DIR/Floortime is a play-based, one on one therapy designed to help children develop relationships, language, and thinking. Developed by child psychiatrist Stanley Greenspan, the goal of Floortime is to build healthy foundations in a child's life for social, emotional, and intellectual growth.

Floortime is based on the belief that all children pass through six developmental milestones that are critical to learning and development. these levels are:

1. Self regulation and interest in the world
2. Intimacy
3. Two-way communication
4. Complex communication
5. Emotional
6. Emotional thinking

As the child participates in appropriate emotional experiences during each phase important thinking, social, emotional, language and motor skills will develop.

To start Floortime a therapist will do an extensive evaluation and create an individualized intervention program for that child. This evaluation will take into consideration the team working with the child including their school setting, individual therapies, as well as alternative therapies.

During 'floortime' play sessions, adults follow the child's lead using interactions through gestures and words to move the child up the developmental milestones ladder. This starts with creating an environment of shared attention (both the child and parent are paying attention to the same thing), engagement or interaction, simple and complex gestures, and problem solving to help move the child into the world of ideas and abstract thinking. The goals is to gently guide the child towards greater and greater social, emotional and intellectual growth.

For more information visit Interdisciplinary Council on Developmental and Learning Disorders (ICDL)