About the National Lekotek Center 

The Mission 

The mission of the National Lekotek Center is driven by the philosophy that children learn best when play is a family-centered activity that includes all children, regardless of their abilities or disabilities, in family and community activities. 

Our mission through the year 2000 is: 

o To contribute to the knowledge base about the link between play and early learning for children with special needs (those with disabilities or at risk of developmental delays). 
o To develop and demonstrate innovative practices for promoting learning-oriented play within families and for providing family supportive services which help parents strengthen their parenting skills. 
o To disseminate our accumulated learning about play, toys, technology, and family support to: (1) Lekotek programs across the country; (2) families of children with special needs and professionals who work with them; (3) community and educational institutions which seek to successfully include children with special needs in their play-based programming; (4) manufacturers and retailers of play-oriented products; and (5) the general public through media and publications. 

óAdopted by the National Lekotek Center Board of Trustees for the three-year strategic plan 1997 - 2000. 
 May 29, 1997  

The Lekotek Philosophy 

Lekotekís work with children and families is guided by several key principles: 

1. Every child deserves to have fun.  Children with disabilities often have big responsibilities -- they must deal with numerous and often painful medical visits, as well as physical and other therapies which focus on a child working toward an outcome.   While the services provided by Lekotek do foster skill development, Lekotek is the one visit in the mosaic of services in the lives of children with disabilities which is designed specifically for fun.