I have a 9 yr old son going into 4th grade. He was classified as LD the end of 2nd grade. Specifically he was reading level was at the early 2nd grade level at time of testing —but he has an IQ of 129 and is also placed in the gifted math class. Last year he received about 40 mins per day in reading assistance using the Herman Program. He has completed the Herman Program and his reading level has improved - but not up to potential. For the next year he is not receiving any assistance in the resource room and his IEP addresses more organizational issues (ie. bring home and handing in homework assisgnments in a timely manner)
I recently took him to a devlopmental eye doctor. She prescribed bifocals to help him focus ( though his vision is 20/20). She had him do a series of tests but wants to test him again in a month or so after wearing his glasses. The additional testing will be $250 and then based on test results may recommend vision therapy which would also not be covered by our insurance. My question is it worth the cost to go thru the testing? Does vision therapy work and if so how much improvement should I be looking for. The doctor I went was is listed on the covd.org site as a fellow. Is this a repected organization?
I feel as though I know very little about this and worry about the cost/benefit especially since although he may not be up to potential he is holding his own in the classroom. Thanks
you might want to look at the "big picture"..
It seems to me that the main issue for you is in bringing up his performance to his potential, and I’m also not sure if the VT is what’s going to do that, it might, or it might not. It seems like a lot of money and also time to be spent on that, when you could be barking up the wrong tree.
A better approach might be to get more thorough testing, that will look at ALL his learning issues, strengths and weaknesses, so you can get the “big picture.” The best way I know to do this, and the school’s testing doesn’t even begin to approach this, is to get a neuropsychological eval from a specialist in childhood learning disorders. This kind of testing is quite extensive, 10-20 hours usually, but should also generate a detailed report with recommendations, etc. Often your medical insurance will cover this testing, though not all of the resulting recommendations. It’s expensive, prices around here run $1200-2000 but I still think it’s worth it from the viewpoint of long-term planning and knowing where to invest your time and money.
Many hospitals in major cities have a neuropsych department, and I can help you find one if you need help locating one near you… more info about this and other sped. topics can be found on my website, www.angelfire.com/on2/thepuzzle
Good luck!
Sharon
Re: vision therapy-been there
Yes, Yes, Yes. But do not allow them to do a “Visual Perceptual Evaluation” which sounds like what they want to do-this can be done by yoiur Child Study Team for free (email me for how this was done). My son just completed VT and the results are amazing-after only 5 sessions, his CAT score for Reading Comprehension went from a 47 to an 81, and he has now had 18 sessions!!!! He icks up books when he has nothing to do, where before getting him to read for homework caused hour long battles.
My son was so bad that glasses would not have helped. My step-daughter had always had a reading problem too but was never here enough for me to get a handle on it so I started having her read more to be aloud and there were some of the same characteristics but some that were different. She went to the same doc but her case is mild, and she is far-sighted so was prescribed glasses and in 30 days we will make a decision whether to go back for another evaluation.
Also email me for advice on the insurance-you would be surprised!!!
My inclination would be to get a second opinion from another developmental optometrist. The bifocal prescription seems odd to me, and $250 for a second round of testing also sounds odd to me — especially after only one month of wearing the eyeglasses.
Did you get a written report that tells you exactly how he tested in all the different areas? Elsewhere on one of these boards I posted the areas our DO tested. I got a percentile score or age-equivalent score, or some other indication of whether the test result was normal or not, for every test done.
We did vision therapy, but it was clearly indicated from the initial round of testing. This testing — admittedly at a non-profit clinic — was something like $100 (excluding the regular eye exam tests for acuity, etc., which we didn’t need) plus an additional $70 for a written report and meeting with the developmental optometrist.
Did this optometrist indicate she would be willing to design a primarily home-based program of vision therapy if it is needed? Many will do this to keep costs done, but some won’t.
This professional could be totally on the up-and-up, and your son may simply have problems I haven’t run across before. However, this course of treatment sounds so unusual to me, I would be asking a lot of questions. If his test scores were borderline for vision therapy, I would definitely consider skipping VT and just working with a cognitive training program such as Audiblox or PACE — both of which work on developing visual processing skills, the next layer of development after visual efficiency skills.
Fellow or not, there are a few rogues in every profession. I think you are right to question this approach. In our case, the DO was able to demonstrate the problem areas dd had and was also able to explain to my satisfaction what was wrong, the probably reasons why it was wrong, what could be done about it, and whether VT was likely to help or not (although no one can be expected to predict improvement in a specific case — it’s more a matter of playing the odds).
Mary