Psychoeducational Testing for Children & Teens
In-Person Psychoeducational Assessments Offered in Boca Raton for Students Throughout South Florida
Help your child succeed in their educational environment.
Whether they need additional academic or behavioral support, a psychoeducational assessment will identify why your child may be having difficulties in school and provide recommendations for getting the help they need to succeed.
Is Your Child Struggling Academically?
Here's how to know if your child needs a psychoeducational assessment:Your child’s teacher or tutor has shared that they are having difficulty learning or comprehending reading, struggling with math facts or word problems, or having challenges with writing.
Getting your child to do their homework or reading is a major battle. Complaining or refusing to do schoolwork could be due to a learning disability or ADHD. Testing can help you discover the root cause and develop new strategies.
Your pediatrician recommends psychoeducational testing to diagnose a condition, such as ADHD or anxiety, that might be making it difficult for your child to succeed at school.
Your child’s school requests a psychoeducational assessment to ensure they can offer more academic support, such as an individualized education plan (IEP) or Section 504 accommodation plan.
How Can a Psychoeducational Assessment Help Your Child?
Learning Disabilities
A psychoeducational assessment can uncover learning disabilities, including a specific learning disorder (SLD), reading disorder, math disorder, disorder of written expression, Dyslexia, Dysgraphia, and Dyscalculia.
If your child has any learning differences, they may be eligible for an IEP or 504 accommodation plan through their school. This means they can work with a special education teacher or learning specialist who uses evidence-based strategies to support your child’s needs. You may also qualify for reimbursement from the state of Florida for tutors or to help pay for private schools.
My psychoeducational evaluations always include a detailed report with specific recommendations. During our post-assessment feedback session, I will provide detailed instructions on sending the report to the school and asking for a meeting to discuss an IEP or 504 plan. I can also attend that meeting to help advocate for your child if needed.
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
A psychoeducational assessment can help a child with ADHD, because it will identify if their inattention or hyperactivity is preventing them from learning or impacting their learning in any way. For example, a student with ADHD may lose focus while reading. This is a symptom of their ADHD (rather than a reading disorder), and they may need extra time for reading or taking tests.
A psychoeducational assessment can give you the information you need to get additional school support, including an IEP or 504 accommodation plan, as well as strategies you can use to help your child at home.
Following the psychoeducational evaluation, you will receive an in-depth report providing recommended classroom accommodations, such as sitting near the instructor or incorporating movement breaks into their school day. I will also support you in working with your school to develop an IEP or 504 plan.
What To Expect During a Psychoeducational Assessment at Insight Psychology Group
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Comprehensive In-Person Assessments in Our Boca Raton Office
Psychoeducational assessments include 6-8 hours of one-on-one, in-person assessment using a variety of psychological and educational testing methods. Parents and teachers will also complete electronically-administered assessments to incorporate information from home and school settings.
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Ensuring Your Child is Comfortable
Helping your child feel comfortable during the testing process is an important part of my work with them. This ensures we get the most accurate results. I begin by getting to know them and learning about their interests and friends. If a child is feeling anxious, we’ll do some breathing or relaxation exercises before and during testing. We’ll also take breaks to release energy and refocus back to testing when they’re ready.
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Up-to-Date & Empirically-Based Testing
Using the most up-to-date tests based on research with current norms is essential so you can see how your child performs among similarly aged peers. Outdated tests can produce incorrect results, confuse students, and may be considered invalid by your child’s school. For these reasons, we regularly update our tests and use only the latest testing methodologies in our psychoeducational assessments.
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Detailed Reports with Practical Strategies
Upon completion, you will receive a 20-30 page report that includes diagnoses (if applicable) and recommendations on how to further your child’s educational success, including advocating for school-based supports such as an IEP, 504 plan or classroom and testing accommodations. Recommendations also include parenting strategies and positive behavioral plans to use at home or school.
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Advocating for IEP, 504 Plans or Accommodations
As a former school psychologist, I have experience leading IEP and 504 meetings in public and private school systems. I know exactly the types of tests and data that schools need to approve an IEP, 504 plan or accommodations. This real-world experience means you’ll get recommendations that meet school guidelines and enable easier approval by the school.
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Post-Evaluation Feedback Session
You won’t have to decipher your child’s results on your own. After every evaluation, we’ll sit down together to review the results and recommendations for helping your child succeed. I’ll also provide coaching on the best ways to advocate for your child with their school and share at-home strategies you can use to support them and their learning.
Psychoeducational Assessments
Frequently Asked Questions
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Psychoeducational testing focuses on issues with learning, such as learning disabilities, including reading, writing or math disorders AND psychological issues, such as ADHD, anxiety or depression. Psychoeducational testing involves about 6-8 hours of in-person testing directly with the child.
A psychological assessment focuses solely on psychological concerns, such as ADHD, anxiety or depression. A psychological assessment can be administered virtually – with an intake session and rating scales.
I usually recommend the psychoeducational evaluation if a child is in elementary school, because they’re so young and we want to catch learning issues early. This is especially the case for children with ADHD. We want to test for both ADHD and learning disabilities to ensure your child gets the best help with academics.
If you or your child are older (i.e. high school, college, grad school) and/or mostly concerned with getting testing accommodations due to inattention, anxiety or depression, I would recommend a psychological assessment. It’s less likely that a learning disability was missed by this age. However, a psychological assessment can still identify challenges requiring testing accommodations in their later academic life.
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I focus on the need. Each psychoeducational assessment is different because each person is different. If someone feels they are unable to concentrate and take tests within the given time frame, I would focus on timed tasks which measure processing speed and fluency. If someone struggles with math or reading I would focus on those areas.
We’ll also conduct assessment with parents and teachers to get a complete view of your child’s strengths and weaknesses. Upon completion, you will receive a 20-30 page report which includes recommendations on how to further your child’s educational success.
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Yes this evaluation would help tell the school WHY a child is struggling and exactly what area’s they’re struggling in and HOW to help that child.
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Yes, absolutely, a psychoeducational assessment would help in getting testing accommodations for tests such as the ACT/ SAT or other standardized tests such as the LSAT, MCAT, and GRE.
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Don’t say it’s a test or assessment. Just make it sound fun. Tell your child that we are going to play games, like building with blocks and looking at pictures. Most activities are on the iPad, which kids really like.
Send your child to their evaluation with water and a snack, because sometimes it’s good for them to take a snack break. If they’re getting hungry the results won’t be as accurate because they may rush.
It can also be helpful for you to have younger kids bring a stuffed animal or favorite toy. This helps them feel really comfortable from the start because I can say: “You brought your bunny! What's his name? What do love about bunny?”
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Insight Psychology Group is located in Boca Raton, Florida. We offer in-person psychoeducational assessments from our office in northwest Boca Raton.
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Psychoeducational assessments are $4,000.
Most insurance companies deny payment for psychoeducational assessments. However, I can provide you with the necessary paperwork to submit to your insurance company if you’d like to make the case for reimbursement.
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Are you ready to help your child succeed at school?
I offer free consultation calls to ensure we’re a good fit. If you have questions about whether your child would benefit from a psychoeducational assessment or want to learn more about my testing approach, let’s talk!