Early Intervention

All costs of the Early Intervention Program are covered by federal and state taxes through the federal Medical Assistance program. North Dakota has a “waiver” that allows children who are eligible for Developmental Disabilities programming and Early Intervention to qualify for Medical Assistance regardless of income or assets. Families do have the option of paying for Early Intervention Services with their own funds.

If you have concerns about your child’s development, you can call the Early Intervention programs to talk about your child and possibly schedule an evaluation or screening. In addition, you may want to schedule an appointment with your child’s physician.

Learn more about developmental milestones for infants and toddlers here.

Home visits are held during the family’s routines. These are times and activities such as waking up, eating, playing at home, and going places. You and your Early Interventionist will talk about your family routines, and decide how much your child participates, how much can they do them self and how they communicate. This will lead to programming that is meaningful to you and supports your child’s development.

Research has indicated that parent/caregiver participation is the key to a successful early intervention program. Children learn best from parents and caregivers in natural environments where numerous learning opportunities occur daily throughout the child’s regular routines and activities.

Infants or toddlers under the age of 3 who have developmental delays in the area(s) of: language, cognitive, fine motor, gross motor, social/emotional, or self-help skills. We also serve those with a medical diagnosis that is associated with a high risk for developmental delays.

Eligibility for Anne Carlsen Early Intervention is based on a comprehensive developmental evaluation that is completed by a Speech/Language Pathologist, Physical Therapist, Social Worker, Occupational Therapist, and/or Special Education professional. A child with a high-risk condition may be found automatically eligible for Early Intervention, but a developmental evaluation will be done to determine each child’s unique strengths and needs.

Anne Carlsen Early Intervention is an infant development service in North Dakota providing home-based, family-focused services at no cost to families. We provide:

• Free developmental evaluations completed by Speech/Language Pathologists, Occupational Therapists, and/or Special Education Professionals
• Individual program planning
• Lending Library- toys, resources, and adaptive equipment
• Parent Support
• Home programming including specialized consultations provided by Early Intervention staff
• Information and referral to other services if needed
• Transition planning and coordination for Early Childhood Special Education, preschools, and other services after age three
• Consultation with childcare providers, grandparents, and others
  • Anne Carlsen Early Intervention offers home-based services where professionals and parents/caregivers work together as partners to help the child learn and participate as independently as possible in their everyday life. This approach focuses on the whole child and family rather than a specific area of development because development in children does not occur in separate areas. We empower parents as their child’s first and best teachers and therapists.

Our services are provided:

• In the child’s home
• Childcare centers (Visits are held during family routines)
• Grandparents’ homes
• Parks, playgrounds
• We can even provide support by accompanying families to medical appointments
• Other natural environments within the community

Anne Carlsen is dedicated to meeting the needs of the whole child, which includes connecting families with additional resources and services. Children who are under three-years of age who are evaluated for direct therapy services will be referred to Early Intervention services, which can be accessed through the Department of Human Services. This may provide additional opportunities to support their child’s development, as well as connect them with other services such as respite care or medical assistance. When Anne Carlsen Early Interventionists and direct therapists treat the same child, the family and child will benefit from the ongoing collaboration across all of the child’s natural environments.