Brain Builders Corner: Early Intervention

Connecting new providers with SKI HI Training
After three 2-day sessions of training, we have a group of new SKI HI Certified Parent Advisors who are ready to join our CDHHE Network serving families. Our new Parent Advisors, who are already licensed to work with Deaf and Hard of Hearing children, now have added training to work with families of newly identified children as they journey through the early intervention system until they transition to school services. These providers coach families in promotion of communication and language with their child in ways that best match the child’s needs. Parents learn about various strategies for language development and are given information in order to have confidence in using resources and skills to see their child reach their potential. Parent Advisors also help par-ents promote their child’s development in literacy, cognition and social-emotional development. We are grateful to our Indiana State Trainers, Michelle Coleman and Jodee Crace, as well as the entire Early Intervention team who coordinated efforts to expand our pool of providers and increase capacity to serve families.
  

We also have a new pool of Deaf Mentor candidates who completed SKI HI Deaf Mentor training the first week of June. Deaf Mentors are certified when training is successfully completed to teach families American Sign Language (ASL) and other visual communication skills, shared reading techniques to promote literacy and information about being Deaf and Deaf Culture. Deaf mentors will work with families who have Deaf and Hard of Hearing children between the ages of birth and three years, as well as work with other First Steps service providers on the families’ Individual Family Service Plans (IFSPs). Our gratitude goes out to Jodee Crace and Paula Pittman, national trainers from the SKI HI Institute for their dedication to ensuring quality training takes place as we grow potential resources for families. For further information about the SKI HI Deaf Mentor Program, there is a video available at deaf-mentor.skihi.org    

Check out this resource from the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. This shows key steps within the ‘serve and return’ framework between children and adults. These steps are key in brain development, social skills and communication. https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/5-steps-for-brain-building-serve-and-return

Teachers’ DEN (Deaf Educators’ Network)

Vocational Rehabilitation Services

Do you know of a student who is Deaf or Hard of Hearing who is about to exit school? He or she may be eligible for Vocational Rehabilitation services. As stated on their website (https://www.in.gov/fssa/ddrs/2636.htm):

Vocational Rehabilitation Services (VR) provides quality individualized services to enhance and support people with disabilities to prepare for, obtain or retain employment. The individual will work closely with a VR counselor throughout the process. Through active participation…people with disabilities achieve greater level of independence in their work place and living environments.

Vocational Rehabilitation has recently enacted an Order of Selection to prioritize need. Everyone who applies will have an intake appointment to determine eligibility. If found eligible, VR will determine the severity level of need to determine priority of services. The priority categories are (1) most significant need, (2) significant need, (3) all other. As of August 1, 2017, categories 2 and 3 have been moved to the deferred list.

VR is currently implementing Pre-Employment Transition Services (Pre-ETS) that can start while a student is still in high school. If students receive Pre-ETS before applying for VR AND they are placed on the deferred list, students can continue receiving Pre-ETS. If students have not started Pre-ETS and apply for VR and are put on the deferred list, they cannot start Pre-ETS. Pre-Employment Transition Services have five focus areas:

1. Job exploration counseling, which includes conducting interest inventories, reviewing career websites, taking high school courses on occupations and career readiness, etc.

2. Work-based learning experiences which can include paid or non-paid work experiences in the community, volunteer work, job shadows, short- or long-term internships, on the job training, apprenticeships and employer mentoring activities.

3. Counseling on opportunities for enrollment in postsecondary education, which includes exploration of the wide range of career pathways (i.e., agriculture, manufacturing, etc.), counseling on postsecondary training opportunities including community colleges, universities, trade/technical schools, etc., and counseling to support a smooth transition from high school to postsecondary education (i.e. documenting and advocating for accommodations, identifying financial aid options, etc.).

4. Learning workplace readiness skills, which includes soft-skills training, employability skills training, social/interpersonal skills (i.e. communication, problem solving, decision making, conflict resolution, empathy, professionalism, etc.) and independent living skills training (i.e. good hygiene, money management, using transportation, time management, using technology and assistive technology, appropriate dress, appropriate behavior, etc.).

5. Self-advocacy instruction in self-awareness, disability disclosure, requesting accommodations, understanding rights and responsibilities, self-determination, etc., and mentoring including peer mentoring.

For more information, please visit this frequently asked questions document or contact your local VRS office on the regional map. Indiana ARC has also created a podcast with more information.

The Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Education has a comprehensive list of other resources on a multitude of topics.

For more information, please contact Sarah Kiefer, Deaf Education Coordinator skiefer@isdh.in.gov or 317-232-0971, or visit www.cdhhe.isdh.in.gov.

BRAIN BUILDERS CORNER: Early Intervention

Inaugural First Steps Conference Includes Presenters on Brain Development

Congratulations to Indiana First Steps for a successful inaugural First Steps Conference this month in Bloomington. Many of our CDHHE Network providers and partners attended this professional development opportunity for Early Intervention providers, families and stakeholders. As I attended inspirational sessions and informative sessions and heard thought-provoking and heartfelt stories shared by parents and other presenters, I reflected on how to share some of what I learned with others.

Dr. Rosemarie Allen shared this quote in her presentation on Implicit Bias in Early childhood: “These are all our children. We will profit by, or pay for, whatever they become.” Dr. Allen challenged us to be aware of our own cultural beliefs and values and embrace other cultures to connect with parents who are children’s first teachers. We are grateful to our families for welcoming our providers into their homes as we work to build relationships with families in their communities. Together we learn what will work with each family as they navigate the early years when language and relationships are building a strong foundation in the brain. 

We also learned more about the brain from Dr. Dipesh Navsaria as he shared research from his practice at the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.  He talked about the three legged stool for a child’s developmental trajectory of the genetic, prenatal & neuro-developmental factors, socio-economic environment, and the attachment and relationship patterns that impact a child’s future.  He also talked about the 5 Rs of early childhood education that all of us can share and practice with children we work with and families:  Routines that help children know what to expect of us and what is expected of them, Reading together daily, Rhyme playing and cuddling, Rewards for everyday successes, and Relationships reciprocal and nurturing: the foundation of healthy child development, as shared by the AAP School Readiness Technical Report, 2008.  Both of the above mentioned speakers have videos available on YouTube for those who wish to view them. 

We were also honored to present a session at the First Steps Conference. We shared information about all of the services available to families with children identified as being deaf or hard of hearing through our CDHHE Network. We are connecting with families to provide encouragement, information and understanding regarding their child’s unique hearing status and ability to access language auditorily and visually. We have experts from the Center, contractors with our CDHHE Network and our partners from the St. Joseph Indiana Institute Corporation. Our expertise in specific areas as requested by families as they develop their Individual Family Service Plans (IFSP) blend together as families learn how to be their children’s first teachers and access the world around them. 

For more information on how to access our early intervention services contact us at cdhhenetwork@isdh.in.gov or 317-232-7349 or 855-875-5193 and ask for Cindy Lawrence or Michelle Coleman, CDHHE Network Lead.