Early Childhood Special Education

This web page contains technical assistance resources for special education staff, administrators, and families of preschool children who receive special education services. The resources are organized according to the three federal early childhood indicators of the State Performance Plan. The State Performance Plan is Washington's plan for improving school district performance on the federally required program indicators. For more information on the indicators, please visit the Technical Assistance Web page.

Guidance for Families: Young Children and Special Education is an online resource that explains the steps involved when evaluating a child for special education services through the school district. OSPI also maintains a more general resource, Guidance for Families: Special Education Services.

Early Childhood Special Education Initiatives Activity Map

This application will serve as a tool for state, regional, and local level teams to assess their progress towards creating access to high quality early learning programs for children with disabilities with an Individual Education Program (IEP). With this application, teams will also have the opportunity to view which districts in Washington state are engaged in early childhood special education initiatives that are intended improve the quality of instructional and systemic practices with the use of inclusionary practices, coaching supports, and targeted technical assistance, driven by data-based decision making. Users of this application can disaggregate the data by school year, legislative session, and more. 

Click on the map below and then select ECSE Application 2024 to access the interactive map.

Early Childhood Education Initiatives

 

 

 

 

School Facility Closures

In partnership with the Washington State Early Childhood Special Education Coordination Team, OSPI Special Education has developed guidance on the Provision of Services to Children with Disabilities in Early Childhood Programs during School Facility Closure. The guidance document addresses early childhood transition from IDEA, Part C to Part B, including the role of school districts in the initial eligibility process. Other topics include child outcome summary (COS) entry and exit ratings, and considerations for students transitioning to kindergarten during a school facility closure.

For additional information, please contact Ryan Guzman, OSPI Early Childhood Special Education Coordinator.

Early Learning Programming

Governor Inslee has requested the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) work in collaboration with the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF) to identify near-term administrative efficiencies and long-term strategies to improve the alignment and integration of high-quality early learning programs. An important goal of this work is to streamline regulatory functions across various programs aimed at kindergarten readiness that allow for the braiding of multiple funds in school- and community-based classrooms.

PreK Inclusion Finance Toolkit

OSPI with the help of the Early Childhood Technical Assistance (ECTA) Center presented the PreK Inclusion Finance Toolkit.

Early Learning Resources

State Systemic Improvement Plan (SSIP)

Early Childhood Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) Indicator 6

Early childhood LRE refers to the Least Restrictive Environment where children receive their special education services.

Early Childhood Outcomes Indicator 7

Early childhood outcomes for preschool children receiving special education services are reported each year to OSPI. The Child Outcome Summary Form (COSF) is the tool used by Washington to measure early childhood outcomes.

Part C to B Transition Indicator 12

Part C to B Transition refers to children transitioning from Early Intervention (Part C) to Early Childhood Special Education (Part B) at age three. Indicator 12 requires that children transitioning from Part C to Part B have their initial IEP in place by the third birthday.

External Resources