Early Intervention Every Day!

Embedding Activities in Daily Routines for Young Children and Their Families

by Merle J. Crawford, M.S., OTR/L, BCBA, CIMI and Barbara Weber, M.S., CCC-SLP, BCBA

Contents

• About the Authors
• Acknowledgments
• Introduction
• I Early Intervention Basics and Recommended Practices
  • 1 Overview of Early Intervention
  • 2 Recommended Practices: Caregivers
  • 3 Recommended Practices: Facilitating Skill Acquisition
• II Developmental Progression of Skills
  • 4 Behavior Regulation and Social Skills
  • 5 Cognitive and Receptive Language
  • 6 Expressive Language
  • 7 Gross Motor Skills
  • 8 Fine Motor Skills
  • 9 Self-Care/Adaptive Skills
• III Daily Routines Across Domains
• References
• Appendix A Resources
• Appendix B Progress Monitoring Examples
• Index

About the Authors

Merle J. Crawford, M.S., OTR/L, BCBA, CIMI

Merle J. Crawford is an occupational therapist in central Pennsylvania, with extensive training in relationship-based interventions. She primarily works with infants and toddlers in early intervention, using strategies from her varied training when coaching families and young children.

Barbara Weber, M.S., CCC-SLP, BCBA

Barbara Weber is a speech-language pathologist in central Pennsylvania, concentrating on collaborative processes to help families integrate routines-based intervention. She has worked for over 30 years with a variety of disabilities in various settings, focusing on infants and toddlers now.

Cognitive and Receptive Language

Tips and Hints

• For children who love cause-and-effect toys but struggle with social communication, caregivers can act as the cause-and-effect “toys” by using affect, animation, and repetition.
• Use pause time and expectant looks to cue the child that a message is necessary.
• When the child uses body movements to indicate more, use phrases like “Oh, you want more ____.”
• Prompt the child with hand-over-hand assistance at first, fading to no prompt over time.

OBJECT PERMANENCE

Object permanence refers to the understanding that when something is hidden, it still exists. Children first search for partially hidden objects and later for fully hidden ones. Object permanence is crucial for exploration and problem-solving.

How to Incorporate into Routines:

• Mealtime/Snack Time: Hide favorite snacks in hands or under napkins for the child to find.
• Playtime: Hide favorite toys and encourage the child to look for them. Play hiding games to reinforce the concept of searching for items.

Developmental Progression of Skills

TURNING TO NAME

When a child’s name is called, they turn toward the person calling them. This demonstrates an important listening skill.

How to Incorporate into Routines:

• Household Activities: Call the child over during cooking or cleaning to engage them.
• Ensure not to call the child’s name only when they do something wrong, as this may reduce responsiveness.

DEMONSTRATING UNDERSTANDING OF WORDS

Understanding words is necessary for following directions, learning new skills, and having conversations.

How to Incorporate into Routines:

• Book Time: Reading helps children access and learn new vocabulary.
• Diapering and Dressing: Name body parts, clothing, and actions being performed.
• Mealtime/Snack Time: Label foods, utensils, and describe actions during eating.