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After a referral from DS(2)'s pedi, we are getting an early intervention plan set up for DS's regimented behavior and asynchronous behavior. I'm told it's a three pronged approach. The first step is an in-home evaluation. Since he's only 2, he needs to be observed in his home setting to see where his strengths and weaknesses are, then will meet with a developmental psychologist and start therapy. We already know he has SPD, but we don't know the extent or severity yet, since I haven't pushed it with him. I didn't want to set him back or make things worse.

Has anyone else had an in-home eval? What do they consist of? I know she said she'd be looking at his attachment, his engagement, depth of play, physical abilities, how he copes with frustration, etc. Wondering if anyone could share any experiences of how it went with your kiddos.

It's pretty much what you described. Our DS was evaluated at about age 2, primarily for speech delay, so one of the two evaluators was a speech therapist, the other was an OT if I remember correctly. They brought some toys and things they used, basically observing how he interacted and played. A large part of the eval was asking questions of me (mom) about his communication, habits, personality traits, milestones, interactions with older sister, eating and sleeping habits, birth history, etc. They were very in-depth in their questioning, with lots of probing follow-ups and clarifications. Because there were two evaluators, one did most of the questioning while the other was more free to focus on DS. They did a lot of observing how he handled two strangers in his house, having mom's attention focused elsewhere and how he communicated, what produced frustration in him and how it was handled, etc, but again, his main issue was expressive speech, so that certainly directed the focus of the evaluation. I was impressed with their ability to "read" DS, and they were very sensitive to overwhelming him or overloading him (he also had issues with sensory integration) and watching for signs that he was becoming fatigued. The whole thing probably lasted 2 or 2 ½ hours in total.

The report they produced was several very detailed and helpful pages of observations and suggested plans. For us, this was the entire evaluation. Overall, it was a positive experience, and resulted in DS qualifying for 6 months of early intervention, focused on speech/ expressive language; within a few months he was speaking well and discharged from the program.

I really appreciated your response! Did they give you much feedback that day or did they follow up later about how their findings and what would help? How long did it take from the visit to the actual therapy sessions?

This was a looong time ago (12 years!) but I don't think we heard anything until the report came, in a couple weeks. I do think one of the evaluators called to make sure we had no questions, but I'm not certain.

Getting the therapy going was harder- as Portia mentioned, it depends on your DS's needs at the services/therapists available in your area. We ended up starting with an OT because they couldn't find a speech person who was available. Within a few weeks, though, we were switched to a speech therapist with expertise in issues DS was facing. He enjoyed the therapy (mostly) and progressed rapidly; he was discharged before the 6 months were up. We do still wonder sometimes if he would have started speaking spontaneously anyway (he is an obstinate one who gave the sense he just didn't want to talk) but I guess we'll never know, and there's no denying that he had issues with oral sensitivity.

Overall, a positive experience with a caring, through and helpful group of individuals- we are grateful such services exist.

Okay, DS had his eval. It went really well, but left him exhausted afterwards. They said there were obvious incongruities/ansynchronies (which we already knew) and that he has SPD that needs some therapy. She didn't think he was ASD, but he does have some ASD-like behaviors, which might qualify him for other therapies. She noted that his cognitive abilities and fine motor skills were on par with the average 3 year old, gross motor development was on par with a 2-2.5 year old, language skills were higher than I had figured it to be which is a few months more advanced than for his age. She said that I needed to keep encouraging social engagement with peers (age and development), that I need to let him decide who to play with and just encourage his socialization. He was emotionally, pretty advanced but wasn't sure exactly how far since he's very selective with when and who he's showing his EQ to.

Follow-up: We have finally met with ALL the specialists and have a written IFSP eval. The Developmental Psychologist was seriously impressed with his advanced abilities, but she can was so great at spotting my concerns in his behavior before I even said anything, so I was already starting to have some confidence in her picking up on his little nuances. I will get the FULL written assessment and detailed assessment in the mail later, but I do have the preliminary copy. They used the DAYC-2
Results:
Physical (Gross Motor): 108, 70th %ile
Physical (Fine Motor): 90, 25th %ile
Cognitive: 125, 99th %ile
Communication: 112, 79th %ile
Social/Emotional: 104, 61st %ile

Overall: 130, 98th %ile.

I was pretty shocked that it was as high as it was and she wasn't surprised that DS has those vast dichotomies. She was explaining that he is continuing to push his cognitive ceiling for himself, but he's skipping the foundational stuff that is "too easy" to pay attention to. It really explains why he stopped using previously mastered words, abilities, tricks, etc. He's always moving on to the next new thing. He seems to stare off into space ignore his environment, then snaps back and goes back to what he was doing. He had an EEG done (no seizures) and this DP was telling me that he's got an overwhelming thought that stops him for a minute. She finds him extremely fascinating and will be working with him personally for the next two months at least. She seemed really intrigued with him and what he's capable of.

I FINALLY FEEL VALIDATED! Now, we have a plan to work with him on his behaviors and switching tasks, rigid mentality, and incessant input need!