Therapy & Services
Are you concerned with a child’s movement, play, language, feeding skills or medical diagnosis?
Anyone may refer a child for developmental screening—Holly Ridge Center is here to answer your questions and address your concerns.
FAMILY RESOURCE COORDINATION
- Initial developmental inquiry and telephone interview to help determine if further evaluation is need and to obtain input about you concerns and expectations for your child.
- Ongoing resource for obtaining and coordinating community services.
- Assistance in completing applications for SSI, Medicaid and other funding sources.
- Information about parental rights under the Washington State Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA), Part C.
OCCUPATIONAL & PHYSICAL THERAPY
Play is the primary way children learn and develop. Body senses of position, balance and touch are basic for learning to move and play. Some children need help in learning to combine these senses with what they see and hear, in order to better interact with their world.
As Occupational and Physical Therapists, our job is to help you to help your child learn:
- Movement skills
- Playing skills
- Using eyes and hands together
- Self-care skills of eating, dressing and toileting.
VERBAL INTERACTIONS
Holly Ridge utilizes a “total communication” approach to learning which includes verbal interactions with both peers and adults. We have found, and research supports, that the exposure to sign language at a very young age facilitates the acquisition of spoken language skills.
SPEECH/LANGUAGE THERAPY
Development of communication skills is critical for all children. Learning to understand and use language, at any level, fosters your child’s relationships with others.
Speech therapy can be provided individually or in small group sessions to offer peer modeling and interaction opportunities. Speech services can also be provided through a music class called “Language and Movement through Music.”
Speech-Language Pathologists and Speech-Language Pathology Assistants aid you in helping your child learn and develop:
- Joint Attention Skills
- Turn Taking Skills
- Pre-linguistic Symbolic Play
- Auditory Comprehension
- First Words
- Early Grammar
AUTISM SERVICES/HIGH FIVE
When a child has a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder, additional autism specific services are available. Services vary depending on child and family needs, and parent training and involvement is critical. Service begins in the home environment. Childcare consultation and small group services are also available.
SPECIAL INSTRUCTION
Special Instruction services are available in a variety of settings including your home, childcares, or within parent-child playgroups at Holly Ridge Center.
Parent-child playgroups are designed to provide quality time learning through play.
- Groups are small in size
- The teacher-child ratio is 1 to 5 or less
Generally, our “Little Tykes” playgroup is for toddlers 12 months to 2 years and meets once a week. Our developmental playgroup sessions are for children 2-3 years of age and meet twice a week.
CLINICAL NURSE SPECIALIST
Our understanding of your child’s medical history and related needs is crucial to assisting you and your child. The Clinical Nurse Specialist may help you and your family through a variety of services, including ongoing resource for accessing community services, information and guidance in dealing with health related issues and early intervention, nutrition/feeding/growth concerns in coordination with pediatric nutritionist, reviewing immunizations records and parent support services.
SOCIAL WORK & BEHAVIOR SPECIALIST
The Social Worker and Mental Health Specialist are concerned with the wellbeing of you and your family as you face the many physical, mental, and emotional challenges of raising and caring for a child with special needs. They may assist you with information regarding community based counseling and other supports, provide counseling in supporting your child with special needs, parent training to manage behavior concerns, and consult with childcare to help manage behaviors in that setting.
DEVELOPMENTAL PEDIATRICS
An assessment from our developmental pediatrician may be recommended as a part of the initial evaluation process or as questions about your child’s developmental status occur. A developmental pediatrician can rule out or confirm specific diagnoses and/or refer children for further medical/psychological testing. This specialist provides valuable input to staff about current medical status and therapy options appropriate for your child and has a potential role in long-term planning of your child’s program.
DEVELOPMENTAL PEDIATRICS
An assessment from our developmental pediatrician may be recommended as a part of the initial evaluation process or as questions about your child’s developmental status occur. A developmental pediatrician can rule out or confirm specific diagnoses and/or refer children for further medical/psychological testing. This specialist provides valuable input to staff about current medical status and therapy options appropriate for your child and has a potential role in long-term planning of your child’s program.
CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY
A Clinical Psychologist can provide testing to aid in diagnosis and ongoing service planning. A variety of assessment tools are used in obtaining your child’s strengths, areas of concern, and learning styles.
FEEDING EVALUATION
Speech/Language Pathologist can conduct oral-motor and feeding evaluations when feeding is an issue. This includes a review of medical history and food intake, evaluation of the oral-motor structure, and the child’s typical eating patterns. Families are provided with practical solutions to feeding issues. If needed, feeding therapy can be ongoing.
FEEDING GROUP
For children with ongoing feeding issues who are over 18 months of age, a small feeding group can be an option. This group meets once a week and includes exploration of food and a wide variety of food textures, and includes ongoing parent participation.
NUTRITION CONSULTATION
Diet and nutrition are key elements in your child’s growth. The Registered Dietitian provides coordinated consultation to your family regarding child growth and dietary intake issues. Consultation services include input from other members of your child’s team, so suggestions can be tailored to individual needs.
EARLY HEAD START HOME VISITS
Children who qualify for Early Intervention services may also qualify for Early Head Start services through Holly Ridge Center, depending on income level criteria level and family needs. EHS Home Visitors come to each family’s home once a week, bringing developmentally-appropriate ideas for play and learning, help for accessing other services in the community and information for health and safety.
SERVICE LOCATION OPTIONS
The Infant Toddler Program strives to provide early intervention services in the child’s natural environment. Services often occur in the family home or in the child’s childcare setting. Services may also be provided individually or in a group setting at one of our integrated site locations.
Early childhood special educators conduct community-based, integrated developmental playgroups in Kitsap and North Mason County locations. Parents, along with FRCs, will decide what setting works best for their family. And know that whatever is initially decided can be changed based on child and family needs.