Early Intervention

When Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is determined at birth the prognosis of lifelong
rehabilitation is almost unbelievable. Parents/caregivers of children with FAS can immediately begin an early intervention plan for special needs children. Since motor skill delays are an issue, the infant with FAS will have difficulty with “lack of head control. A physical therapist” (Hinde 131) will address the motor needs and the infant will improve greatly. Speech and language development can be addressed as early as “sixteen months;” (Hinde 131) along with working on distractibility issues. Generally when the child with FAS is unable to focus on any task, this can hamper the progress of learning. However, working to develop the attention span with engrossing games can be a very beneficial first step. At the approximate age of 2 years old, the
child may still find him/herself unable to sit and focus.