Holistic psychological and educational assessment and evaluation. See a comprehensive picture, focus on your child's strengths, get tangible strategies for school curriculum.

​

Strengths based approach. See the full picture of your child. We specialize in Psychological and educational assessments. Psychological and educational testing. Academic testing and evaluation of your child. Test for autism, ADHD (attention deficit and hyper activity disorder), reading and writing disorders or difficulties, math avoidance. Cognitive, emotional, behavioral, academic factors. Get the complete picture. Slow processing speed. School behavior or grade problems, falling behind. School psychologist. Get the proper intervention. Get tangible strategies and curriculum. SEE THE COMPLETE PICTURE OF YOUR CHILD: EDUCATIONAL AS WELL AS EMOTIONAL INSIGHTS TINA ROEMERSMA Emotional Factors Social Factors Behavioral Perspective Cognitive Abilities Doctorate in Psychology KIM PETZ Academic Assessment Educational Diagnostics Processing and Comprehension Reading/Auditory/Math Masters in Curriculum Finding Solutions Counseling Centers are unique from most private practices in offering the opportunity to have a Psychologist and an Educational Diagnostician work together with your child. Having experts from two different fields provides a thorough and comprehensive picture. Dr. Roemersma’s expertise in cognitive abilities, emotional factors, and behaviors are coupled with Kim Petz’s expertise in academic assessment and knowledge of curriculum-based interventions. PSYCHO-EDUCATIONAL ASSESSMENT IS IT ANXIETY OR ADHD? Anxiety and ADHD can present very similarly. Both can contribute to difficulties in concentration and learning and can cause restless behaviors. If there is a learning disability present, what specific areas is it affecting and how does it affect a child’s self-esteem? Could there be other factors impacting learning? Bullying, shyness, and poor sleep patterns can also lead to poor academic performance, but these factors are identified and resolved very differently than a learning disability. If giftedness is present, does the child have the motivation and maturity for the demands of specialized programs? While doing well academically, is the child perfectionistic and putting too much pressure on him or herself? Don’t misdiagnose—Avoid false positives. Psycho-educational evaluations can avoid trial and error medication testing. For example, don’t treat the child for a learning disability when he or she is actually in the early stages of depression. Get the full picture. Go beyond the grade—You are your child’s advocate and know your child best. Grades only give partial academic insight. If you think your child could be getting better grades and working more efficiently to complete assignments, or you worry something might be hindering him or her in a specific area, learn how to bring out the best in your child. Assessment identifies areas of strengths and weaknesses. Drawing upon someone’s strengths to overcome weaker areas helps them be more successful. Identifying these strengths is the key to obtaining strategies and methods that speak to your child. This also helps foster the one ingredient we believe is the key to improving academic progress—confidence. Regardless of the type of difficulty a child has, confidence is the crucial ingredient to turning things around; it not only provides the child with methods for learning but provides he or she with the courage and purpose to apply themselves. Every child has strengths. They just need to be identified, communicated to parents, fostered in children, and when applicable, shared with schools. A Strengths Based Approach Means: ƒƒ Learn how to play to their strengths ƒƒ Understand your child’s learning style (e.g. stop using flash cards if the child is not wired to learn that way) ƒƒ Create strategies to help them organize themselves well ƒƒ Develop more efficient study skills ƒƒ Improve executive functions ƒƒ Build confidence ƒƒ Support the child through changes ƒƒ Guide tutors and supporting cast on what strengths to encourage and leverage Helping a child reach their potential means understanding what they are good at, so that each minor victory will lead to more confidence, which builds to larger victories. Let’s assume a psycho-educational evaluation has been completed with your child. Now that you have educational and emotional insight, we will collaborate with you to customize strategies to help your child build confidence and make progress. Results of the evaluation will direct what kind of interventions, services, or accommodations may be helpful. Examples may include, but are not limited to: ƒƒ Working privately with a tutor or educational specialist ƒƒ Requesting a meeting with the school to discuss concerns ƒƒ Individual or family therapy ƒƒ Computer-based home study programs ƒƒ Healthy eating and exercise regimens ƒƒ Medication management of symptoms ƒƒ Behavioral therapy But what if you need collaboration and accommodations from the school? What do you ask for? Who is the best person to approach? How long will it take? What if your child falls further behind while you wait? How do you balance getting school support with protecting the child’s self-esteem? Tina and Kim walk you through the answers to these questions and bring it all together. Dr. Roemersma is a psychologist with a background in clinical psychology and education studies. She has worked extensively with adolescents with behavioral and emotional challenges. She also worked as a research assistant at Princeton University on a project examining environmental and behavioral factors for at-risk youth. The insight and experience she brings drives a deep understanding of the whole person, and understanding that is necessary for tangible application. Kim is a nationally certified teacher, which means she has intimate knowledge of K-12 curriculum. After 18 years of experience in the public schools, she has a deep understanding of special education process and procedures. Beyond this experience she is a veteran in diagnostic and prevention services who tailors assessment to better understand individual strengths and weaknesses. While this information is important in and of itself, Kim also has the expertise necessary to offer prescriptive recommendations to promote student growth and success. Kim particularly excels in guiding students towards improvements in reading, writing, and math. Over the last nine years, Kim has successfully completed over 500 evaluations.