So questions:
1) At what age did you test?
2) Did you go to neuropsych or OT first? At this point we have a neuropsych, but the OT he recommends tests cost $525. Another OT (recommended by friends) costs $210, and we'd rather do that, if it makes sense.
3) What tests were done?
4) What kinds of things did you do to assist child before he/she was old enough to type? At this age our strategy is just to advocate and make school as bearable as possible, tell her that we love her and know that it is hard, and supplement at home by keeping her skills up with computer-based learning tools, which she loves and can't get enough of.
Our son saw a neuropsych at 8 and was diagnosed then. We went to a neuropsych because our school wouldn't test him for learning disabilities since he wasn't far enough behind. We expected dyslexia but the neuropsych also identified dysgraphia and an auditory processing disorder.
I honestly don't remember the tests, but our insurance covered them for developmental delays instead of educational diagnosis.
We found squishy pencil grips and paper with raised bumps for lines helped, but not all that much. The IEP allowed for severely reduced output, and we decided after a couple of miserable years that some zeros were completely acceptable when the project was too overwhelming and the teacher wasn't budging.
The other thing we did was not limit screen time with computer or gaming consoles because both required fine motor skills. He started using the computer when he was about 1 1/2, and he learned to spell his name having to type it in for his password.
We also bought a keyboard, because he loved playing music that he made up, so he would play for hours. The keyboard helped strengthen his fingers, even if he couldn't do proper fingering.
