Best testing for our kids | Autism PDD

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I too, would like to know the difference regarding the revised version of the ABLLS. We use the old version. i do like it for what we need right now. We don't do too much testing. He has had language evaluations, OT evalations and I believe they used the Vineland with the school district. The psychologist does a CARS once a year.

As for other tests---it sounds like you might want something to assess adaptive skills, language and maybe sensory?

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Cam,

Great question re: testing.  I'll give you both the laundry list of what we've done that I can find and my take on what I found valuable.

Age 2, initial speech and language eval:

Age 3, school testing:

Age 6, school testing:

Age 6 1/2 Private Evaluation

The tests that I found most valuable to me personally were the UNIT and the Vineland.  I liked the UNIT because I felt it gave me an accurate picture of C's intellectual potential, which I feel is a good predictor of his academic potential.  C had a great test, was on his game, very cooperative with the evaluator and I feel that the results we got are an accurate reflection of his IQ.  I really like the Vineland because the results are given in such a way that it clearly shows me where the core deficits are in a way that I can relate to. 

Here are C's Vineland scores from his eval right before he turned 6 - testing age 5.10.

Communication:  Overall - Moderately Low

Daily Living Skills:  Overall - Adequate

Socialization:  Overall - Moderately Low

Motor Skills: Overall - Adequate

I look at the Vineland results and it's very clear to me what C's areas of greatest need are, and exactly how far behind he is.  It also clearly shows me the areas where I clearly have nothing to worry about.

Hope this helps more than confuses!

 

24 hours later and this is on page 4?!!

Slow down people! 

OK, we spoke briefly with the school and they state that they are doing the ABLLS, but no the -R as they do not have the materials for it yet.

Are we missing out on something important there?

camusa39296.4605671296

Thanks to both of you.

Frankly, I am not sure exactly what I am looking for.  I guess, those tests that will help the school hone in on his specific deficits rather than blasting everything.  For example, with the ABLLs I am being told that they are doing "number and ltters" right now.  Well, BB mastered 1-30 and all of his ABCs before age 1.5  I know where he is there.

I want to know how to improve his use of pronouns and his dynamic exchange skills.  Hardcore speech assessment as he has great language, but pragmatic use of is limited (though improving rapidly).  I want his Flexibility around scheduling assessed so we can improve there.  I want his social skills assessed so we can work on this. 

My contention is that I already know what needs to happen or at least where the deficits are now we need the empiricism in order to make the schools move on it.

I, personally, like the Leiter (it was great for Payne since he doesn't understand a lot of verbal questions & can't read well either) It showed that he was smart, but that he needed work.

These are the tests they did when I took him to the ped. neuropsych for testing Leiter International Performance Scale-Revised (Leiter-R), Bracken  Basic Concept Scale – Receptive Third Edition and Expressive, Beery-Buktenica Developmental Test of Visual-Motor Integration- Fifth Edition (VMI), Clinical interview with mother, BASC-2, Vineland-II, Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS)

The ABLLS is a pretty good tool, though I think of it more as a skills tracking tool than an assessment - it's the core of many, if not most, ABA/VB programs.  It's very satisfying to watch the columns fill up over time :)  It includes data for fine and gross motor, language and social, academics, self help, etc.  It's pretty comprehensive, though probably doesn't delve into as great a detail as some of the individual assessments.

Personally, I wouldn't bother with any aptitude type testing as BB's age - in my experience, very young kids with an ASD underperform on these tests, and it's just depressing to get a score that's at or near MR (BTDT) when, if given a year or two later, they might show in the normal range or better.

Are you looking for assessments in specific areas?  The girls have had severeal language assessments (the PLS-4 seems pretty good, as does the TOPL), IQ tests, skills assessments, and 'autistic tendencies' type tests.  There's an assessment for everything.

 

right - the one shortcoming of the ABLLS-R (make sure they are using the ABLLS-R and not the ABLLS) is that there are no age norm guidelines.  BB is really young, and lots of the skills that are tracked in that curriculum are for kids who are older - so, at some point, BB will be at an 'age appropriate' level in reality, but the ABLLS-R will still show as incomplete - so the therapists kind of have to have a rough idea about what is typical for the age and how far up skills heirarchy they need to go. 

I agree, letters and numbers doesn't sound like something particularly useful for BB, but they may just be probing the skills at this point and not actually teaching them yet - do you have a copy of the ABBLS?  It sounds like maybe they still be probing and not yet teaching, and if so, what they are teaching should make more sense once they have a graph of all of the skills that they probed for - they should then start teaching to his defecits and leaving his age appropriate domains alone, for the most part.

As far as pragmatic language, the TOPL seemed pretty good.  The girls took it recently.  The PLS-4 is also a pretty popular assessment - they girls have taken that one a couple of times.

There really isn't a 'test' for social skills that I know of.  This is where a good therapist is important, because it's more art than science.

fred39295.3487731482

We had probably all of the above and honestly Sarah was so adversive to doing them that the scores are pretty meaningless

The ABBLS was better at telling us her strengths, weaknesses and where we needed to focus.  The data was taken at home at her so she had no behavoral problems. It has 100's of questions on different skills and approximations of mastery.. 

It was very easy for my lil brain to understand....I could look at it and see all the shaded parts in her mastered skills..as well as ALL the blanks of what she needed to be taught....what is really cool is filling those ALL up:)

The tests are only as good as your child's behavior that day and the person doing it..it can be very subjective if someone doesnt really know your child's skills. Sarah had the habit of stating "I don't know" on them when she did!Sorry, Cam...unventured territory for me. Our BCBA observes and reports at IEP meetings as does Payne's daycare.

Is the TOPL and the PLS-4 appropriate for BB's age?

I have to admit, I have not seen the ABLLS yet though I will look to find it after my next meeting at around noon or so.

Cam, find out if they are still probing for skills - ie - has the ABLLS been 'filled out' yet to reflect current ability - or are they still trying to figure that out.  Ask for a copy of the assessment if you don't have one.  You can order the ABLLS curriculum, too, here, as well as learn some more about this tool.

TOPL might not be - the girls had it for the first time a few months ago because they were pretty much all over the PLS - though it sounds like BB's language skills are ahead of where the girls were at his age, so he might be ready for the TOPL sooner.  The PLS seems like a pretty popular test.  It was given by both school districts the girls have been too and was also given by their private SLP.

fred39295.355462963

[QUOTE=Payne's Mom]Sorry, Cam...unventured territory for me. Our BCBA observes and reports at IEP meetings as does Payne's daycare. [/QUOTE]

LOL...I appreciate you chiming in though!  :)

Shelley, I totally hear ya'.  The good thing is that they are spreading it out and I think they are trying to do it when he is...most compliant as it were.

I try. I try. 

Good morning good people,

So, I did a search on "testing" and came up with 69 pages of results.

Given this I thought to simply ask the question again as I have seen multiple answers.

BB is currently being assessed in his preschool environment using the ABLLS.

I have seen note of other types of tests that are good and bad with our kids.  Things like "Non-Verbal" this and stay away from the Wechsler (which makes sense to me).

What other types of assessments would you suggest I push for?  During this season they are very slow at the preschool and so for August I might be able to accomplish quite a bit armed with the right info.

Thanks in advance for your input...all of you...TYOZA...please post in here.

Much love.

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