2024 Early On Conference - Ripples to Waves: The Power of Early Intervention

Childcare is the natural environment for many infants and toddlers with disabilities. However, supporting children in this setting can be challenging. This session will provide participants with insight in how to build collaborative relationships with childcare centers and apply evidence-based practices of coaching and relationship-based care in this unique setting. Early On providers will share their experiences, struggles, and tips!

Professionals who work with young children and their families who have experienced trauma are at increased risk for secondary traumatic stress and burnout. This session explores the signs of compassion fatigue, current research, and offers practical tools to support and encourage wellness and mitigate burnout that is implementable in everyday routines and early intervention related settings.

This session will focus on creating a space within your Early On Program to include Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC). It will help provide tips and strategies to think about how to include AAC into your team conversations, how to provide training supports and infrastructure to grow capacity in learning about AAC, as well as incorporating it into parent coaching and home visiting. This session will also touch on topics including why robust AAC can be used at an early age, and how to use strengths from other providers to enhance AAC within home visits.

honoring the many roles we have.

Do you hear all the time "All they will eat is chicken nuggets and French fries!" Are you wondering if it is a sensory or oral motor issue? When is it time to talk with the family about moving towards medical intervention? We will discuss those questions and provide fun and unconventional ways to entice little ones to try new foods!

Have you ever wondered if a child has a vision impairment? Have you been told they don’t, but still wished you had strategies that might help them? This session will explain what babies see at particular stages of development, signs that a child may have a VI, and considerations for designing your tools, materials, and environment in a way that is accessible to everyone.

Writing high-quality Individualized Family Service Plans (IFSP) can be overwhelming. This session aims to support attendees by providing structured training examples, guidance document ideas, and organizational tips. Research-based tools for developing and assessing IFSPs and introducing engaging techniques to design effective IFSP development and implementation training will be shared. This session will help teams appreciate the value of documenting a family's and child's story, beyond just completing required paperwork.

Developing emotional competence begins at birth. Infants can feel comfort or distress and those feelings become more refined and complicated as they grow. Emotional development encompasses regulation, attachment, temperament, identity formation, and emotional expression within the context of one’s culture. In partnership with families, caregivers can nurture a child’s emotional learning and development with warm, nurturing, culturally responsive practices during daily interactions.

This session will guide Early On professionals on how to have the difficult conversation with parents when their child is showing symptoms of ASD, focusing on neurodiversity-affirming language. The target audience is geared towards Early On Part C service coordinators, MMSE providers and MMSE evaluators. Participants will learn how to explain early signs of autism to parents, the difference between a school-based eligibility of ASD vs. a medical diagnosis of ASD. Participants will learn methods, tools and processes on how to determine ASD eligibility in children 0-3 in Early On and as they transition to Part B services.

This session will provide an overview of the current Michigan Mandatory Special Education Birth to Three Eligibility Guidance documents developed by the Michigan Department of Education Offices of Special Education and Great Start (now MiLEAP) with the assistance of stakeholder/field perspectives and input.

Are you new to early intervention and don’t know what caregiver coaching is? Are you familiar with caregiver coaching, but need a refresher? Join us for an introductory session on the characteristics of caregiver coaching and how these evidence based coaching practices can build the capacity of caregivers and promote child learning within the context of daily routines and activities.

Attendees will gain insights into the procedures and steps involved in service implementation within the child care setting. Drawing from South Lyon Community School's experience over the past year, participants will delve into the implementation and refinement of resources. They will leave with resources to distribute to child care providers, materials for the Early On team, and strategies for communicating with parents and maintaining their critical involvement in the IFSP process.

Discover the basics of Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) in early intervention. Learn modeling strategies, explore AAC systems, and gain practical tips for home use. Engage in hands-on exploration to enhance your skills in supporting children's communication needs. Join us to unlock communication potential in early intervention!

As an early intervention provider, it is critical you are able to identify feeding difficulties to optimally support children’s engagement in meaningful routines. This session will discuss the red flags of eating and feeding difficulties in infants and toddlers, key team members for supporting specialized feeding needs, as well as simple strategies for promoting positive eating routines and relationships.

Discipline is a deeply personal decision for all families. This session will explore multiple ways to approach conversations about values, attitudes, and strategies families are using and their effectiveness. Through discussing the intersectionality of race, class, privilege, and identity in conversations about discipline, participants will leave with practical surveys, handouts, scripts, videos, and resources to strengthen their professional toolkits.

Daily, we encourage our parents to set aside their phones and play with their children, but sometimes they need help with new ideas on how to play with them. Some parents also need the "why we need to sit and play with them". This session will cover all of that AND provide strategies to use immediately at your next home visit!

In this session you will learn about Michigan's Early Childhood Home Visiting system. Participants will learn how Early On works collaboratively with Home Visiting to ensure that all children are accepted, included and have a sense of belonging across all natural environments. We will share insights and suggestions from parents who have experienced both home visiting and Early On services.

This session explores evidence-based hearing testing and early intervention practices for children birth to three. Topics include objective screening importance, equipment troubleshooting, and EHDI program effectiveness. Participants will gain practical tools to enhance clinical practice and improve language outcomes for children with hearing loss.

This presentation will review existing research on the influence of father involvement on the health and well-being of young children and families. Research on the where, when, why, and how to include fathers in early childhood spaces will be described. We will reflect on barriers to father engagement and discuss concrete ways to include fathers in early childhood spaces.

Children, families, and their daily routines are the focus of an IFSP. Outcomes that are participation-based, family driven, and functional with supportive intervention strategies that can be implemented by families and caregivers are the fundamental backbone of Early On and early intervention. This workshop will guide Early On providers to create functional outcomes that are meaningful and relevant to families.

The ability of parents/caregivers to spend time with their children and provide them with tools that support their literacy and language development can depend on the resources available. Families with fewer resources may face barriers to accessing early literacy materials. This session will discuss how our team is providing literacy libraries and correlating activities to encourage literacy and language development.

Take a journey with SEMS to explore how family/school/agency relationships begin from differing points of view and how those points of view, interests, priorities, and communication styles can impact relationships and the steps needed to prevent or resolve conflict. Participants will practice viewing situations from a team perspective remaining focused on the student and how to address concerns by reframing them.

A mother’s firsthand experience of the successes of early introduction of Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) devices with the help of Early On advocates. From meltdowns and removal from daycare to asking for hugs and regulating her own emotions; an explosion of growth occurred with continued use of AAC including word approximations, receptive language and overall happiness.

Cerebral/Cortical Visual Impairment (CVI) is the leading cause of visual impairment in children therefore early detection is critical. Learn about the role of the teachers of students with visual impairments and orientation and mobility specialists play in this process. Gather information about vision screening tools that are available to early intervention specialists and how to quickly and effectively use them during this hands-on session.

This session provides participants with practical inclusive strategies to enhance their early intervention supervisory relationship. This training aims to provide both supervisors and direct service professionals with real-world supervisory examples. Additionally, it delves into the dynamics of power and relationships within reflective supervision through the RIOS model and the Guiding Principles for Diversity informed Reflective Supervision.

In 2023, Governor Whitmer launched PreK for All, a bold initiative to expand access to free PreK for four-year-old’s across Michigan by 2027. Join us as Dr. Lafayette-Lause, MiLEAP's Project Director for PreK for All, navigates us through the recommendations of the PreK for All Action Team’s Roadmap regarding the inclusion of preschoolers with disabilities alongside their typically developing peers.

This presentation highlights opportunities for learning and research gained through the 2022 Early On Center for Higher Education Faculty Grant. The purpose of this project is to build knowledge and experiences utilizing mindfulness practices to develop sustainable and research-based programming for young children in early intervention, as well as their families and professional support teams. Highlights of interventions used with children by professionals and family members are provided, as well as a summary of data collected of the impact of mindfulness interventions as reported by professionals and families.

Language Equality and Acquisition for Deaf Kids (LEAD-K) is a national effort to provide language acquisition resources for parents of children 0-5 who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing (DHH). Michigan passed its LEAD-K bill into law as Public Act 256. This session will provide information on the requirements of this law and how Michigan will implement it.

Come learn the importance of healthy Tummy Time in relationship to an infant's overall development. Tummy Time can be difficult for some infants; it's hard work! This workshop will focus on making it more enjoyable for infants as well as for their caregivers. Participants will learn strategies that they can share with families as they support motor and sensory development.

This session will inform coaching teams, administrators, and parents/caregivers through an interactive discussion of a research process that can be used to identify barriers, supports, and potential actions when addressing eating, feeding, and swallowing needs in Early On. Participants will learn a process that can be used to identify gaps in service, existing strengths, potential resources, and actions.

Inclusive classroom practices are essential to students' growth and achievement. This session explores strategies and approaches for fostering an inclusive atmosphere where children from diverse backgrounds and skill levels can grow and learn alongside peers. By guaranteeing a thorough approach to inclusion, the significance of creating a sense of belonging, and collaboration, working with families and other professionals is highlighted.

Engage with a panel of three of Michigan's Master Mentor Coaches as they share their reflections on supporting early intervention staff in using a caregiver coaching interaction style through the use of master mentor coaching sessions, book studies, coaching logs, and more. The presenters will also discuss ideas to support team implementation and monitor the fidelity of caregiver coaching practices.

After identifying gaps in access to high-tech Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) for Early On families, we provided AAC devices throughout Ingham County during the 2023-24 school year. Nearly 50 children were supported in gaining access to AAC as well as providing coaching to families on implementation. This presentation will discuss identification and support of these children through their AAC journey and transition into school-based services.

Authentic communication is a human right for all. Figuring out how to implement communication and literacy supports when a student has a difference in hearing and/or vision status can be difficult. This session will focus on growing your skill set of inclusive practices and family engagement to support literacy.

This session will introduce the child welfare system and support an understanding of Child Protective Services (CPS) investigations and how Early On can best engage with families. We will cover topics including Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA), Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), who is referred to Early On, barriers to working with families involved in the child welfare system, and the Uninterrupted Scholars Act. The session will offer tips and opportunities for group discussions on best practices for engaging families who are navigating the child welfare system. The session will utilize PowerPoint, video clips, and interactive activities.

This workshop will explore the impact of early interactions on shaping a child's future functioning. This training will discuss attachment theory, intersection of culture, relationships, and early development. Participants will gain insights into how secure attachments create resilience, empathy, and self-regulation in children. This workshop supports participants with tools to cultivate nurturing connections that promote thriving in children and families.

Working with infants and toddlers is rewarding, but it can also sometimes be challenging. This session will use Pyramid Model strategies to discuss how caregivers can use reflection to better understand child behavior. We will look at the many influences affecting behavior and explore how to support caregivers in reframing thoughts to better respond to challenging situations.

This session will discuss how to balance simplicity and complexity in adult language models. We will present research from our lab, including a study focused on how caregivers of children in Early On feel about simplified language input. This information will help early interventionists make evidence-based decisions when coaching caregivers in how best to support their children’s language development.

This session  explores attachment styles' impact on development, emphasizing the importance of fostering healthy relationships with young children. Tailored for early interventionists, it equips participants with practical tools and insights. Through diverse methods including discussion and reflection, attendees will learn to recognize secure attachments and address challenges. Drawing from reputable sources, this session facilitates a deeper understanding of attachment dynamics and their role in early childhood settings.

The purpose of this session is to share the findings from a recent study funded by Early On which explored early intervention specialists' self-efficacy and their perceived level of preparedness working in the field with infants and toddlers, birth to three, with disabilities and their families.

Through a combination of current research and personal storytelling from the perspective of an Early On program alumnus, this session will discuss the importance of doing our “individual work” as well as joining together in collective action to make our world a safer, more equitable and inclusive place for all.