PPCD evaluation

Well today Matthew had his evaluation with the Mansfield ISD to see if he qualifies for services when he is 3. There was a speech therapist and a diagnostician and Matthew did very well today. He was cooperative and had fun. They really just played and interacted with him and asked me questions. I also had to fill out several questionnares prior to the evaluation. Today was just a time to gather information and they will call me back for a meeting prior to his 3rd birthday to give me all the results of the evaluations and they will let me know if he qualifies for services and what they recommend. Of course I had to ask if they think he would qualify based on what they saw today and they didn't hesitate to say "yes." Even though Matthew did well with the evaluation he does have a significant communication impairement. He just isn't communicating like he should. Does it make me sad? Of course, but at the same time there is still a lot of hope because he is still young. There is a good chance that he will be all caught up by kindergarten but there is always that possibility that he won't and I am accepting of that. I do fear that all these language impairments may be a sign of later learning disabilities. Only time will tell.

I have been doing some reading on language delays and was looking back on Matthew's visit with Dr. Mauk in September and she did diagnose him with "developmental language disorder" which is another term for "specific language impairment." Kids with specific language impairment have problems with expressive and receptive language that can snowball into other issues such as social, self help and cognitive delays. A very high percentage of these kids go on to have learning disabilities so getting help early is key. There is a lot of information on specific language impairment and it seems to fit Matthew very well.

I will update when I have the "official results" of his evaluation.

Betsey