Diagnosing learning disability for first time in a high school student
We always suspected our 9th grade daughter might have a mild form of dyslexia but now we think it may be some other type of similar learning disability, we don't know what, that results in her taking a longer time to complete written assignments, reading assignments, and written tests than other family members. She works hard and gets good grades but is very stressed out by the amount of time it takes her, and the fact that she can't finish tests. Can anyone recommend a good diagnostician who can also counsel us on obtaining a 504 Plan in light of the looming SAT test?
May 22, 2017
Parent Replies
I highly recommend Dr. Carina Grandison: 510.704.1820 - if she is booked for months then try: Kristin Gross: www.childassessment.org - 510.530.1676. They both are excellent!
We saw Jack Davis in Lafayette. What you describe sounds like our daughters - slower processing speed. Both are allowed extra time on tests and the SAT. Totally worthwhile checking this out now as there is often a wait list for whomever you have her see
We just had a diagnosis done on my daughter, who's a high school junior. We had asked the schools 3 times over 8 years to give her an assessment and finally got sick of the non-action and did this ourselves. We used Zoe Collins, who was able to pinpoint her narrow learning disability and then we took this to the school. The 504 plan was not hard to get at Berkeley High School but we are having issues with the standardized tests and talking to other parents, it looks like their protocol is to deny accommodations to everyone and let people fight this on appeal, no matter how great the disability. According to the counselor, this year has become even more stringent than before. We are currently in the process of appealing and don't know how it will turn out. I would really recommend you get an assessment ASAP so that you don't end up in the same situation as we are, especially because going through school with no accomodations has affected my daughter's grades, which affects her college offerings along with the standardized tests.
Hi,
We realized that our son had similar issues at the beginning of 10th grade. His grades in 9th grade were substantially lower than in middle school and we could not figure out why. It turned out that his middle school teachers were giving him extra time to finish nearly every exam, include the standardized state tests, but the high school teachers did not. We scrambled to figure out where to get him tested and went with the Ann Martin Center. It was less expensive than many other options, they readily identified him as having processing issues (which affected his test-taking speed), and made specific recommendations for accommodations. With those accommodations, his high school grades improved dramatically. With extra time on the SAT, he was able to do well and was eventually accepted at his first choice college. And best of all, he regained his confidence -- which let him have a strong freshman year at college.
Hi,
Friends of mine have had good things to say about the Ann Martin Center in Emeryville for learning difference diagnostics (they are one of the lower-costing options for private diagnostics.) As well, you might want to check in with reviews on BPN for neuropsych testing and educational therapists for guidance with remediation and accommodations on tests. Your child's pediatrician might have a referral for you for a neuropsych in the area. Jack Davis is someone who has been referred to me a number of times.