RDI® for Parents
Family Focused
We believe that making lasting, meaningful and lifelong changes begins at home with the child’s parents first and that the remediation process should take place amidst each family’s unique culture and relationships.
RDI® Programs coach parents and primary care-givers how to break down -and then gradually rebuild- complex dynamic processes by carefully and systematically orchestrating the presentation of dynamic intelligence objectives within day to day interactions.
These interactions are embedded in daily routines and activities thus, building memories of competence and fulfillment and increasing motivation to engage in our complex world.
Working with a Consultant
With the guidance of a consultant, parents learn to evaluate where the child stopped developing in order to create a program that is right for their child. They learn to re-think their daily lifestyle, restructure routine activities and provide safe but challenging opportunities for mental growth.
Parents also learn how to guide their child and themselves in a mindful way, that creates a relationship that allows for their child’s brain to change and grow in a positive way.
The program is organized into a series of customizable developmental steps so that any parent can learn how to become an effective guide at their own pace.
Assessment – The RDA®
An initial RDI® assessment is one of the first things that a consultant will do with a new family. It provides a complete picture of each person’s strengths and weaknesses, possible co-occurring conditions and developmental obstacles.
This assessment consists of select, age-appropriate activities administered to the parents and their child and followed by a session between the consultant and the client. In addition, information on potential activity themes, communication and environmental modifications, as well as needed scaffolding levels would emerge from the assessment process.
Based on the initial assessment a comprehensive short-term plan for each family is set in motion. Common initial parent objectives may include: assigning a 15-minute daily increment for quality time, slowing down communication pace, increasing use of non-verbal communication channels, or reducing screen time for everyone in the family.
Ongoing Training
The frequency and format of ongoing supervision for each family is individualized and depend on their progress and current objectives. It is common that parents and consultant would meet with the child either face-to-face, on video, or phone consultations. Home visits and community outings are also important for an RDI® consultant to guide parents in their most natural setting.
To help parents understand their objectives, a consultant might utilize modeling, role playing, planning ahead, watching video clips of daily interactions as well as direct work during follow up sessions.
Increasingly, geography is not an issue for consultants and families who can utilize the RDIconnect® Learning Community, which is a private platform used to organize ongoing communication, video submissions, current and future objectives and yearly assessment findings. In addition, parents have access to a video library containing samples of RDI® work donated by other families, webinars on a variety of topics and ongoing discussion groups with other parents.