What Is Child Find? IDEA requires that all children with disabilities (birth through twenty-one) residing in the state, including children with disabilities attending private schools, regardless of the severity of their disability, and who may be in need of special education and related services, must be identified, located, and evaluated by the public agency responsible and a practical method developed and implemented to determine which children with disabilities are currently receiving needed special education and related services.
What 7 major elements are included in a comprehensive child find system? Definition of Target Population Public Awareness Referral and Intake Screening and Identification of Young Children who May be Eligible for IDEA services Eligibility Determination Tracking Interagency Coordination
Definition of Target Definition To identify children who may have health or developmental issues as early as possible, it is important to think broadly about needed programs and services and conduct child find activities accordingly. For example, needs may range from an eye exam for a child having minor vision difficulties to a full evaluation for a child in need of more comprehensive or ongoing early intervention services. Multiple state programs have a responsibility to identify children in need of these services. Programs that are responsible for serving identified children include: early intervention, preschool special education, Head Start, Title V programs for children with special health care needs, and state Medicaid and SCHIP initiatives.
Public Awareness The Early Intervention Branch and its Children’s Developmental Services Agencies must develop and disseminate information focusing on early identification of infants and toddlers with disabilities to all primary referral sources, especially hospitals and physicians. This information is to be given to parents, especially to inform parents with premature infants and infants with other physical risk factors associated with learning or developmental complications, on the availability of early intervention services under the Infant-Toddler Program and of services under Preschool services for children with disabilities. In addition to providing such information to hospitals and physicians, the Infant-Toddler Program must target other referral sources such as homeless family shelters, clinics, and other health-related offices, public schools, and officials and staff in the child welfare system.
Public Awareness Activities Public awareness activities focus on the Infant-Toddler Program and on the early identification of children who are eligible to receive early intervention services under the Infant-Toddler Program. Activities inform the public about: the state's early intervention program; the state's child find system including its purpose and scope, how to make referrals, and how to access a comprehensive evaluation and other early intervention services; and the state’s central directory. In addition to state-supported activities, local community agencies are obligated by the federal law to participate in public awareness activities. Many of these activities parallel the state's efforts in the distribution or presentation of public awareness materials.
Referral and Intake A mechanism must exist for a broad range of referral sources to be informed about eligibility, identification of children who may be eligible, and about how to make appropriate referrals to public agencies. Once the public agency receives a referral, a services coordinator needs to be appointed as soon as possible.
Federal Child Find Referral Process d%20find%20referral%20process.pdf
Screening and Identification Each statewide system should include procedures for screening of health and development as one component of a comprehensive child find system. Use of standardized, validated, accurate measures is highly recommended. Informal detection methods (checklists, observations, review of milestones, or use of selected items on validated screens, etc.) are not recommended because they miss the majority of children with disabilities. However, some informal methods (such as checklists) may encourage parents and caregivers to ask questions about a child's health or development that lead to screening and/or evaluation. Parents, grandparents, and other caregivers can use standardized screening tools that have been designed for this purpose. Screening is mandated under EPSDT (Early Periodic Screening, Diagnosis and Treatment) and is required of pediatric healthcare providers who deliver routine health supervision services.
Child Find Screening Each school district is further required to establish and implement a comprehensive system of screening. The screening process is to include: Curriculum-based or performance based assessments Observations Interventions Student response to interventions Determination whether difficulties are due to lack of instruction or English Proficiency or both Determination whether student's needs exceed functional ability of the regular education program to maintain the student at an appropriate instructional level Activities to gain parent involvement
Eligibility Determination Each state has eligibility criteria for early intervention that needs to be consistent with federal regulations. In addition, some states have elected to serve children who are at risk of developmental disability. These states must describe their criteria and procedures for determining which children meet the "at risk" criteria. Services must be available for conducting diagnostic assessments and for identifying the intervention services needed.
Tracking States need to have a tracking system to determine which children are receiving services and ensure follow-up once children are referred.
Example of a tracking form: rc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&ved=0CCsQ FjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.azdes.gov%2 FInternetFiles%2FInternetProgrammaticForms %2Fdoc%2Fchild_find_tracking_form_2.doc& ei=IqXuUbLzG5W24AOouYCgCA&usg=AFQjCN GiCoZIPq8w62QGV6SBHNXlM4qVPQ&sig2=kF OMSTmmCnos2Eb1_eTs4Q&bvm=bv ,d.dmg
Interagency Coordination Child find activities need to be coordinated across state and local agencies to ensure efficient use of resources. Information about child find procedures and activities must be available to all individuals and agencies serving infants and children.
Roles of Local Interagency Coordinating Council Develop and disseminate county specific public awareness, transitions, and child find materials ; Foster interagency collaboration and information sharing; Promote parent and family involvement in all community activities; and Encourage community efforts supporting inclusion of children with special needs and their families. Sub-committees may be appointed as need arises for such issues as transition, transportation, public relations, or child find, as well as to handle specific tasks of the Local Interagency Coordinating Council. Because Local Interagency Coordinating Council meetings are generally public meetings, a specific child or family must be discussed in such a way as to protect the confidentiality of the child and family
Sources /referral.asp /referral.asp rmanual/Bulletin31.pdf rmanual/Bulletin31.pdf nd%20referral%20process.pdf nd%20referral%20process.pdf ml ml