice Improvement Tools: Topic: Transition. Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center
This set of checklists describes changes that occur for children with disabilities with the following transitions: from hospital to home, into early intervention (Part C) programs, to community early childhood programs, into Part B/619, and to kindergarten or school-age programs.
Statewide Implementation Guide
This toolkit/guidebook contains tools, materials, and examples derived from the Pyramid Model and ECTA's DEC Recommended Practices implementation technical assistance.
This webpage provides basic information and an overview of Part C and Section 619 of Part B that are the portions of the IDEA that relate to young children.
Prevalence of Children Aged 3–17 Years with Developmental Disabilities
This report examines data about the prevalence of developmental disabilities among children in both rural and urban areas, as well as service utilization among children with developmental disabilities.
Services for Children with Disabilites
This website provides information about child care services for children with disabilities and links to many resources for parents on child care options and child health and development, with links for Parent Centers in all states.
Building High-Quality Early Intervention and Preschool Special Education Programs
This framework guides state Part C and Part B Section 619 Coordinators and their staff in 1) evaluating their current state systems; 2) identifying potential areas for improvement, and 3) developing systems that support implementation of evidence-based practices.