What is Child Find?
Child Find is a district process to identify children birth-21 suspected of having a delay or disability to evaluate and identify the need for Special Education and Related Services. Early identification of disabilities assists parents, students, and schools in the design of appropriate educational services and supports.
What is Child Find Screening?
Screening is a free check of your child鈥檚 development that will include:
- Large muscle development (gross motor skills)
- Eye-hand coordination (fine motor skills)
- Communication skills
- Concepts (cognitive skills)
- Social/emotional skills
- Self-help skills
What is the purpose of a Child Find Screening?
The purpose of the screening is to identify any factors that may interfere with your child鈥檚 learning, growth, and development. The screening is also provided to help parents identify their child鈥檚 strengths and weaknesses and provide home suggestions and/or further evaluation if needed in any area of concern.
What happens during a Child Find Screening?
During the screening your child may stack small blocks, cut with scissors, draw, count, name colors, jump and will have fun! Following the screening, a trained professional will talk with you about the results of the screening. You will have the opportunity to ask any questions about your child鈥檚 development. You may be given home suggestions, referred to an evaluation team for further testing, or be scheduled to have skills re-screened at a later date. The screening process usually takes about 45 minutes to an hour.
Who is eligible to be screened before kindergarten?
Any child, ages 3-5 years old, who lives in 番茄影视 School District. All school districts within Washington state have Child Find screenings available. If your family is living in a temporary situation, you may contact the district where you are staying to attend a screening.
If your child is younger than the age of three, early support is provided by the Opportunity Council or Whatcom Center for Early Learning. Parents can call the Single-Entry-Access-to-Services (SEAS) line for more information at (360) 715-7485. (https://www.seaswhatcom.org/).
For more information and to schedule a screening, please fill out the form below or contact:聽Special Education at 360-676-6470, ext. 4408, or email聽 BPS.Preschool@番茄影视Schools.org