Refer your child for special education services. The school must hold a meeting with the child's teachers and parents at the request of a parent, the child or a teacher. An outside agency may also make referrals in some cases. The purpose of the meeting is to determine if the child requires services. Generally, an evaluation is required to determine eligibility for services.
Request a complete evaluation of your child. This may include an assessment of your child's cognitive abilities. He will be assessed on a battery of skills designed to identify areas of strengths and weaknesses. These will likely include processing speed, nonverbal skills, visual and auditory memory, and spatial ability. The overall score makes up the full-scale IQ. Generally, evaluators look for discrepancies between test results that may indicate a disability.
Expect your child to be assessed on her academic skills. These tests provide information on what your child does know and what she can do. Encourage her to do her best on the tests.
Complete any behavioral assessments provided to you. These measure your child's behavior and compare them to his peers. Be as honest as possible, even if you think the questions do not apply to your child. Accurate behavior rating scales provide valuable information to the evaluator.
Provide a detailed history of your child's development from birth. This includes growth, behavior and any medical conditions or treatments. A family history is also vital to an accurate evaluation of your child. Be sure to include any psychological conditions of family members, their school experiences and any other information that you think may be helpful.
Express any specific concerns you have or areas of difficulty you have observed in your child. You may wish to request an evaluation for speech services or an assessment of adaptive behavior skills. A speech evaluation assesses your child's ability to communicate with others and to understand language. Although part of the evaluation assesses his pronunciation and ability to recognize sounds, even a child with perfect articulation may have difficulties with language processing. Adaptive behavior measures your child's self-help skills.
Be prepared to meet with your child's teachers, special education teacher and any other evaluators to discuss the results of the tests and to create a plan for meeting your child's needs.