Pam McDonald Consulting, LLC.
Services and Opportunities
Why are assessments important? As a parent, it is hard to know what are normal school expectations given the types of behaviors you see in your child in the home and neighborhood setting. Experiences, birth order, genetics... these all play a part. Now add glimmers of atypical talent and cognition and you really have a puzzle to put together!
Having a cognitive assessment will give you data to understand your child's academic needs more clearly. You will be able to have informed conversations with your child's teacher which will allow you to plan as a team.
I am qualified to use several instruments to measure cognition and achievement. These include The Woodcock Johnson Tests of Cognitive Abilities V, The Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test, Second Edition, The Woodcock Johnson Tests of Educational Achievement V, and The Kaufman Test of Educational Achievement, Third Edition. Every assessment session generates your child's test scores along with interpretations ready to share with your school. Additionally a report of educational recommendations based on the results will be shared as well.
Please contact me via email to learn more about setting up an assessment session and current pricing.
Of Interest
The Christmas Heart is now part of the lending library of The Dubin Center. The Dubin Center is an Alzheimer’s Support Center serving families and caregivers of southwest Florida. Grandma Patti’s story and the work of her survivors through The Humble and Kind Foundation is now reaching and supporting even more families. Another example of the power of story.
Article Review: Talking With Your Child About Giftedness
Once you’ve had your child assessed, how do you talk to them about the results, especially if those
results are in the “gifted range”? First and foremost, remember to set your child up for success by using
language that is informative and positive. Highly cognitive kids might already see themselves as
different from agemates. They may feel odd or different. Talk to them about their different skills sets and
let them know that everyone has different strengths and struggles. Many times, the strengths they desire
are not the ones they currently possess… athletic strengths versus academic strengths… artistic
strengths versus writing strengths… musical strengths versus creative strengths. That their strengths
and struggles may be different from their current age peers is perfectly NORMAL!! Put focus on the
point there are always new things to learn and experience for everyone. Check out the article for more
information.
Professional Associations
National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC)
Minnesota Council for the Gifted and Talented
