Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment how to get DD8's reading evaluated

My DD appears to be reading at grade level, but is HG+. She doesn't really like reading. If I give her a book or graphic novel she likes she will read it, and reread it, but she doesn't like reading in general. Previously on these forums it has been recommended that we determine what exactly is going on with her reading. I don't know if I can go through the school since she appears to be reading at grade level, but I can start by asking them to determine her grade level. If she is at grade level and they won't assist me in getting her to where her IQ says she should be reading at, how do I get her reading evaluated privately?

My son is 6 and first grade and he does not like reading much either. But he is actually reading several grades above per the teacher's evaluation. So just because she does not read much at home doesn't mean she is not a good reader. Of course, if they say that she is just on grade level then maybe there is something there.

How are you determining that she's reading "at grade level" - based on what you see her read at home, or based on a school eval? The reason I ask that is - our kids' early elementary teachers sometimes *stopped* when they reached grade level while doing reading evaluations because that's what mattered to them during the grades where students were learning to read - that students reading was at grade level. If you're concerned based on what school is saying or what books are coming home from school, ask specific questions about how the in-school assessments are made.

If, otoh, it's based on a gut feeling you have from observing what she's reading, then there may be something to it.

OTOH, I think it's also worth considering that there is a wide range of reading-readiness and reading development can be really uneven, even among HG+ kids.


On one hand, not liking reading *might* be a symptom of a larger issue with reading ability, but if she's reading books she likes, that doesn't sound like a child with a reading challenge.


I always found it helpful to start by asking our pediatrician who they would recommend when we had this type of a concern (both the type of professional and specific recommendations). You can also look for reading specialists in your area - our dyslexic dd was tested and receives tutoring through a business that is led by a speech language pathologist who specializes in dyslexia. There is an international dyslexia association which might have a local branch in your area through which professionals advertise.

Vision is another issue that sometimes *looks* like a reading challenge.

Best wishes,

polarbear

ps - I can't remember exactly what was said on earlier posts re your dd, but fwiw, my dyslexic dd wasn't diagnosed until halfway through 3rd grade (age 8), simply because she was able to hide it so well thanks to her other cognitive strengths. She continued to be quite adept at hiding it even after diagnosis

I know she's reading at grade level because her comprehension is at grade level. She can sound out books that are above her level but she doesn't understand a lot of it. When I can find books that she likes (the latest was Miss Happiness and Miss Flower by Rumer Godden) she will plow through it and understand it, but that book appears to be for 7-9 year olds (she's 8). However when we have tried out higher level books she will watch the clock (she is supposed to read 20 minutes a day for school) I finally tried her out on a couple of books and she liked Rumer Godden but not Percy Jackson (although she loved Percy Jackson when I read it to her). My family, with the exception of my brother who believes he has stealth dyslexia, are voracious readers. So that's why I want to get it checked out. aeh advised that she may have a problem as her verbal level on the WISC IV was much higher than her reading level and that suggests a possible issue.

Polarbear, thanks I will call and ask her doctor if they have a recommendation.

Okay, I'm not sure if this is a good test or not but I went to this page http://www.dearteacher.com/content/find-your-childs-reading-level and used it to see what it would tell me. DD8 can read independently up to Grade 5 (she's in 3rd), she's at instructional Grade 6, independently Grade 7 and 8th up is "frustration" or above her level so I guess she can read independently at least 2 grades up and her grade reading level is actually at 6th/7th. But that's just sight reading, I don't know how to see how her comprehension is, so it basically confirms what I already knew.

So now I'm not sure what to think. My hubby was even shocked by the words she could read…at the higher levels she was sounding them out, so I know she's using that skill...

The quickest and easiest way to see what her comprehension is might be to ask her teacher - most schools' reading assessments include reading comprehension. If the teacher says that the latest assessments show her to be at grade level, ask if she was tested above grade level - sometimes teachers stop at grade level.

Another way to informally assess her comprehension is to have her read to you, or have her read books that you've also read, and then ask her questions about them. This won't quantify anything, but it can give you a sense of whether or not she's comprehending different levels of text that she's capable of reading.

polarbear

I know this sounds counterintuitive, but the research finds that one of the best quick measures of reading comprehension is actually oral reading fluency. It's not a direct measure, but it is a way of indirectly quantifying growth in reading comprehension. I've posted a few ORF charts in the past. Here's another one:

http://www.readnaturally.com/knowledgebase/documents-and-resources/26/386

You can also use some of the resources from this page:

http://www.interventioncentral.org/curriculum-based-measurement-reading-math-assesment-tests

Sorry for the delay in replying, thanks aeh! I will look at these

Okay, I finally got my DD's reading evaluated by an outside source. She is reading right at grade level. Tester said not dyslexic, but suspected problem related to possible ADD.

Taking that result at face value (which isn't a given), my comment would be that yes, ADHD can affect comprehension independent of decoding skills, mainly due to difficulties in sustaining attention throughout a passage, and organizing information into a cohesive whole, both usually in order to make inferences. Some forms of dyslexia can also affect comprehension through reading fluency deficits, even when untimed decoding appears intact. These tend to affect both literal and inferential comprehension.

In addition, some children combine high or average verbal cognition with expressive or receptive language disorders (counterintuitive, yes, but it does happen).

What sort of assessment tools did the evaluator use?