Sharon is an active five year old who loves to spend time with her grandmother. She also loves to fingerpaint and play with the family dog. Sharon has multiple disabilities. When she was born, she didn’t get enough oxygen. As a result, she has an intellectual disability, problems with mobility, and a speech impairment that makes it hard to understand what she’s saying. That doesn’t stop Sharon from chattering, though. She has a lot to say.

For Sharon’s parents, it’s been a long road from Sharon’s birth to today. When she was just a baby, she began receiving special services calledearly intervention. These services help children with disabilities from birth to their third birthday. In early intervention, Sharon learned to crawl and to stand and—finally!—to walk with braces.

Now in preschool, Sharon receives special education services. Like early intervention, these services are meant to address her special learning needs. Her parents are very involved. They sit down often with the preschool staff and talk about Sharon’s progress. The team also talks about Sharon’s challenges and how to address them. Last week, for example, Sharon got a picture board to help her communicate. She’s busy learning to use it.

Sharon’s parents know that Sharon will always need some support because of her multiple disabilities. But her parents also know how determined Sharon can be when she’s learning something new. She’s going to learn it, by golly, there’s no stopping her.

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IDEA’s 14 categories of disabilities