Visual developmental delays

This is a confusing picture, with somewhat contradictory issues. My guess is that you are right about the NLD.

The inability to visualize is a comprehension issue. Programs such as IdeaChain and the Lindamood Bell book “Visualizing and Verbalizing” work on this. However, I believe this type of comprehension problem applies to both reading and listening, so you should be seeing the same problem with auditory information.

It seems to me that the lack of “ability to store, retain and retrieve visual information” is incompatible with his good reading ability — unless, perhaps, it refers to non-verbal visual processing, in which case it supports a diagnosis of NLD.

It’s not clear to me if the processing speed issue is only visual in nature or not. A problem with visual processing speed would impact reading fluency. If the problem, instead, is with “thinking” about what he sees, this is a different issue — more along the lines of comprehension and NLD problems.

What I would do is find someone who is knowledgeable about NLD and consult with them first. NLD often requires “special handling” when it comes to remediation programs.

My daughter had a lot of vision delays (including a diagnosis of dyseidesia — inability to remember what written words look like) and also slow processing of certain types of information (especially detailled visual information). However, these problems resulted in severe reading delays. She had no problems with comprehension. She was very responsive to vision therapy and PACE. In hindsight, this was because her problems were not primarily physiological in origin but rather the product of developmental delays.

Mary

Thanks for your comments. The testing was done by two different psychologists, at two different locations,6 months apart. The WISC indicated an overall IQ in the Superior range with no sig. difference in the VIQ vs the PIQ. However, his performance on the WCJIII was at or below the 50th percentile rank in all the areas addressing visual-spacial relationships and thinking, visual recall/memory speed, conceptual decision speed and catagorizing (organizing). Recent testing has found him to deficient in visual memory/processing. One of the hallmark characteristics of NVLD students is their difficulty in learning from their visual environment. He scored a 4.7 Grade Equiv. on the WCJ Word ID and 11.9 on the Word Attack. However, his ability to store, retain and recall want he has SEEN is at the level of a 6 yr old and he interprets visual cues such as body language at the same level. He has a fabulous memory for factual material but cannot tell you what the “lesson” of a story is. He has memorized the multiplication tables but cannot easily reason through a problem using them. He builds extraordinary projects with LEGOS from his imagination but makes errors when trying to follow the directions for a project which are in picture form. The more I learn about this, the more interested I become and hopefully I will find the right mix of adaptations and strategies for my son.

I changed the subject to attract attention from those that know more than I. I have done some research, since my son has a 30 point descrepancy between his performance and verbal IQ. Some of what you said sounded familiar—problems with comprehension but not decoding, for example. I thought though that it was typical to have a gap between performance and verbal IQ. Are there particular subtests of performance IQ that were low?

Hi Beth, Thanks for you strategy.
Yes,a gap between VIQ and PIQ is typical of NVLD kids as I understand it also. I have read some on the NVLD Website and this is what I have also learned. To answer your question,while my son’s FSIQ is in the 94 PR and VIQ and PIQ are also in the 90’s, he scored only in the 75 PR on Object Assembly (visual anaylis and construction of objects) and in 63 PR on Symbol Search (visual-motor quickness,concentration,persistence) of the Performance subtests. Now I am very new to all of this but when I am told by a testing psychologist that my 9 yr old son has the Auditory Memory skills of 11 yr old but the Visual Memory skills of a 6 yr old and the WCJIII shows a 50 PR on subtests for visual processing skills and speed then I start thinking visual (non-verbal) learning disorder/disablity and right brain dysfunction and we get into a whole other ballgame. These kids actually have a varying degree of neurological dysfunction and it is not only their academics which are impacted but their social and emotional developement as well. Imagine misreading or misinterpreting or not remembering with any speed ( or at all!) 65% of the information you get everyday.I am only hoping I can get the school to understand and the Brainbuilders software and the Brainskills program will be helpful at training his visual memory and improving his visual processing speed. Any other suggestions? Susan

FSIQ is in the 94 PR and VIQ
and PIQ are also in the 90’s, he scored only in the 75 PR on Object Assembly (visual anaylis and construction of
objects) and in 63 PR on Symbol Search (visual-motor quickness,concentration,persistence) of the Performance
subtests. Now I am very new to all of this but when I am told by a testing psychologist that my 9 yr old son has
the Auditory Memory skills of 11 yr old but the Visual Memory skills of a 6 yr old and the WCJIII shows a 50 PR
on subtests for visual processing skills and speed then I start thinking visual (non-verbal) learning disorder/disablity
and right brain dysfunction and we get into a whole other ballgame.

Are you sure you are reporting Percentile ranks and not standard scores? I ask because all of these are average to above average. Percentile ranks in this range typically do not indicate a disability- in fact a score in the 75% is probably a strength. 50% is solidly average and consistant with his overall IQ. If the numbers are standard scores than you have a problem- but if these are really percentile ranks- and his FSIQ is 94- then you have no discrepency between verbal and performance.

Robin

Subscores can even out so that the individual in question has a “normal” IQ (read average) but have such significant strengths and significant weaknesses such to render the full-scale almost useless.

I also (as an individual with such a profile) feel that one can be learning disabled while performing “average” on almost all subscales, there still may be significant underlying cognitive issues that impair performance.

Thanks Robin, Yes these scores are PR as reported on the documents we recieved for the WISC - his FSIQ is 123 with only an 8 pt difference between PIQ and VIQ. This is considered “Superior range”. So far so good, yes? Now for the WCJIII: He was given the extended battery as well as the standard battery of tests. His overall scores for Verbal and Thinking Ability and Cognitive Efficiency were only in the “Average range” (106-109). Okay, I quess, if one is satisfied with the “average” when when one is capable of more. The question of “WHY” more is not being achieved sends me to the clusters and then the subtests. Ex: In the Cognitive Efficiency group he scored in the 98 PR in Numbers Reversed ,74 PR in Memory for Words, 52 PR inVisual Matching and 12 PR Decision Speed - clearly, while his auditory skills are well developed, his visual skills are less developed and diminish significantly when the pressure of a “timed” exercise is applied. I could go on to the other clusters but they all show similar patterns. The “Average” comes not because he is generally “average” but because he has some very strong “strengths” and some VERY weak “weakness”. If there were no problems at school I would not give any of this a second thought but there are. He cannot “read between the lines” of a story and make inferences, he has difficulty with problem solving because he cannot apply a lesson learned from one situation to another similar situation, ( this applies not only to math but to life experiences as well), he has significant difficulty with written expression because he cannot organize his thoughts in an efficient manner and while he can play piano beautifully and never forgets a piece once it is learned (even Beethoven) he can not sight-read effectively because, as he says,”I can’t do it fast enough to follow along and make the music sound nice”. FRUSTRATION. So all that said, my goal is to work on building up this visual weakness and relieving this stress which causes all sorts of other problems. I think I’m on the right track, at least I hope so. From a neurological point of view, I know it is possible to improve and/or create neural pathways in the brain so I see no reason not to try these techniques in an effort to improve right brain function. Any suggestions are well received.
Susan

While that is certainly true- if you read the subtests and clusters they are not indicative of significant weakness. That was my whole point- these scores are in a pattern that suggests LD type weaknesses.

Robin

Actually- what his WJIII scores are saying is that he has very strong auditory memory- both rote memory and working memory. His ability to deal ith symbolic detail is also fine- this would be Visual Matching. VM is also very similar to the processing speed stuff from the WISC. The efficiency issue that I see is not necessarily visual processing from these scores,I don’t think. Decision Speed is a measure of the capacity to make simple conceptual decisions quickly and efficiently. Kids look at a series of pictures in a row and have to find two that are alike or go together in some way. Sometimes the relationships are categorical- two cats etc, sometimes they are user/tool- pen and paper…. there are a variety of analogous relationships. That would tie in more with the sorts of difficulties you are describing also- you may have a kiddo who sees so many possibilities that he gets all knotted up and can’t choose where to start. This happens with really bright kids sometimes- it is as if their engine becomes flooded. Now you understand- this is speculation because I didn’t test him or interview him- so I don’t have the clinical stuff that I would have gotten from observing him work- or any of the other stuff that goes into the diagnostic process- but if he were mine, I would,before I start working on cognitive retraining, investigate that possibility that he just has too much stuff to organize effectively and come at it from that angle. He may also become nervous as a result of this- there is nothing more frustrating than knowing you get it while your product can’t reflect that. Eventually you start to believe that the product is really a reflection of how much you understand. It is only a short walk from there to “I can’t” with all the self esteem issues that this statement represents.

Robin

I meant to say “does not suggest an LD type weakness” My fingers were going to fast for my brain:)

Robin

Susan,

There is a book by McGuinesses called How to Increase your Child’s Verbal Intelligence. It has lots of exercises in it that might be helpful to your son. It works on anologies, inferences, generalizing, and the like in a game like format. I know some teachers use it along with Lindamood’s Visualizing and Verbalizing. Shay has (on reading bb) so you might try searching there.

Beth