Okuzeka
Child Development & Early Education vocabulary · Special Needs and Inclusion

Early intervention

Meaning in child development & early education, with examples

nounCore term

In child development & early education, early intervention means: Support given as early as possible, often in the first years of life, to children who have or may develop delays, disabilities or other difficulties.

In Turkish: erken müdahale, erken destek

How it is used

Used in health, education and social care policy, often in phrases like early intervention services or programmes. In the US, Early Intervention is also the name of a legally defined service for children under three.

Example sentences

  1. Research shows that early intervention can improve outcomes for children with speech delays.

  2. The family was referred to the early intervention team.

Common collocations

  • early intervention services
  • early intervention programme
  • refer to early intervention
  • the importance of early intervention
  • developmental delayA situation in which a child has not yet gained skills, such as walking or talking, within the age range in which most children do.
  • developmental screeningA short, standard check of a child's development, often with a questionnaire or checklist, to see whether a fuller assessment may be needed.
  • special educational needsLearning difficulties or disabilities that make it harder for a child to learn than most children of the same age, so that extra or different support is needed.
  • speech and language therapistA health professional who assesses and supports people, including young children, who have difficulties with speech, language, communication or swallowing.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Special Needs and Inclusion

Practise with graded reading

Reading at the right level is the fastest way to make new words stick. Pick free English books by level: