TIP has proven effective in improving a child’s development and adaptability, enhancing a family’s capability in handling their child.

Taarana School has introduced a new programme for special needs education students. Called the Targeted Intervention Programme (TIP), the curriculum implements early intervention for children with various behaviour issues. TIP acts as the first line of intervention for special education needs children to help prepare them for future interventions.

Taarana’s Principal, Dr Sunitha Sivakumaran, said TIP has proven effective in improving a child’s development and adaptability, enhancing a family’s capability in handling their child, and increasing family and children’s social participation.

“This programme also acts as a feeder to our Early Intervention Programme (EIP). In addition, it focuses on outcomes of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)-specific characteristics and considers interventions for specific critical areas.

The programme’s behavioural management and communication strategy objectives include:

• To enable more families and children to benefit from Taarana’s teaching faculty

• To provide effective and individualised behaviour management strategies for children

• To enable children and caregivers to manage sensory issues

• To assist children and caregivers adopt a suitable communication strategy

The programme focuses on behavioural management and communication strategy. “Early intervention services are a range of targeted services to help young children with developmental delays or specific health conditions.

“Although the TIP is primarily the domain of behaviour analysts, we have various specialists working with our behaviour analysts to help students catch up and increase their chances for success in school and daily living,” Dr Sunitha explained.

Educational and Therapeutic Support

Early intervention helps children meet developmental milestones. In addition, it can improve their functional skills and abilities in the longer-term well-being of a child and their family.

This person-centred approach and family-centred practice ensure the child and family’s prioritisation needs.

“Taarana progressively offers a continuum of early intervention services better tailored to the varied developmental needs of our children and the changes in their developmental needs over time,” she added.

A related Taarana programme is the Early Intervention Programme (EIP), which Dr Sunitha described as an intensive programme combining educational and therapeutic support services for our students.

“Taarana’s EIP works to enhance emerging competencies, minimise developmental delays, and remediate existing or emerging disabilities to prevent functional deterioration – in one-to-one sessions.”

Taarana offers the programme in a block of 12 sessions of two hours each. An assessment at the end of the sessions determines the progress and the necessary recommendation(s).

Taarana School provides programmes with social and emotional support for children with, among others, Down syndrome, Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Developmental Co-ordination Disorder (DCD) or Dyspraxia, and Global Development Delay.

Our school offers a broad and balanced curriculum that meets the needs of all students. Learning and skills development are personalised, ensuring that each child fulfils their potential. The school’s related programmes of Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) therapy and Early Intervention Programme (EIP) help our students show that they can learn and modify behaviours.