Carlena Lowell

SEI 513 Reading/Resource List

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Reading/Resource List
Carlena Lowell
SEI 513
Spring 2014












Carlena Lowell
SEI 513 Reading/Resource List
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Coaching/Early Intervention Teaming
Although I am a service coordinator, and not a primary service provider (PSP), I
am an integral part of an early intervention team. I need to understand the ins and outs
of the coaching model of early intervention, as well as early intervention teaming. The
PSPs use coaching during all of their home visits, as well as visits to early childhood
programs. I am often a familys first point of contact with CDS, and part of my
responsibilities as a service coordinator is to prepare the family for early intervention
services, in part by explaining the coaching approach to them during the initial referral
process. The following readings and resources have been valuable to me in terms of
this topic.
1. Hanft, B. E., Rush, D. D., & Sheldon, M. A. (2004). Coaching families and
colleagues in early childhood. Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes Publishing
Co., Inc.
This book does well giving an in depth introduction to coaching. It defines what
coaching is, as well as the process of it in relation to home and community settings,
group settings, and work settings. Hanft, Rush, & Sheldon (2004) provide templates for
many components of coaching, including but not limited to Coaching Follow-Up
Planning Tool, Coaching Worksheet, an Evaluation worksheet, and a General Coaching
Skills Rating Scale. This text also provides helpful scenarios to demonstrate coaching
in actions.
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2. Lucas, A. & Shaw, E. (2012). Informed clinical opinion (NECTAC Notes No. 28).
Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina, FPG Child Development
Institute, National Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center.
This NECTAC notes could also be described under the Regulations/Public Policy
section of this list; however, given that informed clinical opinion must be an early
intervention team decision, it is listed under this section. This paper answers the
following three questions: What does informed clinical opinion mean in the context of
Part C? How does informed clinical opinion affect determination of eligibility? Why is it
necessary to document informed clinical opinion? In answering the second question,
Lucas & Shaw (2012) describe the answer both in terms of the individual professional
and the team.
3. Rush, D. D. & Sheldon, M. L. (2011). The early childhood coaching handbook.
Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., Inc.
I was first introduced to this book in SEI 516 Seminar and Practicum in
Collaborative Consultation for Early Childhood. This is a book provides an updated
outline of coaching through an introduction of it, discussing the research on it, how to
use it, and strategies for learning it. It describes characteristics of effective coaches,
and how to coach families as well as teachers. Furthermore, the authors discuss
coaching in terms of professional development and future implications. Throughout the
book, Rush & Sheldon (2011) provide outlying boxes with things to reflect on, to
remember, and to practice.
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4. Sheldon, M. L. & Rush, D. D. (2013). The early intervention teaming handbook.
Baltimore, MD: Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., Inc.
The Early Intervention Teaming Handbook describes the primary service provider
approach to teaming in early intervention, as well as the research about it and preparing
for the team-based approach. In addition, Sheldon & Rush (2013) discuss how to write
functional Individualized Family Service Plan (IFSP) outcomes, and how to actually put
the PSP approach into effect. They outline coordinating joint visits and discuss
conducting team meetings. Finally, they describe the future of the PSP approach to
teaming. Similar to The Early Childhood Coaching Handbook, the authors provide
outlying boxed with things to reflect on, to remember, and to practice.
Regulations/Public Policy
Service coordination is bound by many regulations, both on the state and the
federal levels. This semester I dove into reading many sections of the following
resources, to gain a better understanding of my mandated responsibilities and to
understand where they came from; i.e. state law or federal law.
5. Early Intervention Program for Infants and Toddlers With Disabilities; Assistance
to States for the Education of Children With Disabilities; Final Rule and
Proposed Rule, 76 Federal Register 188 (28 September 2011).
In preparation for a presentation to the SEI 514 class on Eligibility Determination
for Children Ages Birth through Five in Maine, I read though much of the eligibility
determination parts of the federal regulations. While doing so, I also familiarized myself
with the sections that pertain specifically to my position as a service coordinator. This
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resource is the actual Federal Register, Vol. 76, No. 188, pertaining to early
intervention. It is critical for me to understand what I, and my early intervention team,
are bound to do by law. This is a resource I will never stop using so long as I am in this
field. Although all of these regulations are important, the section that I found most
instrumental to my current position and in relation to this semester is Subpart DChild
Find, Evaluations and Assessments, and Individualized Family Service Plans.

6. Maine Department of Education. (2013). Maine Unified Special Education
Regulation Birth to Age Twenty (05-071 Chapter 101). Retrieved from
http://www.maine.gov/doe/specialed/laws/chapter101.pdf
In preparation for the same presentation, I referred to the Maine Unified Special
Education Regulation Birth Age through Twenty (2013) a considerable amount as well
as the federal regulations. I find this document easy to navigate, as well as easy to
differentiate between state and federal regulations as state regulations are italicized.
Similar to the importance of understanding the federal regulations regarding early
intervention and specifically service coordination, it is critical to understand what is
expected of me legally on the state level.

7. Maine Department of Education. (2007). Guidance document early intervention
process for infants, toddlers and their families: Eligibility determination
IFSP development intervention planning. Retrieved from
http://ectacenter.org/~pdfs/topics/families/ME_Guide_1_17_07Final.pdf

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This document, put forth by the Maine Department of Education, provides an
introduction, the Maine Part C programs mission and model, guiding principles, and
process, and the parent/caregiver roles. It then goes on to provide, in rich detail, the
exact process of what happens after a referral is made to Child Development Services
(CDS) when a child is under three years old through the IFSP meeting, and then
discusses the natural environment. This document describes these processes not only
in laymans terms, but also the exact regulation language associated with each part of
the process.
Routines-Based Early Intervention
The following readings and resources have been pertinent to my work this
semester as CDS is implementing parts of Dr. Robin McWilliams Routines-Based Early
Intervention into their approach. This directly effects my position at CDS as I will be at
least implementing, and potentially training others to implement, the Routines-Based
Interviews (RBI). I practiced RBIs this semester, as a component of the October
training. The following readings and resources helped me along the way.
8. McWilliam, R. A. (2011). Implementing and preparing for home visits. Topics in
Early Childhood Special Education 31(4), 224-231. doi:
10.1177/0271121411426488
This article begins by describing home-based early intervention, and then the
RBI. It then goes onto to discuss what we have learned and what we need to learn
about home visiting, as well as for IFSP development. McWilliam (2011) provides Table
1. Guidelines for Effective Home- and Community-Based Early Intervention, which lists
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various resources that provide information on fourteen topics related to home- and
community-based early intervention (p. 227). This article also discusses how the RBI
can aid in preparing for successful home visits with families.
9. McWilliam, R. A. (2010). Routines-Based Early Intervention. Baltimore, MD: Paul
H. Brookes Publishing Co., Inc.
This book details Dr. Robin McWilliams Routines-Based Early Intervention
approach. The state of Maines CDS, Part C, is beginning to implement this approach
to early intervention. This book has become a staple of Part C offices statewide. It
outlines each step of the approach in detail including but not limited to intake,
completing ecomaps, assessment, the RBI, writing functional outcomes, deciding on
services, support-based home visiting, and collaborative consultation to child care. It
also provides an array of checklists to use with the various components, as well as a
collection of blank forms.
10. McWilliam, R. A., Casey, A. M., & Sims, J. (2009). The Routines-Based
Interview: A method for gathering information and assessing needs.
Infants & Young Children, 22(3), 224-233.
This peer-reviewed article describes the purpose of and methods of the RBI. It
outlines then describes in detail the six steps to completing an RBI which are beginning
statements, routines as the agenda, information from routines, satisfaction with routines,
concerns and priorities, and outcome writing. It also outlines then describes in detail the
ten key indicators of quality interviews. These are active listening, in-depth follow-up
questions, continuing the conversation, proactive questioning about child development,
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smart questions, nonverbal behavior, social milieu of routines, seeking evaluative and
interpretive opinions, managing the conversation, and empathizing. The article also
discusses preliminary evidence, and finally next steps and application to the field.