You can get some initial testing thru Lindamood-Bell for free if you can get to a center. The school district is hostile because Lindamood-Bell is EXPENSIVE. Since you've singled out Visualizing and Verbalizing, I gather that your son has no problems decoding but lots of problems with reading comprehension and expressive language. If decoding is the problem, I think that there are LOTS of excellent, research based reading programs out there. But if it's a combination of expressive language deficits and reading comprehension problems, LMB VV is about it. The District can be forced to give your child this program, but you will most likely have to at least go to Mediation. My son, who is 15 and has been stuck in the 3rd/4th grade reading level since about 5th grade, just had an autism consultant come to observe him to come up with a recommendation for a reading program. She, with my approval, is going to recommend a Visualizing and Verbalizing reading program that was created for use in a school setting and is not officially LMB, but is a copycat. If, as he uses this program, it looks like it will work well for him, we may come back to ask the District to pay for Center based work over the summer. However, even if a child is going to a LMB center for 10 hours a week of intervention for 3 months (the typical recommendation) and makes enough progress during those three months to no need the intervention any more, the child STILL has to go back to District and be taught reading using a research-based, peer-reviewed reading program, so it pays to get a recommendation of something that the teacher can use in school. REad 180 has been adopted by many schools, but I don't know if it has research behind it. I also think it might not be right for children whose language disabilty is significant. Google it and read up on it, but LMB has TONS of research and has stats specifically about kids on the spectrum. Good luck.
I have a 7th grader who tested with reading comprehension at 3.8 grade level. I am looking at the Lindamood Bell V/V program and school is becoming increasingly hostile. Has anyone have any experience with this specific reading program and any success in dealing with a school district that understands the specifics of autistic learning styles?My son is in 6th grade and has a 3.5 grade level reading. Next year he goes on to middle school. I recently met with the special ed teachers there to build a repore and see what services are available. They have a reading program that has been very successfull. It is called Read 180. It is a nationally available program, and their success has been really great. Maybe they would be more open to a program like that.