Interview with Jeanne

“I work in a home-based early intervention program in a large urban city (San Francisco, California) with families of divers socioeconomically, language and cultural backgrounds (1 Indonesian, 2 Chinese, 3 Mexican, 1 German). I serve 14-18 babies with disabilities from birth to 36 months, and their families. I see 3-4 children individually each day for 1-2 hour home visits. The primary goal of the program and our legal mandate is to provide family-centered early intervention services for babies and their families in natural environments driven by the IFSP (Individualized Family Service Plan) document and process. Parents are encouraged to be active team participants in the educational process, functioning both as planners and teachers for their children.

Services are typically delivered during visits in a family's home, or other natural environment such as a childcare setting, with parent/caregiver participation. I provide age appropriate individualized direct instruction to children. Play activities, social interactions and daily routines with familiar adults are used as the context and basis for learning. In addition, I provide the parent/caregiver with the information, demonstration, coaching and support needed for them to implement effective learning strategies with the child. This recognizes that the important people who are in a child's daily life can be most effective in supporting the child's learning.”