We offer psychological testing services to children above the age of three. Psychological testing provides in-depth information about a student’s strengths, abilities, and areas where they will benefit from support in the educational setting. Testing can identify a wide range of issues that may lead to problems with school, work, behavior, and emotions. Assessments may include:
- ADHD- Determines the presence and severity of ADHD symptoms and screens for other psychiatric difficulties that may adversely impact attention, concentration, and behavioral control
- Cognitive- Identifies level of cognitive ability (IQ) and any associated functional impairment, and determines whether criteria is met for an Intellectual Disability diagnosis
- Psychoeducational- Includes measures of cognitive ability (IQ) and academic achievement, as well as screening for other psychiatric difficulties that may negatively impact academic functioning. Can assist in diagnosing a specific learning disability.
- Autism- Determines whether a patient’s symptoms meet DSM-V diagnostic criteria for an Autism Spectrum Disorder using the ADOS-2, completed by a school psychologist/Board Certified Behavior Analyst provides an in-depth outline of a student's needs to help tailor the intervention plan.
- Social/Emotional- Identifies current emotional symptoms and provides differential diagnosis across a wide range of potential psychiatric difficulties.
When a student displays challenging behaviors our first instinct is to label the behavior and the person as “bad.” However, all behavior is an attempt to communicate a want or need. Our approach in such cases is to identify the function of the behavior, identifying positive replacement behaviors, develop a plan of harm reduction, and work with parents, teachers, and staff to support the enrichment of a meaningful life. This is done through the following approaches:
- Functional Behavioral Assessment- This form of assessment uses behavioral sampling to develop hypotheses regarding the function or purpose of a problematic behavior. Once identified, these hypotheses can be tested over time and settings in a systematic manner. Studies show that this type of structured process leads to improved behavioral management.
- Positive Behavioral Support Plan- The PBS plan generates teaching methods for parents, teachers, and staff to support people in avoiding problem behaviors by using positive replacement behaviors.
- Environmental Analysis- Through an environmental analysis we work with families, schools, and other community networks to identify behavioral triggers that can lead to problematic behavior. The goal of such assessment is harm reduction and positive behavior support.