A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

Description The Portage Project is a home-based intervention program for young children with disabilities and their families. The family-guided model, whether employed totally in the home or in a classroom-home combination program, centers on a home visitor assisting caregivers in identifying and addressing IEP/IFSP goals of the child and family based on the child's developmental needs and the desires, interests, and cultural mores of the family. The child's goals are implemented through naturally occurring activities that the child and caregiver participate in on a daily basis. Play activities are also used as a means of addressing child goals and enhancing caregiver-child interaction. The Portage Model addresses the first of the National Goals for Education by helping parents support their preschool child's development and, in this way, helping to prepare children for school. Results of the Portage Project model at the original demonstration site and at replication sites indicate that through this program young children can progress above their expected developmental level and families can gain skills to enhance their child's development. The model is appropriate for use in a variety of settings including preschools, prekindergartens, infant programs, and Head Start programs. Administrative commitment to a family-guided intervention model that addresses child and family goals is a prerequisite for successful implementation of the Portage Model.

Contact

Julia Herwig, Director, Portage Project, P.O. Box 564, Portage, WI 53901. (608) 742-8811, FAX (608) 742-2384.

Developmental Funding: USOE and SEP.
JDRP No. 75-75 (11/10/75)
Recertified (1/85)

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