Better Diagnosis Leads to Better Treatment
Our highly skilled team provides academic and psychological testing. Mary Jane Freeman, our Certified Educational Planner, works closely with Dr. Gary Patrick, a child and adolescent psychologist, who has expertise in diagnosing learning disabilities, processing deficits and other psychological conditions.
Combined with academic testing, the psycho-educational evaluation provides a clear picture of the child's intellectual and academic strengths and weaknesses as well as his or her emotional functioning. Mary Jane and Dr. Patrick make recommendations that are specific to the needs of the child.
Each student and his/her family are addressed in an individualized manner. The following process is typical, however:
- An intake interview for a complete history
- Completion of various checklists by parents and teachers
- Testing by the psychologist (usually 3 - 4 hours)
- Testing by the academic specialist (usually 2 - 3 hours)
- A review session for parents and/or student to explain test results (usually 2 hours) and to recommend a course of action
- Post-review follow-up
Psychological and academic testing typically includes:
- Ability testing (I.Q.)
- Evaluations of the various learning processes (auditory, visual, motor, memory)
- ADHD Screening
- Personality testing (emotional functioning)
- Academic testing in reading, written language, mathematics
The team provides a specific instructional plan that may include the following:
- Tutoring programs in enrichment and remedial reading, math and writing
- Academic tutoring in most subjects (elementary through high school)
- Study skills instruction
- Specialized programs such as:
- Fast ForWord - a program of remediation for auditory processing deficits and to enhance reading comprehension
- Orton-Gillingham - a multi-sensory approach to learning
Our Center works with a network of professionals who have expertise in treating children and adolescents with:
- Psychotherapeutic needs
- Behavior problems
- Vision problems
- Sensory integration needs
- Speech and language problems
