Module One: Lesson One

Infants and Toddlers with Developmental Delay

Infants and toddlers are eligible when a developmental delay is identified on an appropriate evaluation or assessment protocol or based upon informed clinical opinion, in at least one of the following areas:

• Cognition
• Physical/motor (including vision and hearing)
• Communication
• Social or emotional
• Adaptive development

Verification is determined using two or more of the following:

• Appropriate standardized instruments
• Observational assessments
• Developmental inventories
• Behavioral checklists
• Adaptive behavior scales
• Professional judgment
• Family report

The developmental delay must be equal to or greater than 1.5 standard deviations on a standardized evaluation tool or at least a 25% delay in terms of functional months of age based on the child's corrected gestational age until 24 months of age and then based on chronological age.

If you are interested in learning how other states define developmental delay, read State and Jurisdictional Eligibility Definitions for Infants and Toddlers with Disabilities under IDEA.

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