The early years are everything. Between ages 2 and 5, children develop the sensory, motor, language, and behavioral foundations that every future skill — academic, social, and life — is built upon. When a child struggles in one of these areas, early, intensive support makes a measurable difference.

ExcelLearning Foundations is our clinical program for children ages 2 through 5. It brings together occupational therapy, speech-language therapy, and Applied Behavior Analysis in a play-based, naturalistic model designed for how young children actually learn — through movement, exploration, and interaction, not worksheets and drills.

What we address in Foundations:

• Sensory processing difficulties (sensitivity to touch, sound, movement, textures)
• Fine motor delays (grasping, manipulation, hand strength for play and self-care)
• Feeding challenges (food aversions, texture tolerance, mealtime routines)
• Language delays and early communication (words, phrases, AAC)
• Behavioral challenges and early ABA support
• Parent coaching and home program integration

How it works. Every Foundations family starts with a comprehensive evaluation. From there, your child’s OT, speech therapist, and/or BCBA build a shared program plan with goals that reinforce each other across disciplines. We see children a minimum of twice per week in intensive 8-week cycles, followed by a structured home program period that lets your child consolidate and generalize what they’ve learned — before returning for the next cycle.

Parent coaching is embedded into every session. You’ll leave each visit knowing exactly what to practice, how to support your child at home, and what progress looks like next.

Why integrated matters at this age. A child with a language delay often has sensory processing challenges. A child with feeding difficulties may need both OT and speech support. When our providers share goals and communicate weekly, your child benefits from therapy that works in concert — not in silos.

ExcelLearning Foundations is available in Champaign and Bloomington, Illinois. Flexible scheduling and out-of-pocket bundle pricing ($79/session) are available for families without insurance coverage.

Ready to get started? Contact us to schedule your child’s evaluation.

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If you’ve been wondering whether your toddler or preschooler might benefit from therapy, you’re not alone — and you’re asking exactly the right question at exactly the right time.

Research on early childhood development is unambiguous: the earlier a child receives targeted support for developmental challenges, the better the outcomes. The window between ages 2 and 5 is when the brain is most plastic, most receptive to learning, and most responsive to intervention. This isn’t a reason to panic — it’s a reason to act, and to feel good about doing so.

At ExcelLearning, we created our Foundations program specifically for children ages 2 through 5 because we believe early therapy should look and feel like childhood: playful, curious, connected, and full of movement.

What does “early intervention” actually mean?

Early intervention is a broad term for therapy and support services provided to children under 5 who are showing delays or differences in development. It can include occupational therapy (OT), speech-language therapy, ABA therapy, physical therapy, and feeding therapy — sometimes one, sometimes several working together.

The goal isn’t to “fix” your child. It’s to give them the tools they need to participate fully in the world — to play, communicate, eat, move, and connect with the people they love.

Signs a child ages 2–5 may benefit from OT:

• Difficulty tolerating certain textures, sounds, or sensations
• Avoiding or seeking intense physical input (crashing, spinning, touching everything)
• Trouble with fine motor tasks (holding crayons, using utensils, buttoning)
• Difficulty with transitions or changes in routine
• Feeding challenges — limited diet, gagging, refusing whole food groups

Signs a child ages 2–5 may benefit from speech therapy:

• Fewer words or word combinations than peers
• Difficulty being understood by people outside the family
• Challenges following directions or understanding language
• Little interest in communicating with others
• Reliance on gestures rather than words

Signs a child ages 2–5 may benefit from ABA:

• Behavioral challenges that feel difficult to manage at home
• Difficulty learning new skills or generalizing skills across settings
• Significant anxiety or rigidity around routines
• Challenges with social interaction and joint attention

Why integrated therapy makes a difference

Here’s something many families don’t realize: these challenges rarely come one at a time. A child who is struggling with language often has underlying sensory processing differences. A child with feeding challenges may need both OT and speech support — the mechanics of eating involve both the sensory system and the motor/communication systems.

At ExcelLearning Foundations, our OT, speech therapist, and BCBA share goals and meet weekly to coordinate your child’s care. When your OT is working on tolerance of food textures and your speech therapist is working on mealtime communication at the same time, the progress your child makes is compounded — not divided.

What to expect in a Foundations session

Sessions are play-based and naturalistic, designed to embed therapy goals into the activities children already love. Your child might be building with blocks while their fine motor and spatial reasoning goals are being addressed. They might be engaged in sensory play while their therapist builds tolerance for textures. They might be navigating a social scenario in a way that looks like fun — because it is.

Caregivers are actively involved. We don’t believe in handing your child to a therapist for 50 minutes and waiting in the lobby. You’ll be coached, updated, and equipped with home strategies at every visit.

Our intensive cycle model

ExcelLearning uses an intensive block model: a minimum of two sessions per week for eight consecutive weeks, followed by a structured three-week home program period. This approach — intensive therapy followed by a consolidation period — is supported by research in motor learning and language acquisition. The home program phase isn’t a break. It’s when your child practices, generalizes, and solidifies what they’ve been learning.

Ready to take the next step?

If any of what you’ve read resonates, we’d love to talk. Our team serves children ages 2–15 in Champaign and Bloomington, Illinois, with flexible scheduling and out-of-pocket bundle pricing available.

Call us or fill out our intake form — your child’s evaluation is the first step.

Our Occupational Therapy Department Lead: Dr. Garrett

Our Director of Clinical Excellence: Brittany Mueller, SLPA-BCBA

At ExcelLearning, we believe children deserve therapy that meets them exactly where they are — not a one-size-fits-all approach. That’s why our clinical programs are organized around your child’s age, stage, and goals.

We offer integrated occupational therapy (OT), speech-language therapy (ST), and Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) for children ages 2 through 15 across three age-matched program tracks. Each track is designed to reflect the developmental realities of that stage of childhood — from sensory foundations in the early years to executive function and self-advocacy in the teen years.

What makes ExcelLearning different is the way our disciplines work together. Rather than three separate providers who never speak, our OT, speech, and ABA teams share goals, share data, and meet weekly to coordinate your child’s care. The result is faster progress, better generalization of skills to real life, and a therapy experience that actually makes sense for your family.

Our program tracks:

• ExcelLearning Foundations — Ages 2–5. Play-based, naturalistic therapy targeting sensory development, language emergence, fine motor skills, and early behavioral foundations.
• ExcelLearning Connect — Ages 6–10. Functional, school-focused therapy targeting handwriting, social communication, behavioral regulation, and executive function.
• ExcelLearning Advance — Ages 11–15. Strengths-based therapy targeting self-advocacy, pragmatic language, life skills, and academic integration.

Every child receives an individualized program plan. Whether your child needs OT only, ST only, ABA, or a fully integrated combination, our team will build a clinical program that fits — and a schedule that works for your family.

We also offer specialty group clinics — including a Feeding Clinic and Handwriting Group — and an ABA Jumpstartprogram for families who are new to ABA therapy or navigating a waitlist.

Now enrolling in Champaign and Bloomington, Illinois.

Clinical Services Expansion

It is important to us that Pediatric Therapy Services remain accessible in our community. With this, ExcelLearning will offer Speech Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Social Groups, and Executive Coaching services to learners not enrolled in our Excel programs. Services for outpatient will be offered in private pay and select insurance plans. These services will have a model found in literature supportive of a cycles approach and home programming. This means learners will participate in 1:1 and small group therapy services for eight weeks twice per week and then move to Cycle 2 of parent-caregiver supported intervention for three weeks. This allows families to see data and assess what is working and have a finite focus on the impact and effect of intervention. Of course, there will be exceptions for learners where complexity and severity warrants continuance of services. This is also supportive of models where school districts need support in the fulfillment of therapy services. Learners currently enrolled in Excel programs will receive services based on program recommendations.