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Disability support at preschool and kindergarten

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    All children with disability have a right to access and participate in education on the same basis as other children. The department has support for preschool children with disability. Preschools, kindergartens, children’s centres and early learning centres all provide preschool services.

    Eligibility

    To be eligible for support, children must be enrolled at their local preschool and are affected by:

    How to get support

    You can ask for support by contacting your child’s preschool director. They can organise support from the department’s student support services team.

    Support can also be arranged by:

    Children with disability can receive extra support from their preschool, whether they need minor adjustments or more targeted support and intervention. The preschool will work with you and your child to make a personalised learning plan to get the right support.

    Inclusive preschool programs

    Inclusive preschool programs (IPP) support children with disability or complex needs to improve their learning outcomes within a mainstream preschool setting. Each IPP supports groups of up to 6 children with additional support from a teacher and ECW.

    These programs operate in the following preschools across South Australia:

    Talk to your local preschool director to determine if these programs are suitable for your child.

    Speech and language programs

    Speech and language programs (SLP) support children with severe language or speech impairment. SLPs target speech and language development with individual and small group work. Children also take part in the general preschool program.

    There are programs in these metropolitan preschools:

    Talk to your local preschool director or speech pathologist to determine if these programs are suitable for your child.

    Speech pathologists and psychologists should read the referral information for preschool speech and language programs (PDF 236 KB) to help with the referral process.

    Early Intervention Service – Deaf and Hard of Hearing (EIS-DHH)

    This service provides individual, tailored support at home or at care locations for babies and children until school age who are deaf and hard of hearing. Teachers of the deaf provide individual support at home or in preschool. Staff are from the department’s Statewide Inclusive Education Services (SIES) and also work in the Klemzig and Warradale preschool programs.

    Statewide Inclusive Education Services (SIES)

    Statewide Inclusive Education Services (SIES) provides a range of learning and teaching materials and specialised services that support children and students with disabilities and learning difficulties. These include:

    • equipment for use in preschools
    • special supports for children at preschool
    • resources and publications.

    Contact SIES for more information.

    Specialist preschools for children with disability

    There are some preschools that offer more specialised support. Talk to your preschool director to understand how your child can enrol in these programs, or contact the preschools directly.

    The Briars Preschool

    The Briars is a stand-alone preschool providing specialised education programs for children with disability or complex needs.

    Kilparrin Early Learning Centre (KELC)

    Kilparrin Early Learning Centre is part of Kilparrin Teaching and Assessment Schools and Services. This program supports children who are vision impaired, or deaf and hard of hearing, with additional disability.

    Klemzig Auslan Bilingual Preschool program

    The Klemzig Auslan Bilingual specialist preschool program is integrated within the Klemzig Primary School providing a bilingual preschool program for deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) children, children of deaf adults (CoDA) or siblings of DHH children. It's connected with the Early Intervention Service – Deaf and Hard of Hearing at SIES.

    Warradale Kindergarten Inclusive Preschool program

    The Warradale Inclusive Preschool Program (IPP) is incorporated within the kindergarten. It is a localised preschool setting catering for children who have been diagnosed as DHH or those with deaf parents or siblings, who live in the southern metropolitan area. The program is bilingual and uses both English and Auslan (Australian Sign Language). It’s connected with the Early Intervention Service – Deaf and Hard of Hearing at SIES.

    Inclusive Teaching and Learning

    Email: education.ITL [at] sa.gov.au

    Related information