Unit 2/Phase 3: Unexpected, Immediate Needs or Crisis

Application Station:
Providing Supports and Resources

The following activities are designed to assist you in reflecting upon the information that is contained in this learning module and applying it to your practice. Below are a variety of activities to allow you to choose those that fit your needs, learning styles, and time commitments. If you like an activity, or find it particularly helpful, please feel free to share the information with your colleagues.

  1. A Personal Interview: Talk with someone you know either personally or professionally who has survived an extraordinary life event. Ask about what helped them rebound from the experience. Ask what worked against them in trying to rebound from the experience. Write down at least five salient ideas from the discussion that gave you insight into how you might respond to other families under extreme duress from unexpected, immediate needs or crises.
  1. Ever feel uncomfortable handling certain situations? The Lisa and Tony Bonfiglio Story highlights a situation for which a service coordinator is unprepared. Read this story and reflect upon possible strategies that you can have available when placed in uncomfortable situations.
  1. Learning about Supports: Interview a professional from an agency or program that offers support for some of the multiple challenges families may be facing. Possibilities include an AODA counselor, a child protection social worker, clergy, a police officer, someone from a homeless shelter, as well as many others. Develop a list of questions to ask, such as what type of services they provide, the philosophy that guides their practice, strategies they use to support families, and what they do when they can't support families any longer. After the interview, write a brief summary of what you learned. 
  1. Find out what resources are available in your community. Learn a new phone number and what agency to call in the event of a crisis. Choose one of the topics below, or pick one that is relevant to your situation.

NOTE: This would be a good time to sit down with your supervisor or mentor to discuss what you have read and address any questions you may have. Use your Browser’s back button to return to the table of contents and move on to Phase 4.

 These modules were developed from a combination of materials, including:

1)      Pathways Service Coordination Project, Waisman Center-University of Wisconsin-Madison, funded by a number of grants from the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs. These materials were developed and field tested for several years within Wisconsin and several other states throughout the nation, leading to these publications: Pathways Trail Mix: A Collection of Ideas and Training Activities in Early Intervention Service Coordination (1999); Pathways in Early Intervention Service Coordination: A Video & Companion Guide (1996); and Pathways: A Training and Resource Guide for Enhancing Skills in Early Intervention Service Coordination (1996)

2)      Wisconsin Personnel Development Project/Birth to 3 RESource Training materials posted on the Birth to 3 Training and Technical Assistance Website

3)      Portage Project, CESA 5 Training Materials

4)      Materials and forms created by Wisconsin County Birth to 3 Programs

5)      Resources available on the Internet that have been developed by other programs throughout the country.