When to seek help for your child's learning difficulties

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When to seek help for your child's learning difficulties

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Parents often wonder, does my child have a learning disability? Does being a little bit behind in reading or math mean that they need extra help or is this something that I need to engage the services of an educational therapist or some other specialist. One of the ways that a parent can tell if their child is having a learning disability or a learning issue that is more than just the child being a little bit behind, would be if the child's academic functioning is significantly lower than their cognitive functioning. So if you have a child that seems very, very bright but isn't able to read, isn't able to do math, isn't able to keep up with their peers; it's definitely something to look into. The research on learning disabilities shows that early intervention is incredibly important. Reading intervention, in particular, must be implemented before Third Grade for best case outcomes. When children have appropriate and intensive intervention in First, Second, or Third Grade, they can often overcome their learning differences and actually read normally. This treatment response is not as robust as children who start intervention when they are older.

Watch Allison Kawa, PsyD's video on When to seek help for your child's learning difficulties...

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Allison Kawa, PsyD

Child Psychologist

Alison Kawa is a licensed child psychologist specializing in the evaluation of children and adolescents.  Her pre- and post-doctoral training emphasized child and adolescent testing.  She was a fellow in the UCLA Autism Evaluation Clinic where she acquired extensive training in the diagnosis of autism spectrum disorders and a range of other developmental disorders.  During this time, she also obtained certification from the University of Michigan Autism and Communication Disorders Center (UMACC) on the gold standard instruments (i.e., ADI-R and ADOS) used in autism evaluations.  Following her fellowship, she became Senior Assessor at UCLA where she worked for four years.

Alison completed the PsychoEducational Diagnostic Services Program (PEDS) Post-Doctoral Fellowship in Pediatric Assessment at the Reiss Davis Child Study Center at Vista Del Mar.  In this setting, she conducted comprehensive psychoeducational evaluations for children and adolescents with a diverse range of issues including ADHD, Learning Disabilities, mood disorders, and anxiety disorders.  She also completed the Child Therapy in a School Setting program offered by Phillips Graduate Institute, where she gained training and experience in play therapy, social skills groups, and therapeutic interventions appropriate for adolescents. 

While completing her graduate training in psychology, she held a staff position at Working With Autism, Inc., where she worked individually with children with autism, provided case management and supervision, and developed and implemented a staff-training curriculum.  It was through this position that she acquired a love for teaching and training. In addition to her private practice, she teaches pre- and post-doctoral fellows at the Reiss Davis Child Study Center at Vista Del Mar, where she also works as a supervisor and consultant.

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