Where to go from here?

[creekmom]

Just got my son's (12 yo) first evaluation results and not sure where to go from here. We suspected there were learning problems (even he kept saying, "There's something wrong with my brain!") for awhile, and he did go through vision therapy a few years ago which seemed to help. Test results showed a fairly average IQ (45th percentile) with a higher GAI (79th percentile) with a strength in perceptual reasoning (87th percentile), but his processing speed was in the 5th percentile! That seems like an alarming discrepancy, but I'm not sure what to do with this information. The dr. recommended meds for ADHD (he does not have the hyper part) and some modifications with school work, but not much else. Where do I go from here??

[maize]

Does he suffer from anxiety at all? I have a child with a huge discrepancy between verbal/perceptual reasoning and processing speed, and I think anxiety has a lot to do with it in their case.

[creekmom]

Does he suffer from anxiety at all? I have a child with a huge discrepancy between verbal/perceptual reasoning and processing speed, and I think anxiety has a lot to do with it in their case.

Yes he does!! A couple of years ago he was diagnosed with OCD and generalized anxiety. The dr. prescribed Zoloft, which has really helped him. Have you had any luck increasing your child's processing speed?

[KSinNS]

Miss T also has a large gap from verbal reasoning/perceptual reasoning to working memory and processing much, much lower. All our psychologist could say was "that's a really challenging learning profile, and no wonder she gets frustrated." And treat the ADD (hers is inattentive). Treating her ADD with meds has really helped. I'd adapted what I could already, and I've been shocked at what a difference stimulants had made. She is slow to get through things though, and I do have to remember to breath when she slowly and painfully wanders towards the point :-}. Her frustration levels have dropped dramatically, which is very good. I also avoid timed work like the plague. 

[PeterPan]

We've had a couple people on the boards go from single digits %ile processing speed to 30's with IM (interactive metronome).  I think meds also bump processing speed.  IM can be done with a therapist (the formal version) and there are some hack versions you can do yourself at home for free.  These people were doing paid IM with the full equipment (headphones giving response, blah blah).  

 

He sounds very perceptive.  I think for your own teaching as far as what you expect, you use the GAI.  He's clearly bright with those scores!  That full scale (unadjusted) is getting pulled down because of that low low processing speed.

 

Make sure you use accommodations for standardized and college testing so his full abilities show.

[MistyMountain]

I have a kiddo with a much much lower processing speed and a weaker working memory that really bumped scores down. After doing jungle memory there has been a big difference in his performance. I will be doing more memory boosters with him. He also has ADHD and I think it is a common profile for a kid with attention issues. If you have difficulty holding things in your head especially when busy and also you take time to process then a lot just slips through. I heard good things about Bright Kids Who Can't Keep up since it specifically addresses the processing speed and it is very hard to find things that address it. I have my copy reserved at the library and will be starting it.