Setting young learners up for a lifetime of success.
As an educator or community provider, you see children learn new things and explore their world every day. Unfortunately, you also notice when some young learners fall behind in their development. That’s where we can help.
The importance of screening tools.
The first five years of brain development play a significant role in a child’s long-term academic and social success. In fact, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that all infants and young children regularly be screened for delays as a regular part of their ongoing health care.
Standardized screening tools are a highly effective and time-efficient method for evaluating a child’s development. Identifying delays as soon as possible allows for early intervention strategies. There are also no downsides to screening all children – parents and caregivers enjoy the peace of mind of knowing that their child is hitting all their developmental milestones.
Why Utilize Ages & Stages Questionnaires® for screening.
Help Me Grow WNY recommends Ages & Stages Questionnaires® (ASQ®) because the screening system has been validated by nearly 40 years of research, and the scoring is based on CDC development milestones.
> Accurate – Psychometric studies have demonstrated that ASQ is highly accurate in identifying children with developmental delays with excellent sensitivity and specificity.
> Comprehensive Review – Content has been reviewed by experts in the fields of psychology, psychiatry, education, early childhood development, pediatrics, nursing, and mental health.
> Age and culturally appropriate – Questionnaires have been tested with a diverse sample of young children and parents.
HOW TO
Get involved.
Educators and community providers can work with Help Me Grow WNY and promote developmental screenings in several ways.
Encourage parents and caregivers to screen their children.
You can refer parents to the Help Me Grow WNY website to take a free, confidential ASQ screening.
If the parent/caregiver chooses, the results can be shared with your school. Screenings are available online, or by phone call or texting through our Centralized Access Point (CAP) at 716-760-GROW.
Become a Help Me Grow WNY Partner.
By partnering with us, you can easily implement ASQ screenings within your organization while gaining access to training, data governance, and technical assistance.
For more information on partnership opportunities, contact Danielle Galenski, HMGWNY Assistant Director, at dgalenski@hmgwny.org.
Make a referral.
If a family would like to learn more about the screening process or early childhood development and resources, you can refer them to be contacted by the CAP using the form below.
Take an ASQ Training.
Help Me Grow WNY offers free ASQ-3 and ASQ:SE-2 training to the community. To sign up for a virtual training offered by HMG WNY Staff click here. To take an online training on your own time, click here and complete the registration form.