Natural Environments for Infants and Toddlers: An Inquiry into the Origin and Meaning of the Term.

Natural environments is a term used in the regulations for Part H of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). It states that early intervention services must be provided in natural environments, including home and community settings in which children without disabilities participate. Questions addressed in this paper include: (1) What is a natural environment? (2) What is the interface between what is meant by natural environments and integration and inclusion? (3) Does "natural environments" mean "least restrictive environment"--the term used in Part B of IDEA-- for babies? (4) Who determines what a natural environment is and is it the same for every family and child? and (5) What happens during a transition from Part H to Part B, Section 619 of IDEA? The document also examines three key laws that have had a significant impact on the concept of natural environments in the past 20 years: (1) the Rehabilitation Act of 1973; (2) the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (formerly called the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (EHA) and referred to as P.L. 94-142); and (3) the Americans with Disabilities Act. (SG)