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Changed

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Everything posted by Changed

  1. Our insurance won't cover aba therapy even with the diagnosis. 😞 we can barely afford the one hour a week for speech therapy. He def has the oral motor issues, and he was also diagnosed with specific motor function disorder (or something like that) by an OT. And it all sounds terrible on paper, but everyone in my family thinks he's a completely normal six year old. 🙄
  2. Sadly, he can not recite verses. I gave up months ago bc it just wasn’t happening. He can’t even recite the alphabet, or sing the alphabet song even though I’ve sang it to him literally every single day since he was a toddler.
  3. I need help picking curriculum for my just-turned 6 yo son. I know this is a classical forum, but im definitely not limiting suggestions to classical if something better fits him. 😊 I’ve stressed over this boy for years, and I feel like I need to get a plan and put it in motion. Quick history: last year I had him evaluated by a psychologist and after spending literally five minutes with my boy he said, “all the questionnaires you filled out point to autism, the speech and language evaluations point to autism, and the vb-mapp done at the autism center points to autism. But this boy is too social to have autism.” So, I needed to get a second opinion, but instead I’m just trying to get him what he needs. I purchased the ablls and am also reading Teaching Children with Learning and Behavioral Problems. So I’m hoping to put an educational plan in place to teach all the skills he needs, but I also need a program or curriculum to guide me. He is good at math. He picked up addition facts on his own just by doing a rod and staff workbook. He seems to be beyond k math, but I don’t know if I should focus strictly on phonics/reading, or if I should also be working on math at his pace. My main need right now (i think) is which reading program to buy. He knows most of his letter sounds, but it isn’t super quick recall like it should be. He really has to think about most of them for a few seconds. He is a visual learner, and probably needs hands-on/movement type of stuff. It’s hard to get him to sit still for five minutes (unless he’s playing Minecraft 🙄). So, I guess my question is what reading and math programs will work for a possible HFA/adhd struggling learner? And I’d really love to throw in something fun like science, history, or bible. I want to feel like we’re “doing school” instead of me just showing him a few flashcards and asking what sound the letter makes.
  4. I’m following the Keto diet. I’ve lost 17 pounds since May 6th. It’s the only time I’ve stayed on a diet more than three hours. Lol. I’m not sure if it’s the diet, or the fact that I realized just how much weight I’d gained. I stay below 15 carbs and 1200 calories most days. Breakfast consists of bulletproof coffee. The only way I stray from the plan is with my Diet Coke.
  5. I made an appointment for Thursday with our pediatrician. They said she won't diagnosis, but she'll do her evaluation/screening and then refer me to someone. So, I need to prepare to go into her office with just the right symptoms, stories, and reports for her to take me seriously. Any tips on how to "present my case"? Should I just hand this list over: Developmentally: no waving, babbling, or imitation Speech: speech sound disorder, didn't speak until he was 2 and a few months Language: vbmapp showed"deficits requesting help, information using wh questions, and requesting things requiring a yes or no response. Requesting info using wh questions was non existent... Deficits being able to talk and hold a conversation with peers. Didn't not speak to his peers during play or at the table, and when a child would talk to him he would not respond... Deficits listing multiple items in a class, describing locations, and answering questions related to a sequence of events." Problems with time concepts, always talks loud, chews on his shirts and fingers. Hyperactive IQ test while in the low-average range showed an 11-point discrepancy between verbal and nonverbal. CELF-5 showed below average scores in word structure, word class, and pragmatics profile. Conners early childhood BEH-parent form showed very elevated social functioning and atypical behaviors. Childhood rating scale-2 indicated "mild autism spectrum disorder", primary concerns in emotional response and relating to people.
  6. After reading old posts here and other blogs and such, I was trying to figure out why people always wait years before getting started. I guess wanting the diagnosis before the child starts improving makes sense. I had never really thought about that.
  7. My insurance doesn't cover ABA therapy, and I hear there's a 10,000 person wait list for the waivers available. And state Medicaid is dependent on household income, so we wouldn't qualify. So I'd rather start now and just pay for it so he can get the help he needs.
  8. The ABA therapist told me I should at least ask for a copy of the ADOS screening sheet. To see what he marked off and such. He said he can't believe the evaluation report was barely two pages long. Tomorrow morning I'm going to call and get a copy of the actual test and then make an appointment with my ped to refer me to someone for second opinion. But for now the therapist is getting back with me for a time to schedule the ablls. Our goal is for him to perform the assessment and then teach me to teach my son in the least amount of visits necessary. At least until someone else is paying! He said the vb-mapp clearly indicates my son has deficits. If it walks like a duck... Did I mention the CELF results? He scored below average in the subtests word structure, word class, and pragmatics profile. For whatever that's worth. She also noticed and added goals for answering WH questions. We start language therapy Thursday.
  9. The behavioral therapist is board certified that came to my house today to discuss ABA. The one that did the evaluation was a psychologist. Wait. The ped can diagnosis autism?! Mind blown. I didn't even talk to the ped bc we never see her and I just thought she'd refer me to a psychologist.
  10. Yes I'm getting more upset each day I schedule appointments knowing that insurance won't cover them bc I have no diagnosis. Yet the reason I'm making the appointments is bc HE recommended them for my son--social skills, speech, language!! I may call him up and see if he'll reconsider testing again. ?? That will be cheaper than starting over. Or do I need to cut my losses with him?
  11. I'm not done reading your response, but I want to quickly say before I forget again...he sent me home after the first appointment with three separate questionnaires that I mailed in. He said in his final report that those questionnaires actually TESTED POSITIVE (or however he said it) for mild autism!! Yet, bc in five minutes of observation my son was social he determined him to not have autism.
  12. He is actually a BCBA. I'm just getting used to all the letters. Lol. He said he has extensive training with the vbmapp and ablls.
  13. I have more questions and realized I never updated here. Btw, I have been enjoying and learning from the thread on "narrative language in autism" . That's a wealth of information, but I'm only on page 1. Lol The VB-MAPP showed deficits in social skills (asking WH questions, engaging in conversations with peers, etc), and academically he is behind--only knows a few letters and numbers. There was a lot more to the assessment, but I'm trying to give highlights. With the evaluator's report, and looking over the VB-MAPP scores, I was sure there would be an ASD diagnosis. So I scheduled an appt with a psychologist and went for the initial appt. Filled out tons of questionnaires and then we went back for the "testing" : The doctor first did an IQ test which took 15 minutes; he said Bryson was average and did fine. It was the KBIT-2. Nonverbal IQ was 11 points lower than berbal, but all were at the low end of average. Then he had me and an assistant in the room while he did the ADOS. It took 20 minutes! I am assuming that most of you are more knowledgeable of these tests than I am. While he said all the questionnaires I completed diagnosed autism, he said (even after just 5 minutes) that he saw no signs of autism during his observations. I have been reading about the ADOS since I got home, and usually it involves a pretend birthday party and a doll with a bed or bottle to assess imaginative play. Also, there are usually questions about emotions and relationships. None of this was done. He just kept saying, oh, he is much too social to be on the spectrum! This is what took place: My son told the assistant about Minecraft. She asked a question, and he ignored it and continued talking about Minecraft. The doctor said, “it’s been hot out. Have you been swimming in the pool”? He said no. I was like, “um, Son? You haven’t been swimming? Where’d we go yesterday”? And he stared at me. I reminded him we went to Uncle’s party ALL DAY yesterday and swam. So, then he told my son to play with anything. He started stacking blocks and the doctor started playing with a remote control car. My son watched him and the doctor asked if he wanted to play. So then He played with the car. That was it. Is that enough to exclude the diagnosis? Am I to be happy that my child isn’t on the spectrum? Or do I need a second opinion? I told the doctor my concerns about the way he can’t answer questions or remember memory verses or sing songs that we’ve sang his entire life. The doctor said, so he has a language problem, not an autism problem. He did say that my son would benefit from the 2-3 hours a week of the social skills class that the autism center had recommended. And also said he would recommend language therapy. I spent 2 years ignoring symptoms and telling people there was no way he had autism. Then I spent the last 2 months trying to figure out what was wrong with him and accepting autism. And now he’s a normal little boy with just speech issues?? Anyway, the last two speech appts our slp did the CELF-5 (I think) with him and I'll be getting those results later this morning. We will be adding in another 30 minute session each week for language therapy. I have also been texting with an BCABA who does in-home ABA. He comes this afternoon for the interview. He said he is trained in VB, but on his resume I don't see much to show that. So we shall see. ? I bought the Ablls, and I'm hoping he can eventually do the ablls and set up a plan so.that I can follow it at home with minimal.visits from him--afterall, insurance isn't covering any of this. ? I'm.not sure what to expect, really. I guess ill have more questions later.
  14. Thank you. I understood what you meant about the condensed sheet. I’m sure there’s more to it than just 4 checks. Lol. Will insurance pay if he needs some sort of social skills therapy, even if he doesn’t have a diagnosis? Or will I just work with him at home?
  15. He went to the first half of his VB-MAPP today. They had group therapy for part of it, so the BCBA was able to observe him with peers. When she was talking to me afterwards, I looked at her papers and there were about forty lines and only 4 checks! She said that while he did play well with the other kids, he lacked a lot of social skills—he never asked them questions and couldn’t or didn’t have any back-and-forth conversations. Other things I can’t remember. I did ask her if she felt he needed further testing, and while she made it clear she doesn’t diagnose she said testing would definitely be helpful. So we’ll go back tomorrow for about 3 more hours and see how it goes. She said they enter all the info into the computer and then send me the report. I hate waiting for answers! And although part of me must realize it bc I’m taking him for this assessment, it’s still really hard for me to believe there’s anything wrong with him—other than speech problems. Oh, she also said academically he had gaps. Not knowing most of the letters and sounds, not writing numbers, doesn’t know the letters in his name. But I feel like that’s probably my fault bc I’ve been so overwhelmed with life and homeschooling my two girls. ? I definitely don’t want him getting some label just bc I haven’t taught him well enough.
  16. Thanks for the replies! I looked up a PROMPT person in my area, but they aren’t currently taking new clients. Boo. I’m putting a call in to the one other lady in my area who is listed on the PROMPT website. The place recommended to me for the autism testing has a long wait, and they won’t even talk to me until my doctor faxes them a referral. My girls had a well-check appt today and I asked the pediatrician about getting him a referral for testing, but she wants me to make an appt so we can sit and talk more about it. So I’ll be going next week for his appt. i called to schedule the VB-MAPP with an ABA institute a few towns over, and they had a cancellation so we are going Thursday and Friday for that. I’ve decided to just pay out of pocket so we can see where his deficits are and I can get a curriculum/plan worked out to hopefully get him ready for Kindergarten in the fall. And then once he has the testing done we can begin whatever therapies he needs and they will hopefully be covered by insurance. My friend recommended Mary Barbara’s book verbal behavior approach and I’ve been reading it. And I just ordered the Kindle version of the one you linked, Lecka, so I’ll get started on it tonight. So one new question I have is do I need to buy both parts of the VB-MAPP for myself? I know the director of the ABA institute said the book is copyrighted so I would only get the scoring sheet.
  17. My son is 5 years 3 months old. He's been with several different SLPs since he was 2 and a half. I think I've finally found one who knows what they're doing. ? He is only intelligible to other people probably 20% of the time, and to us about 75% of the time. This lady has noticed some oral motor weaknesses and mentioned apraxia, but says she doesn't want to diagnosis him until she's seen him a few times. That's not really my main concern, even though it probably should be. I have a good friend who suspects he has a learning disability, possibly mild form of autism. The thing is... He doesn't really have any of the social risk factors/symptoms. Well, he may be a little awkward with kids he doesn't know. The things that do concern me, besides his speech, are the fact that he can't learn songs or nursery rhymes, he doesn't know what certain things are called (like the toaster or laundry room) and his complete lack of interest in our puppies or my grand baby. I thought that was a boy thing, but I know plenty of boys who like puppies and babies. But maybe that's just a personal preference thing?? And since my friend said he needed the ABLLS or VB MAPP and I've been researching those tests, I've realized my son doesn't quite understand opposites, and doesn't know body parts, like elbow, knee, ankle, or shoulder. I called around and found a place that can administer the VB MAPP within a couple weeks--as long as it's self pay. But when trying to schedule a full autism and IQ test it could be months! I don't really know what my question is, I just wanted to talk to people who might understand. Because everyone around here says, oh he's just a boy... He's just a late talker... There's nothing wrong with him...
  18. As I'm sitting here waiting for two new tires to places on my van, my teen is texting me from work saying her car is taking a long time to start, and jerking. 😫 I have been reading all the replies and am still processing everything. When I get home I want to go back through and write everything down--all the game suggestions, appts I should make, phone calls I need to make. Then I will be able to come back here and discuss with you all. 😊 Oh, I got Barton yesterday. When I saw the very thin book and handful of tiles, I almost cried. Not bc this may be the program to help my girl read...no, I'm not an optimist like that. I almost cried bc I PAID $250 FOR IT!! It looks like nothing! 😫💰 Anyway, at least my husband doesn't mind the cost. 😂😂
  19. Yes, we do play games. Our most recent ones have been Spot It and Set, although I don't think those will help working memory. I should probably bring out one of the Memory games we have. The psych also diagnosed her with ADHD inattentive, but I find that so hard to believe that I didn't mention it in this thread. :tongue_smilie: Although, in researching ADHD I think I've discovered that *I* may have ADD. I have almost every symptom! :ohmy: So, if it is genetic (is it?), then I guess it is a possibility that DD has it.
  20. I was confused by that, too, and really should have asked the psych. I believe since he isn't an audiologist (and dd isn't yet 7), he couldn't diagnose her as having APD. So that is more of the symptoms she's having. Does that make sense?? ETA: This of course is all speculation on my part. lol
  21. Yes, she likes Ambleside as well as anything else. She'd rather be playing games and watching tv, of course. ;-) We had to temporarily stop speech bc we couldn't afford it. Public school starts this week here, so I'm going to go through the process to get her and ds in speech through them, as much as I hate to do it. I just can't keep shelling out $200 a month for a private therapy. DD did splendidly the short time she was in speech. She actually says everything right most of the time now. Her only problem was she couldn't say a couple of letters that at her age she should have been saying. I don't believe she's had any language testing. In the IQ testing the psych did, she was high average in verbal comprehension and perceptual reasoning. Does that mean anything? She is able to narrate back to me the stories I read to her.
  22. When I did the Barton screening with dd about six months(?) ago she passed 1 and 2, but barely passed part 3. She probably DOES need to see an audiologist, but I don't know were to even start to find one that's worth anything, and I can't fork out much more money for evaluations. Can I just assume she has APD and make those accommodations here at home, or are there different kinds that would affect treatment? One thing I am worried about with Barton is...I was watching the training videos online and when Susan was doing the example of Lesson 1 Procedure 3, I believe, she had the "student" drag down the nonsense two phoneme word, and then she said "Okay now I'm going to replace this sound with /m/". I can't see where dd will be able to do that. She won't be able to remember that the initial word was /ba/ to be able to replace it with /ma/. Does that make sense? I would have to keep reminding her, and I'm not sure if that's "allowed". I haven't finished the videos yet. Will I just keep going over that lesson each day until she finally can do it? idk. I will definitely explain to dh what seeing a tutor would involve, financially and time-wise. I think once I get started and he sees us consistently "doing school" and hopefully sees dd progressing, he'll back off a bit and be supportive.
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