THERAPY AND PARENT CONSULTATION

• Therapy

  Dr. Jenkins provides cognitive therapy to students from elementary to college level for a wide host of concerns. Please note, due to her travel schedule and school commitments, these sessions are highly limited.

• Parent Consultation

  Parents often will contact Dr. Jenkins for a parent consultation to discuss a single issue, or simply to have a professional sounding board on child development issues. Consultations can be provided both in the office, or virtually.

PSYCHOEDUCATIONAL ASSESSMENTS

WHY PERFORM A PSYCHO-EDUCATIONAL ASSESSMENT?

"COULD DO BETTER"

"EASILY DISTRACTED"

"OFTEN SEEMS BORED"

"UNMOTIVATED"

"DISENGAGED"

"HOMEWORK CONSTANTLY LATE"

"NEEDS MORE TIME TO FINISH WORK"

"STRUGGLES WITH FRIENDSHIPS"

PSYCHOEDUCATIONAL ASSESSMENTS CAN IDENTIFY UNIQUE LEARNING DIFFERENCES WHICH MAY BE AFFECTING ACADEMIC SUCCESS

Your child´s level of engagement with school, and the feedback you are getting, may be related to giftedness, ADHD, dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia, language development, bilingualism, anxiety, depression, and many other causes. These challenges can often lie dormant and become more evident as the demands of school increase each year. Once these challenges are identified a psychoeducational evaluation will provide a strength-based pathway forward, guiding schools, parents and students in terms of learning approaches, study methods, test accommodations or curriculum modifications that can support student success.

Completing the psychoeducational testing includes collecting information on your child’s functioning and history in the following four areas:

• Cognitive Skills – tests used to measure cognitive skills are often called "intelligence" tests. Intelligence tests are controversial in some ways- for example, we know that there is no relationship between what they measure and becoming successful in life. There are plenty of highly “intelligent” people that do not have other ingredients that are necessary for "success" (at home, with friends and in terms of work). There are many areas of "intelligence" that they do not measure. To name a few, kinesthetic awareness (required for athletes), spiritual understanding (required to be a great religious leader), and musical savvy (fueling great performers).
  
  

  SO WHY DO WE GIVE THEM?

  There are three great reasons to give cognitive testing:

  • Regardless of what they do NOT measure, there is a direct linear correlation with school functioning. So in other words, when we know the level that someone´s cognitive function is at, we can predict how they should perform in school. The discrepancy then between where we predict a student should fall, and their actual academic functioning becomes a very important variable in understanding your child's profile.

  • Cognitive functioning does not just come up with one overall "number", it is comprised of by variety of composite scores (verbal, visual spatial reasoning, fluid reasoning, working memory, and processing speed). Student's cognitive profiles and discrepancies between composites are very telling and can assist in diagnostics (for example, there are certain learning differences that seem to have very clear patterns on cognitive tests).

  • And one of the most important reasons for cognitive testing is seeing the unique strengths presented in a student's profile. Once we know how a student best analyzes data and problem solving, there is a great start point for providing parents, teachers, and the student themselves, ideas on how they can best learn. Teaching and study methods can then be uniquely created that are strength based for each student.
    This is the part of testing that Dr. Jill especially embraces.

• Academic Functioning - looks at how a child is falling with comparison to other children of their same age within the USA or UK curriculum. It measures reading, writing, math and oral skills. Within those areas of functioning are several subtests. By analyzing a student´s academic profile, in addition to observing how they approach problem solving, the psychoeducational evaluation can identify areas of strength and need, in addition to pinpointing specific targets for improvement the academic setting.

• Behavioral Screening - At times Dr. Jenkins requires that students receiving a psychoeducational evaluation also have their teachers and parents complete a questionnaire with regard to their behavior in the school and home environment. This assists in screening for indications of other social or emotional factors that may be contributing to a student's academic performance. For teens and college students a self-report questionnaire may also administered.

• School history – Dr. Jenkins believes in analyzing school performance "trajectories" when evaluating a child. Providing her with the last five years of end-of-the-year report cards is important in understanding the evolution of concerns, and to understanding the school and teacher’s perspective on the student over the school years.

AT WHAT AGE CAN YOU GIVE A PSYCHOEDUCATIONAL ASSESSMENT?

Psychoeducational evaluations can be completed on students ages four to college years.

WHAT IS THE PROCESS OF COMPLETING A PSYCHOEDUCATIONAL ASSESSMENT?

At the end of Session 4 you will have

• A clear understanding of your child’s cognitive and academic profile in terms of strengths and challenges.
• If present, a diagnosis of a learning disability, giftedness or other diagnosis.
• A uniquely tailored list of recommended accommodations and modifications for the school and teaching/ study methods that would best suit your child.
• A clear road map on next steps and ways forward.

Scheduling

Psychoeducational assessments that are uniquely tailored require time, dedication, and passion. Dr. Jenkins carries all of these characteristics. She sees no more than one student per week for testing. Students are scheduled in the order with which parents come in for their first sessions. There can be a wait for services, so it is recommended to have that initial appointment as soon as a concern arises.

Urgent Testing

There are times that urgent testing is requested. This may possibly be provided during a full weekend, but only in certain circumstances and pending availability. A 50% supplement will be added to the cost.

Insurance Coverage

Dr. Jenkins does not take third party reimbursement. An invoice will be provided to you after payment has been made for you to submit to your insurance company, most of which will cover 80% of costs.