Twice-exceptional evaluation
When strong ability and a struggle sit in one child
Twice-exceptional children, often called 2e, have high ability and also a question about attention, learning, language or sensory load. Each can hide the other.
A child who thinks well can cover for a reading difficulty for years, and a child who can't sit still can look less able than they are. Dr. Paschal tests ability and the question together, so the report can describe both and what to try.
Who it helps
A child whose grades don't match what they say and know
A bright child who is often overwhelmed by noise, writing or change
A family holding two opinions from two sources
What sessions look like
Three kinds of visit
Dr. Paschal sets the pace for your child. There is no fixed number of visits.
The parent interview
You, without your child, for about an hour. The strengths, the struggles and who has said what.
Testing visits
Your child, over short visits sized to their stamina, with the harder tasks spread out and breaks built in.
The feedback visit
You hear what the testing shows about ability and the question, and what to try at home and at school.
What is looked at
What is looked at together
A twice-exceptional evaluation is wider than a gifted one, because the question needs its own measures.
Ability
Reasoning with words, shapes and patterns, apart from what is hard.
Attention and focus
How your child starts, stays with and switches between tasks.
Reading, writing and math
Skills measured in the grade your child is in, and how the effort feels.
Language
How your child understands and explains, in speech and on paper.
Sensory load and change
What helps or hurts in a room, a schedule or a surprise.
Feelings and friendships
How your child describes their days, with you present for the summary.
The method
How the testing is done
Dr. Paschal gives standardized tests one on one, chosen for your child's age, and watches how your child works as well as what they answer. The report lists every test used and who made it.
What this is not
What an evaluation isn't
Not a label at the door
Dr. Paschal doesn't decide the answer before testing. The results do.
Not a promise either way
A report may explain a struggle, or find none. You hear it in person first.
Not treatment
Dr. Paschal evaluates and explains. He doesn't provide therapy, and he can suggest where to ask.
Questions
Three questions about 2e evaluations
Will my child get a diagnosis?
Only if the testing supports one. If it does, Dr. Paschal explains it to you first, and it goes to a school only if you choose to share it.
Do you test for everything in one visit?
No. The harder tasks are spread over visits so your child can do their best, and Dr. Paschal tells you the plan after the interview.
Does the school get my child's report?
No. The report goes to you. A school gets a letter, or the report, only if you ask in writing and sign a release naming who may receive it.
How this is paid
Testing is one fee for the whole evaluation. You have it in writing before you start, and the Good Faith Estimate is part of it.