Are you interested in joining other early care and education professionals who desire to increase their knowledge and skills related to serving young children with disabilities in inclusive settings?
Partnerships for Inclusion is pleased to provide a variety of options for ongoing support related to early childhood inclusion! You are invited to attend Regional Inclusion Connections meetings, ASK PFI a question related to inclusion, view Resources to support inclusion, and participate in a discussion forum about inclusion.
Meetings
Regional Inclusion Connections meetings are now held four times a year in six regions. The first meeting is a face-to-face meeting and other meetings will utilize technology to stay connected. Each meeting will be facilitated by a PFI staff person and focuses on evidence based practices and research to support the inclusion of young children with disabilities and their families, as well as topics or interests of participants.
Participants at previous meetings included community college faculty members, technical assistance supervisors, technical assistance providers, early childhood program directors, early intervention service providers, public school staff members, family support personnel, and child care health consultants but participation is not limited to these roles or positions. Participants of Regional Inclusion Connections meetings can receive contact credit hours (CHC) approved by the NC Division of Child Development.
Join us at one of the upcoming Regional Inclusion Connections meetings!
Regional Inclusion Connections Webinars
Please contact the PFI staff person listed for each meeting for additional information or to register to attend or participate.
For more information about webinars please click here, RICs and Webinars.
West
Northwest
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
12:00 PM – 2:00 PM
Webinar
Contact: Brenda Dennis
Southwest
Friday, December 4, 2009
9:00 AM – 11:00 AM
Webinar
Contact: Libby Wilson
Central
East Central
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
9:00 AM to 11:00 AM
Webinar
Contact: Carla Fenson
West Central
Thursday, November 19, 2009
9:00 AM to 1l:00 AM
Webinar
Contact: Rhodus Riggins, Jr.
East
Northeast
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
9:00 AM – 1l:00 AM
Webinar
Contact: Sandy Steele
Southeast
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Webinar
Contact: Susan Deans
Minutes from Previous Meetings
West
Central
East
Ask PFI
NEW Including children with typical development by Pat Wesley from Alltogether Now! Vol.11, No.2 Spring 2005
Previous Ask PFI Articles
Developing Skills in Natural Ways: Why is it important to embed instruction within naturally occurring activities? by Libby Wilson from AllTogetherNow – Vol. 11, No. 3. Fall 2005
Resources
Inclusion Essentials
PFI often is asked about essential early childhood inclusion resources that a program should have or be able to access. Here’s s few at the top of our list!
Early Childhood Inclusion (April 2009)
Through the efforts of the National Professional Development Center on Inclusion, the Division for Early Childhood (DEC) and the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) developed and adopted a joint position statement on the definition of early childhood inclusion. This statement offers a definition of inclusion and recommendations for how the statement can be used by families, practitioners, administrators, policy makers, and others to improve early childhood services. To download the full statement, go to http://community.fpg.unc.edu/resources/articles/Early_Childhood_Inclusion
Developmentally Appropriate Practice in Early Childhood Programs Serving Children from Birth through Age 8, 3rd edition (2009) by Carol Copple & Sue Bredekamp
Based on the research about development, learning, and effective practices as well as professional knowledge about teaching intentionally, this book describes the principles to guide decision making in early childhood programs. Chapters describe children from birth through age 8 with many examples of appropriate practice for infants/toddler, preschool, kindergarten, and primary levels. A useful addition to this edition is a supplementary CD containing readings on key topics and video examples depicting developmentally appropriate practice in action.
ISBN: 978-1-928896-64-7
Publisher: NAEYC
http://sales.naeyc.org/Itemdetail.aspx?Stock_No=375&Category=
DEC Recommended Practices in Early Intervention/Early Childhood Special Education (2005) by Susan Sandall, Mary Louise Hemmeter, Mary McLean, & Barbara Smith
The Recommended Practices, based on research evidence and shared beliefs, provide guidance on effective practices to improve development and learning outcomes for young children with disabilities and their families. Guidance is provided for direct services (assessment, child-focused practices, family-based practices, interdisciplinary models, and technology applications) and indirect supports (policies, procedures, and systems change and personnel preparation) plus real life examples and practical tips for implementation. Other useful features include checklists for parents and administrators and an annotated list of relevant resources.
ISBN 1570353530
Publisher: Division of Early Childhood
http://www.dec-sped.org/Store/Recommended_Practices
An Activity-Based Approach to Intervention, 3rd edition (2004) by Kristi Pretti-Frontczak & Diane Bricker
This book describes an intervention approach that links assessment, goal development, and evaluation processes, and embeds learning opportunities that address functional skills into children’s daily activities. Chapters explain in detail the conceptual framework that underlies activity-based intervention and how to apply the approach. To support application, many examples are included.
ISBN 1-55766-736-5
Publisher: Brookes Publishing Company
http://www.brookespublishing.com/store/books/pretti-frontczak-7365/index.htm
Consultation in Early Childhood Settings (2005) by Virginia Buysse & Patricia Wesley
Interventions for young children with disabilities are more effective when the adults involved form collaborative partnerships. This practical handbook describes the skills needed to function as an effective consultant to early care and education providers of children from birth through age 5. The framework of an 8-stage model is described step-by-step including key tasks at each stage, critical considerations for consultant and consultee, strategies for improving communication, and a “What If” section that addresses potential problems and solutions.
ISBN 1557667748
Publisher: Brookes Publishing Company
http://www.brookespublishing.com/store/books/buysse-7748/index.htm
Additional PFI Resources
Inclusion Talk
What is Inclusion Talk?
This discussion forum provides an opportunity to exchange ideas on topics and issues related to early childhood inclusion. You can respond to a topic posed by PFI, respond to comments of other posters, and pose your own topics for discussion. We invite you to share your professional early childhood experiences - lessons learned, successes, challenges, and strategies and resources to address challenges posed by other users. Also, you may share relevant upcoming events in your community.
PFI Inclusion Topics
To read comments on any of the PFI Inclusion Support topic areas, click on the link below. You will be able to open a new comment section or reply to others who have already posted.
