Early Intervention (EI) Services
Early Intervention services at CBC begin as soon as possible after parents choose Auditory-Verbal Therapy and wish to enrol at the Centre. Families begin to receive guidance from their A-V Therapist (AVT) who helps answer questions and get them started. Families will receive individual A-V parent guidance sessions on a weekly basis. In addition there is a weekly Parent Infant Program (PIP) and weekly music therapy sessions.
The Early Intervention program comprises:
• Individual A-V therapy sessions
• Parent Infant Program (PIP)
• Pre-School Support Services
• Transition Planning and Support
• Parent Information Sessions
• Early Intervention Newsletter
• Audiology and Family Counsellor
• Weekly Music segment
PIP is our Parent Infant Program
The Cora Barclay Parent Infant Program runs every Friday during term time. The program is offered to families with children who are deaf or hard of hearing as well as to children with normal hearing.
PIP is a language rich family centred play group incorporating a program based on the SACSA framework.
It is coordinated by a qualified early child care worker who organises stimulating indoor and outdoor activities that aim to develop the children’s fine and gross motor skills and social interaction.
Parents organise fruit time and work as a team to pack up prior to a short group session. During this time children and parents join in with songs, show and tell, and stories before leaving.
Transition Planning and Support
A child’s entry to pre-school and later to primary school can be challenging and potentially stressful for any child and his/her parents. This can be even more challenging for a child who is deaf or hearing impaired. To help with this, the Centre provides transition planning for children enrolling in kindergarten and primary school. Support includes information and advice, counselling, familiarisation visits, introductions to therapists and teachers, and peer group support.
Parent Information Sessions
Throughout the year, the Centre provides Parent Information Sessions for families receiving Early Intervention services. This is an opportunity for parents to hear a range of professionals speak about different aspects of hearing impairment as well as giving them the chance to discuss their own experiences.
Early Intervention Newsletter
The Early Intervention Newsletter was introduced in October 2006 as a response to parents’ requests for more technical information, stories and advice about Auditory-Verbal Therapy and what is going on at the Centre and elsewhere that may be of interest to parents and carers of children who are deaf or hearing impaired. The Newsletter is edited by a parent and one of our AVT’s and has proven to be an outstanding success. Please call the Centre on 9267 9200 to receive a copy.
Audiology Services
The Centre has on-site audiology service for children in the Early Intervention program. The audiologist is a key member of our multi-disciplinary team and provides hearing testing, MAPping for children with cochlear implants, and professional advice to our AV Therapists and other team members. We believe that the close on-site collaboration of therapists and audiologists is ideal for identifying, diagnosing and solving listening and speech problems.
Music Program
Singing and music are essential elements of an AV program. Nursery rhymes and simple rhyming songs about everyday activities promote prosody (speech melody), language and listening skills in a fun and social way. In addition to singing and music being an integral part of individual parent guidance therapy sessions, the Centre has dedicated weekly music sessions.
