Child/teen Psychological Assessment

What is it? 

A psychological assessment for a child/teen is a structured evaluation process used to identify a child/teen’s strengths and challenges. It examines thinking, feeling, learning, and behaving — usually to answer a specific question, like "Why is my child struggling in school?" or "Could this be ADHD, anxiety, autism, a learning disability, or something else?"

I provide assessments in the  following areas:

  • Intelligence (Including Intellectual Disability)

  • Executive Functioning (including ADHD)

  • Autism

  • Depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder

  • Learning issues

IMPORTANT EXCEPTIONS

I do not complete custody assessments or other assessments intended for use in legal proceedings.

I do not complete assessments for serious mental illnesses such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, or diagnose substance abuse disorders.

 

An assessment typically includes:

  • Clinical interview — talking with the parents/caregivers (and often the child) about developmental history, family background, current concerns, and daily functioning.

  • Behavioral observations — watching how the child interacts, communicates, and manages tasks

  • Standardized testing — formal tests measuring things like:

    • Intelligence/Executive Functioning (e.g., reasoning, processing speed, working memory)

    • Academic skills (reading, math, writing)

    • Attention and executive functioning

    • Social-emotional and behavioral functioning

    • Sometimes, specific tools for autism, trauma, or mood disorders

    • Questionnaires/rating scales — filled out by parents, teachers, and sometimes the child, to get a picture of behavior across different settings.

    • Review of records — report cards, prior evaluations, medical history, if relevant.

What comes out of an assessment?

  • Report - A thorough written report describing findings and specific recommendations will be ready within three weeks of the last testing session.

  • Feedback session – a meeting of up to an hour with the guardians, and the child if appropriate, where the assessment results are explained.

How long does this all take?

  • The one-on-one testing will take up to three hours per session.  The child always has the opportunity to take breaks as needed.  In my experience, children enjoy the testing as it is presented as game-like tasks.

  • Most of the time, the one-on-one testing can be completed in one session.  For more complex cases, a second session may be needed.

School Eligibility Meetings

  • The report that comes out of the assessment can be used to help a school based team consider whether or not a student qualifies for a 504 plan or an Individual Educational Plan (IEP)

  • The decision regarding eligibility is made by the team of educators and the guardians, the outcome is not decided solely by my evaluation

  • In some cases I will arrange to attend the eligibility meeting, the fees for this are $250 for the first hour and $200 for each additional hour.

 

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