CHILDREN
If I bring my child for a social-emotional assessment what will happen?
There is value in doing an assessment with each individual him or herself be they adult or child as well as having a parent, friend or colleague complete some questionnaires. For information about an assessment for an adult go to Organisations + Individuals.
A psychologist from Learning Insights will work with your child for a couple of hours. On arrival, the initial 10-15 minutes is spent collecting information and ensuring the assessment is going to meet your needs. Thereafter parents/guardians may leave and your child will work with the psychologist for the remainder of the time, taking a refreshment break when needed. Parents/guardians are requested to return at the agreed time when they will be given some verbal feedback on the findings and an indication of what will be contained in the report which follows in approximately two weeks.
You may wish to have some idea of what your child will be doing during the morning read What sort of tests are used in psychological and educational assessments for children?
Your child will: do some drawing, answer a couple of questionnaires which they can read for themselves or have read for them, and generally talk about things they like to do, find interesting or perhaps things they are less keen on doing. Children need to be reassured, if necessary that they are not being tested, rather that the psychologist is interested in finding out what they like to do and perhaps not do, what their interests are and how they feel about things such as friends, family, the choices they can make, school, important people, issues and events in their life and so on. It is knowing how they perceive themselves and how they feel about things that will help them better understand themselves and can also help you and those who work with them to understand them better.
You will be asked to complete some questionnaires which are important documents as they provide essential information about your child. You will also be sent a school questionnaire we request you take to the school to complete if you would like us to have their perspective.
You will also be asked to bring a copy of any relevant reports (previous assessments if diagnosed with and Language/Physical/Learning Difficulties) you may have. If you have concerns that these may influence the psychologist unduly and you would like a completely independent perspective this can be accommodated.
Medical insurance companies have accepted claims for fees when a medical consultant has made a referral to a psychologist, but not all do so. Please check with your insurance company.
CONTACT US at Learning Insights if you would like to know more.