Psychological and Educational Evaluations

Evaluations can help provide a clearer understanding of your child’s unique strengths, challenges, and individual needs. An evaluation may be recommended to clarify diagnostic questions, better understand learning or developmental concerns, identify appropriate supports and services, inform educational planning, or guide treatment recommendations.

Areas of Evaluation

Child and adolescent evaluations may assess a variety of areas, depending on the concerns and questions being addressed, including:

  • Learning & Academic Skills — including concerns related to reading, writing, and mathematics

  • Attention & Executive Functioning — including evaluation of ADHD-related concerns

  • Emotional & Behavioral Functioning — including concerns related to anxiety, mood, OCD, and other emotional or behavioral difficulties

  • Cognitive Functioning — including assessment of intellectual abilities and cognitive strengths and weaknesses using measures such as the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, Fifth Edition (WISC-V)

  • Adaptive Functioning — including assessment of everyday living, communication, and social skills using measures such as the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales

  • Differential Diagnosis — helping clarify whether symptoms or concerns may be better explained by one condition or another

  • Comprehensive Psychological Assessment — integrating information across multiple areas to develop a more complete understanding of an individual’s strengths and needs

  • Other Individualized Concerns — evaluations are tailored to the specific questions and needs of each child or adolescent

Individualized Recommendations

Evaluation results are reviewed in detail with parents/caregivers during a feedback session. Recommendations are individualized and may address supports and interventions at home, school, and in other settings.

The goal of an evaluation is not simply to provide test scores, but to develop a clearer understanding of your child and provide practical recommendations to support their learning, emotional well-being, and overall success.

  • Age Range
    Psychological and educational evaluations are available for children, adolescents, and young adults. The specific type and scope of evaluation is tailored to the individual’s age, needs, and the questions being addressed.

    Insurance & Payment
    Psychological and educational evaluations are not always covered by health insurance, or coverage may be limited depending on the insurance plan and type of evaluation. Families are encouraged to contact their insurance provider directly to ask about their specific benefits. Self-pay options are available.

    Because coverage varies by plan and evaluation type, insurance coverage cannot be guaranteed.

  • An evaluation may be helpful when a child or adolescent is experiencing persistent difficulties with learning, attention, emotional or behavioral functioning, or when there are questions about a possible diagnosis. Evaluations can also be useful when a child is doing well in some areas but experiencing challenges in others and a clearer understanding of their strengths and needs would be helpful.

  • Initial Consultation
    The evaluation process begins with a consultation to discuss your concerns, developmental and educational history, and the questions you hope the evaluation will answer.

    Evaluation
    Assessment procedures are individualized based on your child’s age, needs, and referral questions. Depending on the evaluation, this may include standardized testing, questionnaires, interviews, and review of relevant records.

    Feedback Session
    Following the evaluation, findings are reviewed with parents/caregivers during a detailed feedback session. This provides an opportunity to discuss results, ask questions, and review recommendations.

    Written Report
    A comprehensive report summarizes the evaluation findings and provides individualized recommendations for home, school, and treatment.