my sister wants to know how she can get her 7 year old daughter tested?

Question

She needs to know what she needs to do to get her daughter tested, her daughter is in 1st grade and has trouble with learning.
To see if she has any disabilities that causing her to have trouble with learning.

her grandpa has a learning disability.
Her uncle is mild mentally handicapped.
Her aunt has mild mental retardation.


She does wear glasses.

Answer 1

In NJ all it takes is a letter written to the school requesting that they test her. Here the school system has to do it if the parents request it.

Answer 2

There are usually state rules on this. You can call the state board of education and ask them. Sometimes local school districts avoid testing because of the expense. The tests do not always find all of the problems. Sometimes it is a good idea to hire outside testers for areas not covered. Some areas are so new that the testers in those areas vary when giving a diagnosis.

These are the areas I would test - I.Q. (her ability to learn in many academic areas), an achievement test (Maps, Iowa, Stanford etc). This will measure her learning through kindergarten, a vision and a developmental vision test through a developmental optometrist (a regular optometrist can not measure things like saccades which is the ability to go from the end of one line to the beginning of the next line), a hearing test including an auditory processing test, a sensorimotor integration test given by a pediatric occupational therapist, a neurological evaluation and a psychological evaluation if indicated (ADHD, ADD, autism etc).

Answer 3

There is a new federal educational mandate called Response to Intervention (RTI) that schools MUST have in place. Basically it is an ever increasing assistance to failing students in terms of intensity and frequency BEFORE the student should be referred for assessment. That means that you won't be able to just demand that she be tested. In addition, parents don't have a right to demand that their child be fully tested only to refer for possible assessment.

The first thing your sister should do is consult the family pediatrician for possible medical problems.

1. Can she see well enough? She needs a complete vision screening. You wouldn't believe the number of students who are called LD (learning disabled) when all they really have is a subtle vision problem. You want to make sure she can see the teacher, see the teacher materials, track the print as it's being read to her. Don't let the school nurse do it. I don't trust those five minute screenings.

2. Assessed by a professional for hearing difficulties. NOT just overall gross hearing but is she hearing all the sounds of the English language or is she missing the sounds in the upper registers? Again, don't go by the school nurse.

3. Does she sleep well at night? Does she wake up often? Have lots of trouble falling asleep? Kids who don't sleep well don't learn well.

Other
4. Does she act in general immature for her age? Is her language immature for her age group? Does she have trouble making friends her own age or is she very sociable? If she seems immature in general, especially in language skills, you may want to go ahead and press harder to have her tested. Ask to speak to the head of the intervention committee for your child's building.

5. You or your sister must visit the classroom without prior announcement (although you may be announced from the office when you arrive at the school) several times. Go at different times during the day, not just in the morning. You just want to slip in and see what she (your niece) is doing. Is she attempting to complete her bookwork? Is she seated near the teacher or far away?

6. Ask about RTI-when and where is your niece getting the intervention she needs to succeed. Ask for written reports on her progress in intervention. Ask for material to work with her at home. Make yourselves polite, friendly, PESTS at the school. The squeaky wheel gets the grease

Answer 4

She needs to write a letter to the special education specialist, or team, requesting that her child be tested due to difficulty in a particular area, reading, math, focusing.... etc. The team has 50 days to complete an assesment, in which they will conduct an IQ test and a test of ability to determine if in fact there is a disability and in fact what area. If your sister suspects that it may be due to a medical condition such as ADD, or a hearing problem, she shoud take her to the dr., because if in fact there is not a learning issue but she has a medical diagnosis she can still qualify for speciale education services.

Answer 5

This is easy.

You can ask your medical doctor, consult your local mental health care facility....for CPT testing.......ability test.

The school systems also have a testing level that can verify this.

Do not panic, sometimes it is just the immaturity of the child....sometimes they are so pushed ahead in the school system and some kids just learn at different levels.

Do not be disheartended with her but thankful you have means to verify her needs.

Wish you both well!

Answer 6

Try to get a referral from her teacher or principal. If that doesn't work go to the director of special ed. A parent can request this assessment, however, be aware that the cost is high and may not be received well by the school &/or district you are in. The squeaky wheel gets oiled first!!!

Answer 7

Her daughters school should offer to do an IEP. ( Individualized Education Plan). You can request one and it is FREE. The test takes place at the school and you should be able to have the test done and know the results in 4-6 weeks. God bless your sister and may he guide her through this situation.

Answer 8

where I live you just need to request your local school to test your child. there are also testings that they can do at your doctors offices our hospitals alot of children have special needs and if they are caught early enough they can grow up to handle that disability as the norm in life and go on to higher education and have their own families and live a happy healthy life..encourage your sister to follow through and not to let this matter just get pushed to the bottom of her things to do list I have a daughter that was diagnosed with aspersons syndrome at 5 and now is and educated smart young girl in 3rd grade nine years old working with her class graduated special ed..they can also fix this with diet

Answer 9

She has to make a request to the school in writing. They may try interventions first, such as extra time to complete work, extra tutoring, etc. before they actually test her, but you must ask in writing, and date the letter, and keep a copy for your records. You may need to start a file to keep track of the paperwork on this, stay organized.

Answer 10

if this ran in your family she shouldve been tested before 3 yrs old, now at 7yrs old, wow. how come the pediatrician never suggested she be tested. My son has mild autism and even though my 18 month old daughter seems very neurotypical im still having her tested and Autism has never been diagnosed in my hubbys or my families.

go to her pediatrician. Im surprised the school system didnt catch it before now.