Programs - Northland Early Education Center

Northland Early Education Center provides quality early education and therapy services for children age’s birth to 5 who have special needs and early education for children who have typical needs in a fully inclusive classroom environment in order for them to reach their full potential. In addition, NEEC provides a before and after school/summer program for children who have special needs ages 6 to 14. NEEC’s very unique and special preschool offers the benefits of inclusion, low student-to-teacher ratios, and a Project Construct curriculum, creating an environment where children’s early development and kindergarten preparedness come first. Promoting equality, acceptance, and independence, it is the philosophy at NEEC that all children have special needs and special strengths. Children from all backgrounds and at all developmental levels learn at their own pace while in the classroom with their same-aged peers.

NEEC is nationally accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) and by the Commission on Accreditation for Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF). We are also an approved private agency certified by Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and licensed by Missouri Department of Health. We work closely with the Missouri First Steps program to provide services to children who have special needs age’s birth to three. Those services include Occupational therapy, Speech/Language Pathology, Physical therapy, and Special Instruction. Our fully inclusive program gives children who have special needs the opportunity to learn by watching and imitating their peers, as well as teaching children who have typical needs the important life lessons of diversity, compassion and acceptance.

Programs:

Preschool Services: Teaching Model and Integration

With lower than state mandated student to teacher ratios, NEEC follows the Project Construct Curriculum model; an approach to learning founded on the idea that children develop knowledge through interaction with the physical and social environments. Through hands-on, minds-on experiences, students in NEEC classrooms attain deep understandings in core content areas, while also learning to work collaboratively with adults and peers and to be lifelong problem solvers.

Each classroom at NEEC is fully-inclusive, grouping children with their like-aged peers regardless of their developmental level. This environment gives children who have special needs the opportunity to learn by watching and imitating their peers, as well as teaching children who are typically developing the important life lessons of diversity, compassion and acceptance. In this environment, children who have special needs are often able to reach developmental milestones ahead of schedule, while providing children who are typically developing the self-confidence they need to be successful in public school and beyond.

NEEC is committed to hiring dedicated, highly educated and extremely qualified therapists, lead teachers and staff that continually work as one cohesive team to provide nationally-accredited early education and therapy services for children age’s birth to five in Kansas City’s Northland. Our incomparable team consists of four therapists, nine lead teachers, 22 assistant teachers, and five administrative staff. NEEC prides itself on having one of the most highly qualified teaching personnel teams in the Kansas City metropolitan area. Each lead teacher holds a Bachelor’s degree in special education or a related field and many of NEEC’s Assistant Teachers also hold a Bachelor’s degree and/or have or are working toward an Associate’s Degree in special education or a related field.

NEEC utilizes the Outcomes Measurement format of tracking annual programmatic goals. To ensure that each child’s therapy and early education goals are met, NEEC tracks data from therapy billing records, children’s Individualized Family Service Plans (IFSP) or education goals, as well as monthly and annual enrollment data. This allows NEEC to accurately compile and analyze data as well as perform comparative analysis from year to year. In addition, NEEC Lead Teachers conduct conferences with parents twice a year in which development is discussed and individual goals are set. The classroom teachers use anecdotal records, observations, and photographs to assess each child’s developmental level in the areas of cognition, language, and fine motor, gross motor, self-help and social/emotional skills.

At NEEC, the professional and caring therapists, teachers, and staff are experts at understanding the unique needs of each child they serve. NEEC’s dedicated staff understands that children born with special needs can be nurtured and taught in the same environment and with the same curriculum as their typically developing peers. NEEC’s cohesive team knows that individualized attention is essential for every child to develop to their full potential and the wide array of services available through NEEC ensures that every child will be able to do just that.