Cowra Early Childhood Intervention Nurturing Your Childs Potential earlyintervention@cowraspecialneeds.org.au
Term 3 2017
Dear Families,
It’s with great excitement that I can announce that NDIS pre planning for children has begun at Cowra Early Childhood Intervention. We were all very excited last Tuesday to receive our first list of children from the NDIA who have met access requirements for the National Disability Insurance Scheme. This list is what we have been waiting for and means we will begin contacting parents to begin their NDIS planning process.
Important points to keep in mind: This first list is families who have been previously receiving services from Cowra Early Childhood Intervention. New families will receive up to date correspondence as their intake progresses. Not all families are on the list- we will contact you when I have received your details from NDIA and we can then commence plan development. We will be receiving an updated list monthly. Some families are still waiting for their phone call or letter – this is ok. This is taking longer than expected due to the unique nature of early intervention services in NSW. Be patient. The Scheme has not only challenged our thinking but has offered us opportunities to help and support children and their families in many ways. One is the direct partnership with the NDIA as a provider of Early Childhood Early Intervention, Transitional Provider approach. This allows us to work with families to develop and submit plans to the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA). Our Early Childhood Partners are staff members, Michelle Hartgers and Sonny Turner. Another is to outreach and provide services to Grenfell and Canowindra. We welcome all our new families from these areas. Also, thank you to the Early Childhood Services, Schools and Community Health Services that have made us feel welcome in their community. Many families are inviting us to their child’s planning meeting with the Local Area Coordinators and have asked to have this meeting at our service. Our doors are always open if you would like to have your LAC planning meeting here. We have a room downstairs allowing for comfort and privacy so please feel free to use it. The choice is yours. Please don’t hesitate to contact me for if you have further questions. Kim Parris 1
Conversation Corner…………..
ome Turner and a BIG welc y nn So d an ly Da ni To r 2 new staff members, A BIG welcome to ou ren back to Jose Webber. rience, supporting child pe ex g in ch tea of s ar ye to EI with many many Toni and Sonny come with disabilities. experience nal Therapy paediatric tio pa cu Oc st va r he th Jose returns to EI wi Toni
Sonny
Dates for your Diary
Jose
ECI Professional Development
NDIS planning info meetings
NDIS advisor meetings
PlayGroup PLUS! Wednesdays 10am-11am
MyTime—Every Friday School terms.
Term Break –25th Sept-6th Oct
STEPtember– Thursday 21st Sept. Morning Tea fund raiser for Cerebral Palsy Alliance gold coin donation
« My NDIS First Plan Ready, workshops held at EI were a great success in helping families on the path to NDIS plans
« Kim, Michelle and Sonny are continuing to travel to Schools and Early Childhood Education Centres to give updates on Transitional Provider.
“I was referred to Cowra Early Intervention with my son when he was 1 and had just begun his special journey. The team have always been very friendly, supportive and informative. They get to know you and your child and come up with strategies to suit your situation. They listen to your concerns and frustrations, always with empathy and understanding. I am learning first hand that early intervention in the early childhood years is crucial to the best outcome for your little one & the team at Cowra are exactly that, apart of your team.” ………………………………..Katy Oliver 2
Roll call ! ………………. from the Teachers The National Disability Insurance Scheme is finally here and Early Childhood Early Intervention are proud to be partnering the scheme as Transitional Providers . Term 3 has been a very busy, but exciting one. I am pleased to be part of the ‘Transitional Provider’ team, as we partner with NDIS and continue to support families and children to develop the skills they need to take part in daily activities and achieve the best possible outcomes throughout their life. During Term 3 the TP team have been following up with our many new referrals and welcoming new children and families to our service. As every child is different, our focus is on providing supports that best suit the individual child according to their needs and circumstances. For some children, this may involve short-term intervention support and for others longer term support is needed. This is where the TP team come in …. For children needing short term support we will continue to provide intervention as required and for children who would benefit from longer term supports we will help families of children aged 0-6years to access the NDIS and complete a plan for ongoing support. During this time, we will continue to support children with the services they need to reach their potential. Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you want further information.
The important thing to remember is the early years are a critical time for learning and a little intervention early on can make a big difference later in life.
helle …….From Mic
It’s been a busy term adjusting to my new position. DIR Floortime has taken my approach to our young clients to a new high. Working with Jose has been an education in itself and we are able to pass great skills onto the parents. Play time on the floor interacting with our little people has resulted in an increase in engagement. Our parents are enjoying the experience and delighted with the way their child is interacting with them during their playtime. Working with the staff at Nurture one and Goodstart has been a rewarding experience enabling us to work together in providing for the needs of the child.
i n o T m …..fro
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…..………… from Joy
Transition to School Group As we move towards your child’s school Kindergarten orientation, our Transition to school groups will be combined into one group for term 4. Children who attended Transition to School groups in term 2 & 3 are invited to attend the combined group session on Thursdays starting the 12th of October through to the 30th of November, 2017. These sessions will start at 9.30 and finish at 10.30am. This small group format will complement kindergarten orientation as well as consolidate and boost the skills required for a smooth transition into Kindergarten. During term 4 Joy will be attending some of the orientations sessions at Cowra Public School and St. Raphael’s to support the children as they enter formal schooling. Unfortunately due to commitments with Cowra Riding for the Disabled, Joy will not be able to attend orientations at Mulyan Public School, as both are on a Wednesday. Information sharing meetings are currently being organised with all Cowra schools to facilitate planning for 2018. Transition to School groups at Yalbillinga will continue through to Thursday 30th of November. KINDERGARTEN ORIEN Cowra P.S Tuesdays9.30-11am 17/10
TATION 2017
Mulyan P.S Parent info- Tues 17/ 10 6pm
Mondays –
Kindy rooms
9.00-11.00am
Wednesdays-
11/9
4/9 + parent info
24/10
This term has been a very busy one and I have thoroughly enjoyed my new position here at Early Intervention. I have attended sessions at Goodstart and Yalballinga and would like to thank the wonderful staff at these centres for their help. I’ve been travelling out to Grenfell PreSchool to meet the staff and children. I have enjoyed working in this community and bringing our service to them. Finally, getting to know the children who attend our centre has been a pleasure and I look forward to working with everyone next term. Bye for now Sonny
….. f rom Sonn y 4
31/10 7/11
St Edwards C.S
9.30-10.45am
18/9
18/10
Break
25/10 9.30-11.10am 1/11session + Parent info, bring recess
16/10 23/10
St Raphaels C.S Parent info - Tues 5/9 6.30pm Kindy rooms Thursdays 1.30-3.00pm 14/9 21/09 Break 12/10 19/10 26/10 2/11 Parent info–6.30pm Thursday 16/11
Therapists Tips & Tricks ………………………….from Lucy, You can build your child’s vocabulary and use of words by using the names of objects in a simple way. Repeat, repeat, repeat these single words in short phrases.
…………………….Always been a great family favourite Book recommendation The joy of Michael Rosen’s 1989 story, We’re Going on a Bear Hunt, is its joyous simplicity. Four children head out on a ramble, chanting a silly song about hunting a bear: they get a bit wet, a bit muddy and a bit cold, and finally a bit scared. But, phew, it all turns out fine in the end.
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…………...………………….Katelyn
&
Jose
How can Occupational Therapy help my child? As the school holidays are once again fast approaching, it’s time to start thinking about how to keep the kids entertained over the holiday break. Often the easiest way to keep them quiet and occupied is by setting them up with a device, whether that be a phone, an iPad, or something else. While this is a very effective way to keep the kids under wraps, research is showing that screen time also reduces attention span, fine motor skills, and can even delay sleep by several hours each night. So, if you find yourself reaching for the phone or the iPad over the school holidays, beat the negative impacts of screen time and help the kids develop their coordination, strength and balance through having them watch, and then copy, these videos. ………...Have fun!
Minecraft Kids Yoga (Youtube). Any videos under the category of “gross motor” on GoNoodle.com Katelyn
Is your Child having difficulty with? Fine Motor abilities – Reach and grasp, writing and colouring. Using a pencil and scissors Posture and Positioning – Specialised seating, Modifying the environment General Coordination – Gross and fine motor skills, Balance, Body position in space and joint position awareness. Sensory Processing – Concentrating or socializing due to sensory processing difficulties such as auditory processing, vestibular processing, visual processing, oral sensory processing or tactile processing. Self Esteem – Confidence, reduce frustration and self concept Play skills – Playing with toys and other children, doing puzzles, playing games, drawing and turn taking. Self care – Maximum independence for dressing feeding bathing and hygiene Social Skills – Cooperation, communicating ideas, satisfaction gained from interactions Cognitive skills – attention and concentration, problem solving and planning Visual Perceptual skills – Seeing, interpreting and remembering shapes (eg number) form sequences (eg for spelling) relationship of forms (eg to reduce revered writing). If you feel that your child is having some difficulty in any of the above areas or in their general ability to cope at school it would be suggested that they are assessed by an Occupational Therapist to see how you could help address these difficulties. If you would like some more information about this or feel that your child would benefit from an Occupational Therapy Assessment please discuss this with your Key Worker. Jose
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………...Community Connections g w ridin e h t t a M RDA
Pearl @
STEPtember Morning Tea. This month we are taking part in the Steptember 10,000 step challenge. The aim is to take 10,000 steps a day and to raise money for people with cerebral palsy along the way. Every dollar raised helps to provide vital equipment, therapy and services to children and adults living with cerebral palsy.
To support this worthy cause, please come along to our morning tea and enjoy a cuppa and a chat. Where: Cowra Early Childhood Intervention 17 Berowra St Time: Thursday 21st Sept 10:00 – 11:00am Cost: Gold coin donation Please make sure you have checked out and like our Face Book page. We are trying to use this as a means of communicating news, information and events to everyone …………..Search:
Cowra Early Childhood Intervention So spread the word and join us on our Face Book page!
Cowra Early Childhood Intervention Team Around the Child Helping children to communicate, socialise, learn, move and play. Help starts here….. NDIS supports and advice Speech Pathologists Occupational Therapists Developmental educators and teachers Family support and inclusion services Transition and orientation to school Supported playgroups
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