幼兒發育遲緩和早期幹預

 幼兒發育遲緩和早期幹預是一個沉重的話題, 但又不可回避. 身為父母,都不願意自己珍愛的小寶貝有什麽不好的事情, 也不願意相信自己的孩子在某些方麵比其他孩子差. 有的父母就是因為這樣的心理原因, 即使覺得自己的小寶貝有些不對的地方, 也不願意尋求幫助和谘詢, 而耽誤了最佳的早期幹預機會, 影響孩子終身的生活和幸福. 

在我們中國的文化範圍內, 因為麵子因素或者其他一些原因, 人們不願意客觀正麵地談論孩子發育遲緩的問題. 有的時候周圍的人為了避免人際關係產生影響, 即使發現誰家的孩子有發育遲緩的問題, 也會安慰父母說, 大一點就好了. 甚至舉XX人的例子來說明, 有的父母聽了這樣的安慰, 也就回避給孩子直接的診斷和評估, 而決定"等等看".  美國兒醫協會提醒父母們, 在麵對孩子發育遲緩的問題上, "等等看"是最糟糕的做法.

加州政府支持的"earlystart"計劃告訴父母們, 孩子最初的五年非常重要, 這個時候孩子的大腦還很"plasticity", 可塑性很大, 早期的幹預和幫助可以讓很多孩子的發育重回正常軌道, 保證他們的將來可以容入學校和社會生活. 但是五歲以後, 這樣的幫助和幹預可能收效甚微.  統計表明, 即使對於已經確定為自閉症的孩子, 如果能在三歲以前開始幹預, 有50%的孩子將來可以獨立正常地生活和學習.

根據醫療研究成果, 從1990年開始,美國聯邦政府建立了"early childhood intervention program" 來幫助一到三歲的孩子, 不管他們是有殘障或者是某方麵的發育遲緩, 父母都可以尋求幫助. 該機構甚至告訴父母, 不必要等到孩子被確診以後才開始早期幹預. 當發覺孩子比同齡孩子在某些方麵發育遲緩的時候, 或者孩子沒有達到某些發育裏程碑(milestones)的時候, 父母就是在和時間賽跑, 即使你不想孩子被立即診斷, 也可以盡早開始尋求早期幹預.


兒童發育裏程碑(0-3歲)

At age one month most children can...

• Raise their heads slightly when lying on their stomachs
• Briefly watch objects
• Pull away from a blanket on their face

sit up when prompted At age three months most children can:

• Lift their heads and chest while lying on their stomachs
• Make cooing sounds
• Follow a moving person with their eyes
• Smile back at someone

At age six months most children can:

• Sit with minimal support
• Roll from their back to their stomach
• Respond to their name by looking

At age 12 months most children can:

• Pull themselves up to stand and take steps with hands held
• Follow with their eyes in the direction that you are pointing
• Start a game of peek-a-boo, imitate clapping hands, point to show you something
• Say two or three words on a regular basis

At age 18 months most children can:

• Walk backwards
• Walk down stairs holding an adult's hand
• Use words and gestures (like taking you by the hand) to get needs met
• Perform simple pretend play like talking on the phone, feeding a stuffed animal

At age 24 months most children can:

• Kick a large ball
• Describe an injury or illness to an adult (bumped my head)
• Show interest in other children by offering them a toy or taking their hand

At age 32 months most children can:

• Pretend to be an animal or favorite character
• Talk about the past/future
• Answer "what", "where", and "who" questions easily
• Imitate drawing a horizontal line after being shown
• Hold a crayon with 3 fingers

( 本文是作者原創 , 轉載請和作者聯係 )
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