Early Intervention: Why Ally focuses on children under 6, and the benefit of acting early

Early intervention is a term used to refer to a system of specialized services and supports for infants, toddlers and young children who have developmental delays. Specifically, these programs are designed to address concerns early in life when the child’s brain is most flexible and receptive to learning. Your family can obtain early intervention from different places, such as hospitals, community clinics, county programs, or private institutions. The different types of therapy can be called developmental therapy, speech therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy, and applied behavior analysis (ABA).

Early intervention has a long standing proven record of being effective when utilized for children 0-6 years of age. Research shows that the earlier we as families and providers intervene the better for our children’s current and future development. Specifically, child’s brains can make more connections and thus grow more than at any other period of time in her life. It is never too late!!

Here is a link to check your child’s developmental milestones:

https://www.cdc.gov/act-early/milestones/index.html

Ally focuses on children under 6 because we want to make a difference in a child and family’s life by giving the child what she needs while supporting the family along the way to generalize these skills to home and beyond. Specifically, help form foundational skills in all areas of development to build a strong base for the child. At the same time, we want to support and empower families to feel confident working with their child at home in a practical yet powerful way.

At Ally, we want to make the biggest impact now. We do this by tracking development closely, adjusting as a child develops, and working with our team and parents to prepare children for kindergarten.

• Strong regulation skills
• Improved communication
• Development of social skills
• Increased ability to advocate for themselves

This kind of foundation makes a significant difference in a child’s social-emotional skills which we think is as important if not more than his/her academic skills. We want our children to feel confident and let others know who they are and what they need.

Dr. Sharon Singh, PhD, is a developmental psychologist with over 17 years of experience conducting comprehensive developmental and diagnostic evaluations for young children. Originally from Arlington, TX, Dr. Singh is passionate about making a difference in the lives of families as early as possible so that their child has the best outcome for the future. Alongside Ally Behavior’s team of developmental pediatricians and clinical psychologists, Dr. Singh prioritizes helping families feel comfortable, understood, and empowered to advocate for their child.