Child Find
Last updated
Child Find is the duty of every state and school district to identify, locate and evaluate all children with disabilities who may need special education.
Topic: IDEA, law and procedure
In plain terms
Schools cannot wait for parents to ask. Child Find covers children from birth through 21, including those who are homeless, wards of the state, attending private schools, highly mobile, or advancing from grade to grade while still struggling. A district meets the duty through screenings, referral systems, outreach and training staff to notice when a student might have a disability.
How it shows up in an IEP
Child Find comes before any IEP. It is the step that leads to a referral and an initial evaluation. Teachers play a part when they share classroom data, such as screening scores or work samples, showing a student may need more than general intervention. A tiered support program cannot be used to delay an evaluation when a disability is suspected.
Example
A second grader has made little progress after eight weeks of small-group reading help. The teacher brings the progress monitoring graph to the school team, which asks the parent for consent to evaluate.
The rule
Federal reference: 34 CFR §300.111.
Rules vary by state. Check your state's regulations and your district's procedures.
Related terms
- Evaluation (special education)A special education evaluation is the set of assessments a school uses to decide whether a child has a disability and what services the child needs.
- Informed consentInformed consent is a parent's written, voluntary agreement to a specific school action after being fully told what it involves, and it can be revoked.
- Universal screeningUniversal screening is a brief assessment given to all students, usually three times a year, to find those who may need extra support.
- RTI (Response to Intervention)RTI is a school process that screens all students, gives tiered extra instruction to those who struggle, and uses progress data to decide what help comes next.
- Early interventionEarly intervention is the set of services for infants and toddlers, from birth to age 3, who have developmental delays or disabilities, and for their families.
This page describes special education terms and federal rules in general terms and is not legal advice. Our editorial policy explains how IEP Atlas writes and reviews content. Browse all 244 terms.