Pediatrics Plus Developmental Preschool is a comprehensive and specialized health care program for children 6 weeks to 6 years with special needs and developmental delays. Our developmental preschool provides a natural classroom environment for children integrated with typical peers, but with the added benefit of skilled teachers, therapists, behavior specialists, and/or registered nurses available to work within and alongside the classroom structure.
We believe in a multi-dimensional approach individually designed for each child. Based on the results of a comprehensive multi-disciplinary assessment, our team of professionals creates an individualized plan of care blending different and appropriate evidence based interventions. This plan is continually assessed and modified as needed in order to ensure each child continues to progress to his/her maximum potential.
Pediatrics Plus provides different varieties of sensory environments for learning. Our centers are equipped with playgrounds with wheelchair accessible surfaces and equipment to promote motor, social emotional, and sensory development; sensory-motor gyms; early literacy libraries; and functional play and natural environment simulated spaces to enhance carry over into the home.
We are licensed by the State of Arkansas as an EIDT (Early Intervention Day Treatment) program. To enroll in our program a child must be Arkansas Medicaid eligible and be referred by his/her primary care physician.
Our Services
For children who qualify for our developmental preschool, the following services are available:
- Cognitive, Motor, and Social Emotional Developmental services provided in a preschool classroom environment
- Physical, Occupational and/or Speech Evaluations and Therapy Services
- Cognitive and Adaptive Behavior Evaluations with corresponding interventions
- Nursing and Medical Services
- Breakfast, lunch and snack following USDA guidelines
- Care coordination for families
- Very low teachers to student ratios
Our Classrooms
At Pediatrics Plus, our developmental programs and curriculums are evidence based. We focus our curriculums, classroom management structure, and creative learning on three main components:
Sequential Skill Development: Given our unique developmental preschool structure, Pediatrics Plus has developed a curriculum that is appropriate for a wide range of developmental levels within a single classroom. Our newly developed curriculum, which facilitates appropriate sequential order of developmental skills, provides our staff with the tools to individually design any classroom activity or developmental milestone to the developmental level of each child. Results of the use of our newly developed curriculum have shown that a child at any developmental level is able to learn to scaffold skills, show fewer “scattered skills” and experience a more enjoyable and successful experience with each activity.
Social Emotional Development: We take an individualized approach to social-emotional development using “engagement.” Our expectation of engagement is that each teacher continually assesses the child during play and other activities and steps in and out as needed to allow more independence & problem solving, encourage the child further in his/her problem solving, or provide appropriate play modeling. We are able to achieve this level of engagement by providing specialized training and very low teacher to child ratios.
We implement Second Step Curriculum in each classroom to ensure that our staff understands the most appropriate ways to address social-emotional development. The Second Step Early Learning Program promotes success in the early learning classroom, school readiness, and social and life success by developing a child's self-regulation skills, social-emotional competencies, empathy, friendship skills, and problem solving.
Brain Development: By engaging children in intentional multi-sensory experiences, which simultaneously stimulate specific brain centers (i.e. visual, auditory, tactile, and coordination), we can help build a more dynamically developed brain. This type of multi-sensory, hands-on learning builds the strong foundation and brain architecture upon which all future cognitive, social-emotional, and developmental skills can be built. Only with a strong foundation, can children truly achieve their maximum potential for building skills & appropriate relationships throughout life.
Links to research: www.developingchild.harvard.edu
Our Developmental Classrooms:
- Integrate children with & without special needs
- Offer a very low teacher to child ratio
- Use developmentally appropriate and evidence based practices
- Incorporate Handwriting Without Tears, a multi-sensory approach to handwriting that makes writing more fun and easier to learn.
- Follow an individualized treatment plan based on the specific needs of each child
Nutrition
Pediatrics Plus recognizes the positive link between nutrition and school performance. Therefore, we have made a conscious effort to ensure that all meals served to our students have the highest nutritional value. We prepare and cook our meals and snacks on site using whole ingredients, seasonal fresh fruits and vegetables, and strictly limit processed foods. Because we cook daily on site, we are able to accommodate most food allergies and special diets.
Medical & Nursing
Pediatrics Plus provides a Registered Nurse on staff during program hours. Nursing services include routine medications, tube feedings, catheterizations, diabetes management, etc. We also work closely with each child's primary care physician to ensure we are all working on a plan in the best interest of each child.
He attends the developmental preschool where he is thriving!
- Marissa M.
