Early Childhood Special Education

Park Hill Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE) is a program that provides services to children with developmental delays who live in the Park Hill School District.

While Early Childhood Special Education is a mandated program in the state of Missouri for school districts, children must meet specific criteria to qualify for services. To qualify, a child must be between the ages of three and five, but not yet age eligible for kindergarten, and demonstrate significant delays in at least one key developmental area. Children are assessed for delays in the areas of:

• Cognitive (thinking skills),
• Communication (articulation and language skills),
• Adaptive (self-help)
• Social/Emotional (social/play skills and behavior) and
• Physical (fine and gross motor skills). 

Once a child has been determined eligible for services, an IEP (Individual Education Program) is developed to plan the child’s services. A child who qualifies for services is classified as a Young Child with a Developmental Delay (YCDD). All services are to be delivered in the Least Restrictive Environment, and this placement is reassessed at least once each year.