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What do you do if you disagree with a school...
What do you do if you disagree with a school evaluation? An independent educational evaluation is a great tool to make sure your student is getting the service and supports they need. A parent of a student with a disability is entitled to request an independent educational evaluation or IEE each time the school conducts an evaluation. The purpose of a school evaluation is two-fold: Evaluations are used to determine eligibility or continued eligibility for special education and the educational needs of the student. The IEE serves the same purpose and is a good way to get a second opinion....
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Warning Signs of Executive Functioning Deficit (EFD)
In my experience of working with children for about 32 years, I have learned that there are very early and often subtle symptoms that suggest an Executive Function Deficit (EFD). First consider that there is a difference between attention/inhibition system problems and EFD. These disorders can exist simultaneously or separately, but EFD is more often seen with attention and impulsivity problems. What most people do not know is that EFD has to do with motor systems. All areas of higher order brain function are supported by motor systems. Early development is especially key to how the cerebellum works closely with...
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When Words Don’t Come Easily
Somewhere between twelve to eighteen months of age, a child should begin to speak his or her first words. Parents eagerly anticipate those first words to come. As the months pass by without the emergence of words, the excitement of anticipation evolves into concern and anxiety that their child is not speaking. Family and friends may try to offer words of comfort by saying things like, “he’s just a late talker”, or “boys just develop more slowly than girls.” Even your spouse may be telling you, “you’re overreacting.” Your motherly instincts still tell you something is not right. With all...
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Dyslexia and ADHD/Executive Functioning Deficits
Dyslexia and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)/Executive Function (ADHD/EF) are each complex disorders in their own right, and this brief paper is meant to shed some light on the commonality and differences of each disorder. Dyslexia and ADHD/EF are separate disorders, yet they can occur at the same time, as a so-called comorbidity. There are many reasons for this coexistence, but the bottom line is there are several brain structures (higher cortical and subcortical) that must work together to efficiently express reading, sustained attention, and the expression of executive functions. The first step is to define what kind of dyslexia...
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