TRENTON – Seeing the changes in the lives of young children is the best part of an early interventionist’s job.
Pictou County Early Intervention is a program designed to help children, from birth to school age, who are behind in some way catch up to their peers.
“Some of the children have autism, some cerebral palsy. Some might just be premature and delayed in some way,” explained Lisa D. Smith. “If there’s a concern that something’s not happening, like the child isn’t walking before the age of two, they’re not able to hold a crayon or their speech is behind, that’s where we come in.”
Early interventionists work to catch the kids up to their peers in five key areas including fine motor skills, gross motor skills, communication, self-help skills and cognitive skills.
“We do individual program work to help them reach their maximum potential by the time they reach school-age,” Smith said.
And that’s the most rewarding part of the job, added Nancy Taylor, an early interventionists. “It’s so rewarding to take a child from where they’re starting to where they leave after service is over, when they’re ready to start school,” Taylor said. “And the parents are so appreciative of the service.”
Parents often notice massive changes in their child’s development, Smith added. “Most parents tell us their children wouldn’t be where they are without our help,” she said.
Done in the child’s home, the program is free and completely confidential. Parents don’t need to wait for a referral from an outside organization – Early Intervention can do an assessment to see if the child would fit into the program.
Currently, there are three early interventionists helping 35 children in the county, with more kids on a waiting list.
The program depends partially on donations to operate and fund the positions for two of the interventionists, Smith added.
February is Early Intervention Month, and the organization took the opportunity to arrange several events around the county to celebrate, including a pre-school skate at the Trenton Rink on Wednesday.
Anyone interested in finding out more about Pictou County Early Intervention or set up a referral can call 752-1016.
