Support for children in early childhood education

Every child needs support at some stage of their growth, development and learning. Under the Early Childhood Education and Care Act, a child participating in early childhood education and care has the right to receive sufficient and timely support for their growth and learning as soon as a need for support arises.

The starting point for organising support is the child’s strengths and their needs related to growth, learning, development and well-being. In early childhood education and care, support is built on responding to the child’s individual needs, as well as on communal solutions related to the learning environment. Early childhood education and care ensures that every child feels accepted as themselves and as a member of the group. By encouraging the child and providing opportunities for experiences of success, the development of a positive self-image is supported. The support the child needs and the related measures are recorded in the early childhood education and care plan of a child attending a day-care centre or family day care.

Three-tier support

In Kuopio, support for a child’s learning and development is organised as part of the daily activities of early childhood education and care. Support is primarily provided in the child’s own day-care, pre-primary education or family day care group. A three-tier support model is used in organising support for the child’s learning and development. The aim is to identify the child’s need for support as early as possible and to provide appropriate forms of support.

Timely support provided as early as possible helps the child and prevents problems from accumulating later. The child’s development and learning are supported by adapting activities and the learning environment to meet the child’s needs. The child’s positive self-image and experiences of success are supported through a positive and encouraging learning environment.

Levels of support

The support provided to the child may be pedagogical, care-related or structural at all levels of support.

• General support consists of pedagogical, educational and care-related activities that are part of high-quality early childhood education and care pedagogy and are available to all.

• Intensified support is provided if general support is not sufficient and the child needs more individualised support in one or more areas of development. Intensified support is more individualised, regular and stronger than general support.

• Special support is provided if intensified support is not sufficient. Special support is full-time and includes several support measures implemented simultaneously. The initiative to strengthen the child’s support may come from the group staff, the guardian or other experts. An administrative decision is made regarding intensified and special support.

The support arranged for the child is recorded in the child’s early childhood education and care plan, which is reviewed regularly together with the guardians. 

Special education teacher in early childhood education and care

Each day-care centre has a designated special education teacher in early childhood education and care, who observes, provides guidance and works as part of the education team regularly and whenever needed. Contact details for these teachers can be found on the day-care centres’ websites.

Cooperation

As needed, early childhood education and care and pre-primary education staff cooperate with the child’s guardians and with various expert bodies, such as maternity and child health clinics, speech, occupational and physiotherapists, psychologists, doctors, educational and family counselling services, social services and specialised healthcare.