The assessor and parent / carer have a telephone conversation to determine whether a diagnostic assessment is appropriate
A pre-assessment questionnaire and visual difficulties questionnaire are sent to parents/carers
An eye test within the past two years is recommended to rule out visual stress issues
A copy of your child’s most recent school report is requested along with any previous specialist assessment reports
Your child’s teacher(s) or SENCO will be asked to complete a school questionnaire to gather detailed information about school attainment and previous interventions
The dyslexia assessment involves a series of short tests/activities that explore the following areas:
Underlying verbal ability (vocabulary and ability to use language to reason)
Underlying non-verbal ability (the ability to use reasoning to solve puzzles and complete patterns/sequences)
Short term and working memory (how well information is stored for the short term and the ability to hold onto and manipulate information just given)
Phonological memory (the ability to recall information linked to sounds)
Phonological awareness (the ability to identify, blend, segment and manipulate sounds in words)
Processing speed (the ability to recall known information quickly)
Attainment in reading and spelling
Processing speed (the ability to recall known information quickly)
If your child is being assessed for dyscalculia, in addition to dyslexia, the following areas will be explored in addition to the tests / activities listed above:
Arithmetic fluency (how quickly arithmetic facts can be brought to mind)
Arithmetic knowledge (how to use those facts to complete calculations)
Subitising (the ability to 'see' that a small group of objects are a given number without counting)
The ability to count forwards and backwards in different increments
The value of number and being able to compare numbers, saying which is larger or smaller
The ability to estimate
The language of maths
Understanding the four operations (addition, subtraction, multiplication and division) and their application
Sequencing
Spatial memory
These tasks provide an overview of your child’s profile of strengths and weaknesses. The information gathered from the assessment is used, together with background information from yourselves and school, to arrive at a diagnostic decision.
The assessor analyses the results and writes a report that includes a diagnostic decision plus recommendations for support in the classroom, specialist teaching, and strategies to apply at home
You will receive the report within three weeks of the assessment
