Designed to provide information on child care options for children with special needs, this manual discusses the criteria necessary to implement services. Section 1 answers questions regarding referrals, resources, and benefits for the disabled child and family, as well as for child care providers and agency staff. Section 2 addresses seven action areas for three levels of program involvement. Specifically, these areas include (1) identifying, recruiting, and assessing providers; (2) cataloging information; (3) outreach and publicity; (4) provider and parent support; (5) the referral process; (6) followup; and (7) evaluation. Section 3 discusses parenting the special child, child care issues concerning providers, parents' choice of child care, and disability myths. Section 4 describes relevant legislation, the report by the Governor of California's Advisory Committee on Child Development, a survey of statewide resource and referral agencies, and problem areas in caring for special children. Section 5 discusses training curricula, trainer resources, special resources, area boards, regional centers, and other associations. An extensive appendix includes an agency mail survey, a parent survey, a phone questionnaire, a sample phone conversation with a provider, a child care provider questionnaire, a special needs cataloging form, a recruiting notice for newsletter inclusion, a parent information intake card, a parent education handout, workshop announcements, and support services file categories. Three pocket guides are also included. (BJD)