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Home > Offices > Children's Commission > Parents and Caregivers > Ages Birth to 5 > Development
Special Needs
Ages Birth to 5: Special Needs

The Jacksonville Children's Commission offers inclusion services to all area child care centers and family child care homes, free of charge.  Our inclusion specialists are here to give you support, technical assistance, and various training opportunities as you enroll your child with disabilities into a child care setting. For more information, please call the Duval County Inclusion Warm Line at 904-630-7914.

What does the phrase "a child with a disability" mean?
The term "a child with a disability" is used to describe children and youth who are in need of special education services because they have identifiable disabilities or risk conditions associated with delays or disturbances in one or more area of development.

What disabilities make a child eligible for special education services?
Disabilities that qualify children and youth for special education services are:

  • developmental delays
  • mental retardation
  • hearing impairments (including deafness)
  • speech or language impairments
  • visual impairments (including blindness)
  • serious emotional disturbance
  • orthopedic impairments
  • autism
  • traumatic brain injury
  • other health impairments
  • specific learning disabilities

What is inclusion?
In simple terms, inclusion is a value that supports the right of children and youth with disabilities to be given learning experiences in the same settings as children and youth without disabilities.  These settings can include family child care homes and child care centers, preschools, Head Start programs, kindergartens, and neighborhood schools. 
The
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) support inclusion.


Programs Sponsored by the Children's Commission:

CCAR Services, in the Lighthouse Learning Center, provides developmental treatment and enrichment services to children with disabilities, ages birth to 3.  They are located at 550 Kingsley Avenue in Orange Park, 32073.  Contact them at 904-264-7392.

Cerebral Palsy of Northeast Florida also offers a children's services program for young children with special needs.  Their office is at 3311 Beach Boulevard, 32207.  Contact them at 904-363-1462.


Additional Resources:
Children's Disabilities Information, Inc.
Families and Advocates Partnership for Education
Florida State Resources
United Way 2-1-1

 

Under Florida law, e-mail addresses are public records. If you do not want your e-mail address released in response to a public records request, do not send electronic mail to this entity. Instead, contact this office by phone or in writing.
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