Local Resources for Parents of Kids with Special Needs

Navigating Through the Special Needs Resource Maze

Parents who have children with special needs will find a wealth of resources in DFW to ensure that kids get the care they need to thrive and succeed. Each and every public school district has special education resources within the school system and bus transportation is offered at no cost. 

There are also specialized schools and centers across the Metroplex for those with learning disabilities, visual, speech, or hearing impairments, autism, mental retardation, orthopedic impairments, traumatic brain injuries, or other special needs. Parents should know that they have a wealth of options for care for their loved ones all over the DFW area. The following is a list of schools and resources for North Dallas/Collin County are.

This post contains affiliate links

Special Needs Resources

Services for Children with Special Needs

Jewish Family Services’ goal is to help special needs children and families reach their highest potential socially, emotionally, behaviorally and intellectually. Their approach is to involve and support family, friends and community resources.

JFS has been providing a continuum of services for children, adults and their families for more than 60 years. Our team of experienced professionals include diagnosticians, intervention specialists, speech-language pathologists, occupational therapists, play therapists, school mental-health counselors and psychiatrists.

 Special Needs Services include:

• Intervention Specialist Services: Early Childhood and Student Specialists
• Play Therapy
• Animal-Assisted Therapy
• Comprehensive Assessment
• Speech-Language Assessments and Therapy
• Occupational Therapy
• Social Skills Groups
• School Mental-Health Services
• Psychiatry Services

Special Needs Resource Team brings additional expertise if more complex developmental challenges become apparent and sometimes act as the liaison in schools for teachers, leadership and parents.

For more information about  Special Needs Resources or if you’re not sure of what kind of help your child might need, call 972.437.9950.

More Local Resources

Check out local Mom, Shammah Kinchen who has written a children’s book called The iCANS. Her goal is to change the way the world sees special needs. One superpower at a time!

Her oldest son, Colin, is overcoming autism and throughout their journey, she has been really inspired by the moments where she realized that the things we may see as limits are actually superpowers

PATH Group 

If you are needing a plan with your Child’s school, they have best practices guides for the public schools and are federally funded to inform parents & schools of legal requirements re: special education, IEP’s, 504’s, etc. They are a free resource for the local Community. 

ADD/LD Parent Support Group of Collin County

972-396-1216 or email

This support group hold meetings at the First United Methodist Church of Allen, which features guest speakers, videos, and information for parents of developmentally disabled children.                                

Avid Quality Care

972-346-4144

Avid focuses on caring for an individual’s emotional, social, physical, and intellectual needs in order to enhance their quality of life. They provide HCS, residential, and skill development assistance to individuals of all ages.

Frisco Area Listening and Learning

972-596-0035

Listening and Learning offers children a chance to improve their focus, reading, social skills, auditory processing, and general classroom performance, helping children improve their education and overall quality of life. Services include scientific approach that utilizes intervention based on principles of learning and positive reinforcement

Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services

512-438-3011

DADS is an agency that administers long-term services and support for aging and disabled people in Texas. They have extensive resources and information about assisted living, as well as rules and statutes for people with disabilities.

The Behavior Exchange

972-755-3802

The behavior exchange in plano Texas. What makes them different? Every activity and technique they use is tailored to each of their clients and is founded on ABA, applied behavioral analysis. ABA, the scientific approach that utilizes intervention based on principles of learning and positive reinforcement to improve negative behavior to positive. Parents can benefit from the behavior exchange as well. They can teach them how to use intervention techniques to help improve interaction with their child and their overall behavior at home and in public.

Center for Autism and Developmental Disabilities (CADD)

The Center for Autism and Developmental Disabilities (CADD) is an interdisciplinary program offering comprehensive patient care and translational medicine for individuals with autism and related neurodevelopmental disorders. The Center is a joint endeavor between UT Southwestern Medical Center and Children’s Health℠, and additional collaborations with UT Dallas Callier Center for Communication Disorders are critical to both our clinical and research missions. CADD is a single home for patients and families where multidisciplinary evaluation and treatment teams work alongside leading scientists utilizing state-of-the-art approaches for understanding and treating neurodevelopmental disorders.

Dallas 214-648-0102
Fax: 214-867-5389

Plano 469-303-4200
Fax: 469-303-2406

Check out our tips on how to prepare your Kids for School when they have Special Needs

Psychiatrist and Psychologist Services

Perfect Balance Psychiatric services PLLC
3028 Communications Pkwy Suite 300 
Plano, Texas 75093 (214) 983-9423 

Fusion Family Consulting
1700 Alma Drive 
480
Plano, Texas 75075 (469) 478-2867 

Stonebridge Psychiatry
8668 John Hickman Pkwy. 
Office 401
Frisco, Texas 75034 (469) 778-4750 

Tri-MED Integrative psychiatry and Sleep medicine
3140 Legacy Drive 
Suite 710
Frisco, Texas 75034. Call Dr. Yemi Aina – (972) 885-3348

Pediatricians

Visit to a pediatrician is always difficult for little ones. However, for a child with special needs, it’s often even more challenging. In many cases, special needs children visit specialists and doctors more often, and sometimes they have anxiety issues about these medical visits. So, when selecting a pediatrics special needs doctor, take time to choose the right doctor.

It’s extremely important to find a pediatrician you can trust, and one who pays attention to the unique medical condition of your kid. A good place to initiate the search is talking to parents who have children with similar medical conditions or disabilities. You can also try websites, local support groups or recommendations given by specialists your kid is already seeing.

Our Tips to help you find the right Pediatrician

1. Meet the doctor

When you find a candidate whom you think as a good pediatrics special needs doctor, schedule an appointment for meeting the pediatrician, the nurses, and the office manager. Meet the candidate preferably without taking your child along. Come prepared for discussing the condition of your kid and check out if the doctor treats children with similar conditions. Put forth your concerns in a specific manner and find out how the doctor and her office would handle them. Try developing a feel of their personality, their compassion and determine if the doctor and her office would be the right fit for your kid and you.

2. Check out the following

When choosing a pediatrics special needs doctor, several factors need to be taken into account. So, find out the following about the doctor and her office:

• Is the office comfortable?
• Do they have an understanding of how to work with children having the same problems as your kid?
• Is the doctor willing and welcoming to spend some time with you to ensure that you understand the issues of your child and help to coordinate their care? Parents of special needs children often say that they have several different specialists, they are dealing with a physical therapist as well as the school. They seek advice on what to do next. They feel overwhelmed and the pediatrician should help them in making sense of all that.
• Is the pediatrician’s office convenient? You may not have any problem in driving the extra miles for visiting the best doctor. However, keep in mind that some kids find long drives problematic.
• How available is the pediatrician? Does the pediatrician’s practice have multiple locations, and if so, would the pediatrician divide her time among the practices? Is the doctor available on weekends or by phone?
• What is the practice’s size? While a large practice may have more medical practitioners and come with more experience, however, does that imply doctors coming and going and longer waiting times? Parents should not expect a pediatrician to anticipate all of their needs. If you need some extra time, choose to be the day’s last appointment.

Locally Recommended Pediatricians

• Dr. Naidoo at Shine Pediatrics & Wellness Center, Richardson
• Dr. Hart at Healthy Kids in Frisco
• Dr Olteanu at Whole Child Pediatrics
• Forest lane pediatrics in Presby Plano

These are specifically suggested by Plano Moms in our Facebook group! 

Classes for Kids with Special Needs

We have some great classes specifically for kids 

ASI-Gymmie Kids

Their gymnastics program is tailored to each exceptional child’s particular needs. It is goal directed towards gaining strength, improving gross motor skills, and increasing confidence while learning gymnastics skills at the same time.

If your child has:

• Genetic or chromosomal conditions
• Autism Spectrum Disorders
• Neuromuscular and orthopedic disorders
• General developmental delays
• Vision or hearing impairment

They offer

• Recreational Gymnastics Class
• Recreational Gymnastics Class with Shadow Coach
• Hybrid Gymnastics class (1/2 Recreational Class/ 1/2 Private Lesson)
• Private Lessons

We know so many local Moms are in need of Local Resources. Look out for ideas to help you with Parenting a Child with Special Needs outside of School