On February 14th, we officially transitioned to the BDI-3 assessment. We will continue to provide procedural updates as needed.

A resource, TEIS Evaluation and Assessment – What Parents Need to Know, was developed for families to explain TEIS’s new evaluation and assessment process. This resource should be provided to all current families by April 1 and at every initial IFSP for new families.
Training for TEIS staff on the BDI-3 and associated reports was provided on February 28 by Riverside Insights. Additional staff resources are being identified based to support the transition to BDI-3.
TEIS is continuing to work with Brookes Publishing to close out the AEPSi

The TEIS Assessment Fact Sheet can be found here: https://www.tn.gov/didd/for-consumers/tennessee-early-intervention-system-teis/vendors---early-intervention-resource-agencies.html

Early Intervention Lunch and Learns

We were able to recover the recording for Strategies for Coaching Adults. Please see links below.

Our next Lunch and Learn will be on March 22nd from 11:30 to 12:30 p.m. CST.

Alison Clougherty, Executive Director of Programs and Development for Blind Early Services TN (BEST) will present on BEST Practice: Tools You Can Use to Support Families of Children with a Vision Impairment.

Alison Clougherty is a Teacher of the Visually Impaired (TVI) and the Executive Director of Programs & Development for Blind Early Services TN (BEST) which she co-founded in 2020. BEST serves as both an EIRA and vendor, providing developmental therapy and vision services for TEIS families. Alison holds an undergraduate degree in Psychology with a focus in Early Childhood Development, a master’s degree in Education Leadership and Policy, and a second master’s degree in science as a Teacher of the Visually Impaired. Alison is also the mother of a young child who is completely blind which led to her mission to support and help ensure the BEST outcomes for other families and children like her own.

Join here: https://bit.ly/3YyFRTO

It’s a Balance: Supporting Caregiver & Child Learning during (and between!) Early Intervention Visits Series

As we prepare for the start of professional development series with Dana Childress, we would like to encourage all of you to have your staff complete a survey. The link to the survey is below. "What Do We Know About Providers of Special Instruction?" is a Nationwide survey, and we want Tennessee to be well represented.

The survey focuses on providers of special instruction, their qualifications, service delivery, characteristics of children and families receiving services, and how providers perceive their roles with families and as part of the EI team.

Click here to take the survey: https://odu.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_8xm3vCpwBvZSI8m

Special Instruction Survey Flyer_final.pdf

Don't forget! The first webinar of the series starts on March 9th! This series is designed to build awareness and bring a balanced perspective to early intervention practice that facilitates learning for both caregivers and children during visits. These sessions will also include opportunities for participants to reflect on their practices, practice using specific strategies between sessions, and learn from others during interactive chat conversations that engage participants during each webinar.

Statewide Early Intervention Service Providers, Service Coordinators, and TEIS leaders are welcome.

Click the title to join.

Fundamentals of Early Intervention Practice
March 9th from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. CST

Early Intervention Adult Learning Principles for Supporting Caregiver Learning
March 23rd from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. CST

Gathering Meaningful Information from Families to Guide Early Intervention
April 20th from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. CST

Writing Functional IFSP Outcomes: A How-To Guide
May 11th from 11 to 12:30 p.m. CST

Steps & Strategies for Conducting Balanced EI Visits: Time to Reflect
May 25th from 11 to 12:30 p.m. CST

Dana will facilitate 5 interactive webinars encouraging frequent engagement with and among participants using chat and Teams. Each webinar will stand alone but concepts also build on each other as participants gain a deeper understanding of how to support caregiver and child learning during and between intervention visits. She will provide a note-taking handout with key points from each session and a self-assessment or checklist on each topic to be shared with participants before each session.

Between Sessions: Participants will be encouraged to complete a self-assessment or checklist and discuss in local-level program meetings between sessions.

Woman with blonde curly hair. S0he has on clear framed glasses and is wearing a white shirt. Text: It's a balance: supporting caregiver & child learning during (and between!) early intervention visits with Dana Childress.

TEIS Provider Office Hours

The next TEIS Provider Office Hours is Wednesday, April 5th at 10:30 a.m. Please pre-submit questions to Carly.Carlton@tn.gov by 12 p.m. on Friday, March 31st.

Click the following link to join: https://bit.ly/3J0ZsXm

TEIS Provider Office Hours will move to once monthly beginning in March. It will be held the first Wednesday of each month unless otherwise announced. We encourage all providers to reach out through the established support channels with any questions at any time.

An update was made to the list of ICD-10 codes used to support TEIS eligibility. Additional codes were added to support children who have been affected by exposure to drugs and other noxious substances, and codes G60.0 through G65.2 were added for children affected by polyneuropathies and other disorders of the peripheral nervous system. Guillian-Barre syndrome is an example of an eligible code under this group.

The updated TEIS diagnosis list is available at the TEIS Eligibility section of the TEIS website www.tn.gov/didd/teis.

Disability Day on the Hill!

Reminder: Disability Day on the Hill is next week!

Will you be participating this year? Learn more from the Tennessee Disability Coalition at this link: https://www.tndisability.org/ddh2023

Fundamentals of Early Intervention Practice: March 9 from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. CST
BEST Practice: Tools You Can Use to Support Families of Children with a Vision Impairment: March 22 from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. CST
Early Intervention Adult Learning Principles for Supporting Caregiver Learning: March 23 from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. CST
TEIS Provider Office Hours: April 5 from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. CST

Do you have a story you would like to share with the TEIS community? Send your newsletter ideas to Carly Carlton at Carly.Carlton@tn.gov.

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