CHILD NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL SCREENINGS
Neuropsychological screenings of children/adolescents (ages 3-17) assess various aspects of
cognitive, academic, and behavioral functioning. Screenings provide information about the child’s
strengths and weaknesses to identify ideal learning environments. Screenings also help identify
problems that may not be obvious. Results can help determine if the child would benefit from specific
interventions such as referral to educational specialists, rehabilitation therapist (e.g., occupational or
speech therapists), or other professionals. Baseline data is important for monitoring the child's
functioning over time, and this information would be valuable if the child were to ever sustain an injury
(e.g., concussion) to determine possible effects of the injury. Finally, results can provide an early
screening for giftedness.
Child neuropsychological screenings involve the following:
1. Interview of the parent/guardian. Behavior rating scales are also completed ahead of time by the
parent/guardian.
2. Formal tests in the following domains:
Formal testing is approximately 2.5-3 hours. A report is prepared summarizing the test results
(including test scores) and recommendations, and a feedback session is held to explain the results and
provide referral sources or other resources.
How can neuropsychological screenings be helpful?
1. Determining strengths and weaknesses:
Each child has a different style for learning new information and approaching new tasks. For example,
some children are hands-on/visual-spatial learners, and tend to be good at "big picture" processing of
new problems. However, these children may have weaker phonological processing (and subsequently,
weaker reading and spelling abilities). Other children demonstrate stronger language and phonological
processing abilities, but may have weaker visual-motor/visual-spatial skills and “big picture” processing
(resulting in concrete/literal thinking and a preference for details and facts). These children often
perform well in earlier grade levels, but may develop problems in later grades when academic
information becomes more complex and abstract. Child screenings are useful in exploring the strengths
and weaknesses of each child, and recommendations are given to improve the child’s functioning in
areas of weakness.
2. Screening for disorders:
Screenings are helpful for determining whether a child meets criterion for a disorder and/or is at risk for
developing a disorder. Examples include:
*ADD/ADHD (i.e., problems with inattention and/or hyperactivity/impulsivity)
*Learning Disorders (e.g., Reading Disorder/Dyslexia; Math Disorder, Spelling/Writing Disorders)
*Autism or other pervasive developmental disorders
*Neurological injury/illness
*Language disorders (e.g., expressive language disorder)
*Psychiatric disorders (e.g., mood disorder, anxiety disorder, psychotic disorder, etc.)
*Nonverbal learning disorders
*Motor coordination disorders
*Sensory integration disorders
3. Baseline assessment:
Neuropsychological screenings provide a baseline of a child's functioning in various cognitive and
academic domains, and this information is valuable if the child were to ever experience a concussion or
another neurological injury/illness. In those instances, repeated testing can help determine whether
there has been a significant change in functioning. Unless baseline data is available before an
injury/illness, it is difficult for neuropsychologists to determine whether there has been a change in
functioning above and beyond what could be related to natural strengths and weaknesses before the
injury. Dr. Baker provides parents/guardians with the raw test scores so this information is available to
other providers in case the child is re-evaluated in the future.
Steps after the screening:
Parents are provided with feedback regarding the screening results, and then provided with a report
summarizing the findings and recommendations. If significant impairments are found, parents have the
option of having the child complete a full neuropsychological evaluation on another day to obtain more
extensive information about the areas of difficulty. For example, if a child demonstrates normal abilities
in most domains, but exhibits significant impairments in phonological processing, verbal learning, and
rapid verbal retrieval, in-depth testing would include a complete battery of phonological tests (i.e., to
assess phonological awareness, rapid naming, and phonological memory), additional verbal
learning/memory tasks, and additional tests of verbal/language retrieval. This additional testing helps to
develop a comprehensive picture of the child's functioning. If parents/guardians decide to pursue a full
neuropsychological evaluation, the screening cost is applied toward the cost of the full evaluation.
Is treatment available after the screening is finished?
Dr. Baker provides short-term treatment to teach the child and parents/guardians various strategies to
improve the child's functioning. For example, if a child has problems focusing her/his attention, an
intervention can be developed to teach her/him to better monitor attention and refocus at times she/he
is drifting off. For children with organizational deficits, interventions focus on teaching step-by-step
systems for becoming more organized, including modeling this behavior and giving the child feedback.
For children with impulsive behaviors, interventions often focus on teaching strategies for slowing down
and double-checking their work. To monitor the effects of interventions, questionnaires administered to
parents and teachers can be re-administered at the conclusion of treatment to re-assess the areas of
difficulty and determine if (and to what extent) improvement has been made.
Additional information:
For information about the cost of a neuropsychological screening, see the "Payment/Scheduling" page
of this website.
If you are interested in scheduling a neuropsychological screening or want to talk to Dr. Baker about
whether a screening may be useful, feel free to call (602-274-1462) or e-mail
(jasonbaker@bakerneuropsychology.com) him.
Neuropsychological screenings of children/adolescents (ages 3-17) assess various aspects of
cognitive, academic, and behavioral functioning. Screenings provide information about the child’s
strengths and weaknesses to identify ideal learning environments. Screenings also help identify
problems that may not be obvious. Results can help determine if the child would benefit from specific
interventions such as referral to educational specialists, rehabilitation therapist (e.g., occupational or
speech therapists), or other professionals. Baseline data is important for monitoring the child's
functioning over time, and this information would be valuable if the child were to ever sustain an injury
(e.g., concussion) to determine possible effects of the injury. Finally, results can provide an early
screening for giftedness.
Child neuropsychological screenings involve the following:
1. Interview of the parent/guardian. Behavior rating scales are also completed ahead of time by the
parent/guardian.
2. Formal tests in the following domains:
- Intellectual/academic screening (screens for giftedness; assesses basic academic skills).
- Learning/memory (important for learning and retention of academic material)
- Language (e.g., phonological processing is important for reading and spelling;
expressive/receptive language; determines if a child may need speech/language therapy). - Attention/concentration (e.g., focused and sustained attention; screens for attention-deficit
disorders). - Executive functions (e.g., self-monitoring and impulse control).
- Visual-spatial/visual-motor (e.g., visual-spatial analysis, visual-motor coordination); results can
determine if a child may need occupational therapy or other services.
Formal testing is approximately 2.5-3 hours. A report is prepared summarizing the test results
(including test scores) and recommendations, and a feedback session is held to explain the results and
provide referral sources or other resources.
How can neuropsychological screenings be helpful?
1. Determining strengths and weaknesses:
Each child has a different style for learning new information and approaching new tasks. For example,
some children are hands-on/visual-spatial learners, and tend to be good at "big picture" processing of
new problems. However, these children may have weaker phonological processing (and subsequently,
weaker reading and spelling abilities). Other children demonstrate stronger language and phonological
processing abilities, but may have weaker visual-motor/visual-spatial skills and “big picture” processing
(resulting in concrete/literal thinking and a preference for details and facts). These children often
perform well in earlier grade levels, but may develop problems in later grades when academic
information becomes more complex and abstract. Child screenings are useful in exploring the strengths
and weaknesses of each child, and recommendations are given to improve the child’s functioning in
areas of weakness.
2. Screening for disorders:
Screenings are helpful for determining whether a child meets criterion for a disorder and/or is at risk for
developing a disorder. Examples include:
*ADD/ADHD (i.e., problems with inattention and/or hyperactivity/impulsivity)
*Learning Disorders (e.g., Reading Disorder/Dyslexia; Math Disorder, Spelling/Writing Disorders)
*Autism or other pervasive developmental disorders
*Neurological injury/illness
*Language disorders (e.g., expressive language disorder)
*Psychiatric disorders (e.g., mood disorder, anxiety disorder, psychotic disorder, etc.)
*Nonverbal learning disorders
*Motor coordination disorders
*Sensory integration disorders
3. Baseline assessment:
Neuropsychological screenings provide a baseline of a child's functioning in various cognitive and
academic domains, and this information is valuable if the child were to ever experience a concussion or
another neurological injury/illness. In those instances, repeated testing can help determine whether
there has been a significant change in functioning. Unless baseline data is available before an
injury/illness, it is difficult for neuropsychologists to determine whether there has been a change in
functioning above and beyond what could be related to natural strengths and weaknesses before the
injury. Dr. Baker provides parents/guardians with the raw test scores so this information is available to
other providers in case the child is re-evaluated in the future.
Steps after the screening:
Parents are provided with feedback regarding the screening results, and then provided with a report
summarizing the findings and recommendations. If significant impairments are found, parents have the
option of having the child complete a full neuropsychological evaluation on another day to obtain more
extensive information about the areas of difficulty. For example, if a child demonstrates normal abilities
in most domains, but exhibits significant impairments in phonological processing, verbal learning, and
rapid verbal retrieval, in-depth testing would include a complete battery of phonological tests (i.e., to
assess phonological awareness, rapid naming, and phonological memory), additional verbal
learning/memory tasks, and additional tests of verbal/language retrieval. This additional testing helps to
develop a comprehensive picture of the child's functioning. If parents/guardians decide to pursue a full
neuropsychological evaluation, the screening cost is applied toward the cost of the full evaluation.
Is treatment available after the screening is finished?
Dr. Baker provides short-term treatment to teach the child and parents/guardians various strategies to
improve the child's functioning. For example, if a child has problems focusing her/his attention, an
intervention can be developed to teach her/him to better monitor attention and refocus at times she/he
is drifting off. For children with organizational deficits, interventions focus on teaching step-by-step
systems for becoming more organized, including modeling this behavior and giving the child feedback.
For children with impulsive behaviors, interventions often focus on teaching strategies for slowing down
and double-checking their work. To monitor the effects of interventions, questionnaires administered to
parents and teachers can be re-administered at the conclusion of treatment to re-assess the areas of
difficulty and determine if (and to what extent) improvement has been made.
Additional information:
For information about the cost of a neuropsychological screening, see the "Payment/Scheduling" page
of this website.
If you are interested in scheduling a neuropsychological screening or want to talk to Dr. Baker about
whether a screening may be useful, feel free to call (602-274-1462) or e-mail
(jasonbaker@bakerneuropsychology.com) him.
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