A prekindergarten child with disabilities is a child who is below five (5) years of age on or before September 1 and has a sensory, physical, mental, or emotional condition which significantly affects the attainment of normal developmental milestones.

Birth through Two Years– A prekindergarten child with disabilities is a child who is below five (5) years of age on or before September 1 and has a sensory, physical, mental, or emotional condition which significantly affects the attainment of normal developmental milestones.   These definitions are found in State Board of Education Rules 6A-6.03031, F.A.C. and 6A-6.03030, F.A.C.

• Developmentally Delayed (DD):  A child who is developmentally delayed is defined as a child from birth through two (2) years of age who has a delay in one (1) or more of the following areas:  

1. Adaptive or self help development;
2. Cognitive development;
3. Communication development;
4. Social/emotional development;
5. Physical/motor development

• Established Conditions (EC):  A child with an established condition is defined as a child from birth through two (2) years of age with a diagnosed physical or mental condition known to have a high probability of resulting in developmental delay or disability.  Such conditions shall include genetic disorders, metabolic disorders, neurological abnormalities and insults, or severe attachment disorder.

Ages Three through Five– A prekindergarten child with disabilities is a child who is below five (5) years of age on or before September 1 and has a sensory, physical, mental, or emotional condition which significantly affects the attainment of normal developmental milestones.  This definition is found in State Board of Education Rule 6A-6.03026, F.A.C.

• Developmentally Delayed (DD):  A child who is developmentally delayed is three (3) through five (5) years of age and is delayed in one (1) or more of the following areas: 

1. Adaptive or self-help development,
2. Cognitive development,
3. Communication development,
4. Social or emotional development,
5. Physical development including fine, or gross, or perceptual motor.

Autism Spectrum Disorder is defined to be a range of pervasive developmental disorders that significantly affect verbal and nonverbal communication and social interaction, generally evident before age three, that adversely affect a child’s educational performance and results in the need for specially designed instruction and related services. Other characteristics often associated with autism are engaging in restricted repetitive activities and stereotyped patterns of behavior, resistance to environmental change or change in daily routines, and unusual responses to sensory experiences. These characteristics may manifest in a variety of combinations and range from mild to severe. Autism Spectrum Disorder may include Autistic Disorder, Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified, Asperger’s Disorder, or other related pervasive developmental disorders. The corresponding definition is found in State Board of Education Rule 6A-6.03023, F.A.C.

A student who is deaf or hard-of-hearing has a hearing loss permanent or fluctuating; aided or unaided, that impacts the processing of linguistic information and adversely affects the student’s performance in an educational environment. The student’s communication, developmental skills, academic achievement, vocational career skills, or social/emotional adjustment might be affected.   The degree of loss may range from mild to profound.  The corresponding definition is found in State Board of Education Rule 6A-6.03013, F.A.C.

A student who has dual-sensory impairments affecting both vision and hearing, the combination of which causes a serious impairment in the abilities to acquire information, communicate, or function within the environment, or who has a degenerative condition which will lead to such an impairment.  The corresponding definition is found in State Board of Education Rule 6A-6.03022, F.A.C.

A student with an emotional/behavioral disability has persistent (is not sufficiently responsive to implemented evidence based interventions) and consistent emotional or behavioral responses that adversely affect performance in the educational environment that cannot be attributed to age, culture, gender, or ethnicity.   The corresponding definition is found in State Board of Education Rule 6A-6.03016, F.A.C.

Florida defines gifted students as students who have superior intellectual development and are capable of high performance. Each school district serves gifted students through local plans that provide academic and social-emotional support. The links below provide more information regarding statutes and rules that regulate identification and services for gifted students, as well as resources, publications and other supporting information for teachers, administrators, parents, students and community members.

Gifted Education is defined by State Board Education Rule 6A-6.03019 as one who has superior intellectual development and is capable of high performance.

A homebound or hospitalized student is a student who has a medically diagnosed physical or psychiatric condition which is acute or catastrophic in nature, or a chronic illness, or a repeated intermittent illness due to a persisting medical problem and that confines the student to home or hospital, and restricts activities for an extended period of time. The corresponding definition is found in State Board of Education Rule 6A-6.03020, Florida Administrative Code F.A.C.

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An intellectual disability is defined as significantly below average general intellectual and adaptive functioning existing concurrently [at the same time] with deficits in adaptive behavior and manifested during the developmental period, with significant delays in academic skills. Developmental period refers to birth to eighteen (18) years of age.

This classification represents those students previously identified as: Educable Mentally Handicapped (EMH), Trainable Mentally Handicapped (TMH), and Profoundly Mentally Handicapped (PMH)

The corresponding definition is found in State Board of Education Rule 6A-6.0311, F.A.C.

Language impairments are disorders of language that interfere with communication, adversely affect performance and/or functioning in the student’s typical learning environment, and result in the need for exceptional student education. A Language impairment is defined as a disorder in one or more of the basic learning processes involved in understanding or in using spoken or written language. These include:

1. Phonology – Phonology is defined as the sound system of a language and the linguistic conventions of a language that guide the sound selection and sound combinations used to convey meaning;
2. Morphology – Morphology is defined as the system that governs the internal structure of words and the construction of word forms;
3. Syntax – Syntax is defined as the system governing the order and combination of words to form sentences, and the relationships among the elements within a sentence;
4. Semantics – Semantics is defined as the system that governs the meanings of words and sentences; and
5. Pragmatics – Pragmatics is defined as the system that combines language components in functional and socially appropriate communication.

The language impairment may manifest in significant difficulties affecting listening comprehension, oral expression, social interaction, reading, writing, or spelling. A language impairment is not primarily the result of factors related to chronological age, gender, culture, ethnicity, or limited English proficiency.

This definition is found in State Board of Education Rule 6A-6.030121, F.A.C.

Orthopedic Impairment (OH) means a severe skeletal, muscular, or neuromuscular impairment. The term includes impairments resulting from congenital anomalies (e.g. including but not limited to skeletal deformity or spina bifida), and impairments resulting from other causes (e.g., including but not limited to cerebral palsy or amputations).

This definition is found in State Board of Education Rule 6A-6.030151, F.A.C.

Other Health Impairment (OHI) means having limited strength, vitality or alertness, including a heightened alertness to environmental stimuli, that results in limited alertness with respect to the educational environment, that is due to chronic or acute health problems. This includes, but is not limited to, asthma, attention deficit disorder or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, Tourette syndrome, diabetes, epilepsy, a heart condition, hemophilia, lead poisoning, leukemia, nephritis, rheumatic fever, sickle cell anemia, and acquired brain injury.

This definition is found in State Board of Education Rule 6A-6.030152 , Florida Administrative Code (F.A.C.).

A specific learning disability is defined as a disorder in one or more of the basic learning processes involved in understanding or in using language, spoken or written, that may manifest in significant difficulties affecting the ability to listen, speak, read, write, spell, or do mathematics. Associated conditions may include, but are not limited to, dyslexia, dyscalculia, dysgraphia, or developmental aphasia. A specific learning disability does not include learning problems that are primarily the result of a visual, hearing, motor, intellectual, or emotional/behavioral disability, limited English proficiency, or environmental, cultural, or economic factors.

This definition is found in State Board of Education Rule 6A-6.03018, F.A.C.

Speech impairments are disorders of speech sounds, fluency, or voice that interfere with communication, adversely affect performance and/or functioning in the educational environment, and result in the need for exceptional student education.

1. Speech sound disorder – A speech sound disorder is a phonological or articulation disorder that is evidenced by the atypical production of speech sounds characterized by substitutions, distortions, additions, or omissions that interfere with intelligibility. A speech sound disorder is not primarily the result of factors related to chronological age, gender, culture, ethnicity, or limited English proficiency.
   • Phonological disorder – A phonological disorder is an impairment in the system of phonemes and phoneme patterns within the context of spoken language.
   • Articulation disorder – An articulation disorder is characterized by difficulty in the articulation of speech sounds that may be due to a motoric or structural problem.
2. Fluency disorder – A fluency disorder is characterized by deviations in continuity, smoothness, rhythm, or effort in spoken communication. It may be accompanied by excessive tension and secondary behaviors, such as struggle and avoidance. A fluency disorder is not primarily the result of factors related to chronological age, gender, culture, ethnicity, or limited English proficiency.
3. Voice disorder – A voice disorder is characterized by the atypical production or absence of vocal quality, pitch, loudness, resonance, or duration of phonation that is not primarily the result of factors related to chronological age, gender, culture, ethnicity, or limited English proficiency.

This definition is found in State Board of Education Rule 6A-6.03012, F.A.C.

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)means an acquired injury to the brain caused by an external physical force resulting in total or partial functional disability or psychosocial impairment, or both, that adversely affects educational performance. The term applies to mild, moderate, or severe, open or closed head injuries resulting in impairments in one (1) or more areas such as cognition, language, memory, attention, reasoning, abstract thinking, judgment, problem-solving, sensory, perceptual and motor abilities, psychosocial behavior, physical functions, information processing, or speech. The term includes anoxia due to trauma. The term does not include brain injuries that are congenital, degenerative, or induced by birth trauma.  

This definition is found in State Board of Education Rule 6A-6.030153, F.A.C.

Students who are visually impaired include students who are blind, have no vision, have little potential for using vision or students who have low vision and require specialized services to assist with accessing an appropriate education. The term visual impairment does not include students who have learning problems that are primarily the result of visual perceptual and/or visual motor difficulties.

The corresponding definition is found in State Board of Education Rule 6A-6.03014, Florida Administrative Code (F.A.C.).