Special Education Program Overview

All school districts are required to provide services for students with disabilities who are three to five years of age. Children with special needs are served through a continuum of program options in the least restrictive environment appropriate for the child. Specialized instruction and intervention services are provided for each child in accordance with a team developed, Individualized Education Program (IEP). Related services include speech and language therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy and transportation. Itinerant services in an early childhood education setting, daycare or the child’s home are provided when appropriate.

Eligibility for the Special Education Preschool Program requires that children:

  • Are three to five years of age and not yet compulsory school age
  • Demonstrate a disability or exhibit significant developmental delay

Students with special needs demonstrate documented deficits in one or more of the following areas: communication, motor, social-emotional/ behavioral functioning, cognitive, adaptive behavior, hearing or vision as determined by a multidisciplinary team through a multi-factored evaluation.

Many of our placement options for students with special needs include peer role models. Children with special needs learn through observation and the practice and modeling the behavior of their peers. As children with special needs observe and interact, the peer models are providing a model of age-appropriate skills in social, behavior, play, speech, language and motor development.