Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment So what happened at your kid's assessment?

We're debating an IQ evaluation for our almost-7 year old, but after such an emotional day I'm thinking it's moreso for some tools for dealing with (what I'm guessing is) sensory sensitivity, perfectionism, and I-have-no-idea-why-such a quickness to explosively crying. Would an IQ assessment with a psychiatrist cover this sort of broad thing? One of the local places I've found is this one: http://pcc.care/our-services/ - but they're not on our insurance. Is this something that could even possibly billed through insurance anyway? We can find an in-network provider, but they don't have a website that lists everything like that one, LOL.

What happened at your kid's evaluation? What sort of report/results did you receive?

We used Dr. Navarro. She is in Long Grove. Her practice is for gifted children and teens. I found her on Hoagies website. I know she accepts BCBS and she will bill others. I'm still waiting for her bill from November as our insurance did not cover testing. We have used her 3 times. Once for DD and nice for DS (second time was for entry to private schools).

HTH,
Sheila

frannieandejsmom, thanks for the response! Did you get other insight into your child's learning style, and perhaps tools for dealing with the less-desilreable qualities, as well as the IQ score?

Our DS was having a lot of issues in school back in grade 1 so we had him tested. The psychologist started with a WISC and then did other testing based on our concerns at the time and what she was seeing through the testing. We came out of it with a 15 page report with all of the test results and recommendations for IEP accommodations and modifications. He was 6.5 so they couldn't formally diagnose his LD at that time but it was enough to get us the same accommodations regardless. It also helped me to have numbers to back up my gut feeling of "he's smart". To be honest we were kind of underestimating him and the scores helped to see the bigger picture.

A couple years later we tested again to confirm the LD. Again she started with the WISC and then did more testing from there. We then got a 14 page report with all of the details.

We have also tested our DD but since we didn't suspect a second E we just asked for the WISC. Her report wasn't as long but it also had a lot of recommendations for the school and was very useful for advocating. It was also a huge wakeup call for us since she isn't as in your face gifted as DS is but has scores that aren't that much different.

We received a nice report and also a consult about 2 weeks after the testing.

Portia, thank you, "psychoeducational evaluation" is exactly the term I didn't know I was looking for. When I call providers I will ask about that.

we had a clinical psychologist (phd) evaluate our children for social issues/aspergers and adhd. The evaluations included some intelligence testing since that makes up a major part of one's psyche, I suppose.

what occurred:
there was a patient intake session, where we parents discussed our child, strengths, weaknesses as we saw them, and any issues with the dr.
there was a session where the dr interviewed each child. there were many forms for us to fill out for personality, mood and behavior ratings. we also had forms to give to teachers for the dr. to understand the behavior from that perspective.
there were forms for the kids to fill out -their own mood and personality rating forms - this may occur more when a child is older than when they are quite young. My daughter was asked to make some drawings. My son was not asked this, I suppose because he is older.

There was intelligence testing, and some other testing done, including a very boring computer test (to test for inhibition and attention).
all this was scored, reviewed and evaluated. in the case of the kids' doctor we received very lengthy report about what all of it meant.
The insurance did pay for a large part of it, as there was in both cases a diagnosis, even though the dr. was out of network.

My husband also had this done recently for himself, with an in-network doctor; the process was pretty similar, but with a somewhat less in depth final report. the insurance paid for all of it with the exception of a couple of small copays.

fjzh,

I glanced through the provider website that you linked. It looks like they do a range of assessments, from basic cognitive out to comprehensive neuropsychs, and they have contracts with allied providers (OT, speech, OG/Wilson/Lindamood-Bell reading remediation). I don't know anything directly about them, beyond their website, but the people I can find info on seem pretty reputable.

Whether the professionals who would see your child would be a good fit will depend also on the rapport you and your child feel with them at the intake. Wherever you decide to go, do not be afraid to back out of it, even after beginning the process (preferably before actual testing has commenced, though), if you or your child feel uncomfortable with them. Even excellent clinicians sometimes have certain clients that just don't connect, for no apparent reason. That's not a knock on either clinician or client--merely a poor fit. And a good reason to give your child a chance to meet them before beginning testing.

As to what kind of eval: Since your questions are really more 2e in nature than straight gifted or straight LD, I think you might be looking more for a neuropsych than a basic psychoed eval, which -could- include everything you need, but might not. More important than the name of the eval you are requesting is describing your concerns, and what you want to gain out of the eval.

E.g.,

1. DC has such and such concerning presentations (emotional dysregulation, sensory defensiveness, perfectionism);
2. we suspect these things may be factors (giftedness, anxiety,...),
3. we would like to gain this information (cognitive level, presence/absence of 2e), and
4. recommendations for these settings and functions (school, home, peer relations), including
---a. remediation,
---b. accommodations, and
---c. realistic future planning.

ITA with portia and aeh, and particularly this:


and very much specially this:


You'll receive IQ scores from a neuropsych eval, so it will answer questions re giftedness and cognitive strengths and weaknesses, so you'll have that info. More importantly, it will help you understand what's at the root of the sensory/etc behaviors that are challenging for your ds.

Neuropsych evals are expensive, *but* they are sometimes partially covered by medical insurance. My recommendation is to start with your pediatrician, outline your concerns, and ask for a referral for a neuropsych eval. Check your insurance to see if it's possibly covered.

I don't have any experience with providers in your area - the link you've provided looks like a place that has a lot of potential upside - especially if they are used to working with your school district re making recommendations etc. However - before choosing a neuropsych I'd first determine if there is a neuropsych covered by your insurance, second, get your ped's advice re where to go and third, try to network with other parents to find out what personal experiences have been with psychs in your area.

I'd also consider - almost everything (but not all) covered by a neuropsych eval can be evaluated by the school district. In our situation, we preferred the neuropsych (private) because it included an extensive parent interview to review our child's developmental history (which was important to his diagnosis). Private neuropsych evals also look more from the perspective of how a disability (if one is found) impacts a child life (including future) rather than just focusing on current academic impact. A private neuropsych can also make recommendations for local private providers if needed for OT/SLP/etc. Those are the "pros" of going private.. on the flip side, the evaluation through school does not cost $ for you as a parent, and if your school district is known to be good at evals, may be worth considering.

Best wishes,

polarbear

Errr?


Does this really indicate a 2nd e?

If so, then I need to get my DD evaluated post haste!

I had thought that these OE's were 'normal' and a natural consequence of intensity.