THOROUGH ASSESSMENTS ENSURE APPROPRIATE PLACEMENT FOR YOUR CHILD

 

A thorough and accurate assessment is extremely important, and the Prentice staff does everything in their power to make it a comfortable and stress-free process for your child.

 

Prentice uses the following criteria to help determine if our program is appropriate for your child:

• Intellectual testing using the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, Third Edition. The child's full-scale IQ must be within the average range of intellectual functioning (90 or above).

• Identification of a Specific Learning Disability based on psychological testing, language and achievement test scores.

• Written documentation indicating that the child does not demonstrate conduct disorders, emotional problems or other conditions that require special accommodations and/or treatment.

• Evaluation with the Slingerland Screening Tests for Identifying Children with Specific Language Disability.

• Indications that coexisting attention deficits are not at a level that would interfere with classmates' opportunities for learning.

• A review of previous scholastic records, including a report from a current teacher.

 

"Prentice has become a school of contented children. It proves to me that children respond positively when in a gentle, kind, but firm atmosphere."

—Prentice teacher

 

 

Be Informed

Knowledgeable and proactive parents are crucial for transforming an unhappy, struggling student into a happy, proficient one.

• Speak to teachers and other school personnel

• Get your child accurately and promptly diagnosed

• Provide a program that is scientifically proven

 

Testing for Dyslexia

If you suspect your child has learning differences, ask for:

• A full psycho-educational battery of tests that includes a speech and language evaluation. These tests are available through your public school or a private educational psychologist

 

If your child has small or large motor difficulties, ask for:

• An occupational therapy (OT) or physical therapy (PT) evaluation

 

If your child has attention or impulsivity issues, see:

• A developmental pediatrician who specializes in Attention Deficit Disorder

 

• A Mind at a Time by Dr. Mel Levine

• Basic Facts About Dyslexia & Other Reading Problems by Louisa C. Moats, Ed. D. & Karen E. Dakin

• How Parents Can Make a Difference During the Early Years by Susan L. Hall and Louisa C. Moats, Ed.D.

• It’s So Much Work to Be Your Friend by Richard Lavoie

• Overcoming Dyslexia by Dr. Sally Shaywitz

• Parenting a Struggling Reader by Susan L. Hall & Louisa C. Moats, Ed.D.

• Raising A Self-Disciplined Child by Robert Brooks, Ph.D. & Sam Goldstein, Ph.D.

• Raising Resilient Children by Dr. Robert Brooks

• Straight Talk About Reading by Susan L. Hall & Louisa C. Moats, Ed.D.

 

Websites

• www.ataccess.org                  Alliance for Technology Access

• www.add.org                          Attention Deficit Disorder Association

• www.collegeview.com             College View

• www.cldinternational.org         Council for Learning Disabilities

• www.greatschools.net            (formerly Schwab Learning Center)

• www.interdys.org                   International Dyslexia Association

• www.ldanatl.org                     Learning Disabilities Assn. of America

• www.ldonline.org                   Learning Disabilities Online

• www.nais.org                        National Association of Independent Schools

• www.ncld.org                        National Center for Learning Disabilities

• www.nichcy.org                     National Dissemination Center for Children with Disabilities

• www.nifl.gov                          National Institute for Literacy

• www.nichd.nih.gov                 National Institute of Child Health & Human Development

• www.prentice.org                   The Prentice School

• www.professorgarfield.org       (formerly sparktop.org)

• www.readingrockets.org         Reading Rockets

• www.rfbd.org                         Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic

• www.slingerland.org               Slingerland Institute for Literacy