Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Twice Exceptional Benefits of getting a neuropsych eval?

Hi Pemberley,

I don't know much about dysgraphia, though I suspect my DS9 is an undiagnosed dysgraphic (amid his other issues). I don't know what (if any) recommended treatments for dysgraphia look like, though I would be delighted to find out.

We had to do serious remediation to get him to grade level in K-1; we did this as part of a course of behavior therapy. The therapist would have him do speed drills, and he'd get rewarded (at first) for keeping his pencil grip correct, then (later) for copying more and more letters per minute. This was basically just a fluency exercise. It worked very nicely. Some of his process is still a little odd (he goes around the wrong way for o, for instance) but it's functional and he doesn't seem to be held up much by the writing process.

I tell you this only slightly relevant story because I don't know of any OTs who would recommend this style of remediation; we got it "off label" so to speak from someone whom we hired mainly to fix other problems. We have found that sometimes the regular channels don't get us what we need, but we can get it done another way.

So in your shoes I'd evaluate this way: Are you seeing progress as a result of the school OT? What's being worked on there? Do you think their strategies are useful for your DD? Are you seeing improvement in writing (process and product) over time?

If you think what the school is doing is working for your DD, then it's okay to cool your heels and watch the progress, supporting from home as needed. If you think she needs more/different therapy, then it's back on you to figure out what that is. In that case, either you could get the written report and talk the school into trying something different, or you could get a verbal recommendation (or the report) and just pursue the recommended therapy outside of school.

DeeDee

ETA: listen to Aculady, though, she knows more than I do.