ds assessed as having poor "processing speed", What does this mean for his development?

[MissChief]

Having been to ed pysch, got report back in which she detials his strengths & weaknesses, the latter being working memory and in particular processing spped (in bottom 25%). anyone any idea on how this is likely to affect him now and in future? what can we do to help? is it likely to change?

and I'm assuing that it means a "slow thinker", is that right? He did quite well on IQ, v well on verbal reasoning etc but not on processing spped.

bump

Slow processing may mean that his reading speed is slow. My ds is like this - also high IQ. It can be one of the indicators for dyslexia - but there are usually other difficulties involved. Weaknesses in working memory can mean that he may struggle to hold several pieces of information in his head, which can make copying from the board difficult, also remembering times table and having difficulty following instructions, remebering to hand in homework that kind of thing. Yes these can both be improved. Is there a dyslexia teacher in your child's school? There are memory training techniques that can specifically improve working memory and also techniques to develop reading speed.

thanks for that. It's weird that ADHD and dyspraxia have been talked about, never dyslexia. He devours fiction and reads v well independently. He is less good at reading for info tho and gives up easily, maybe due to underlying problems. What help does yr ds get and what's his diagnosis, if you don't mind me asking?

you're right. i think he probably is quite a deep, sensitive soul. Hope yr dd has had some help with her vision now?

The processing speed I think is worked out from the block-building test and one other which I can't remember! I was told that DS has a slower than average processing speed, leading him to have a 'disorganised approach to tasks' and an 'inability to process complex visual stimuli'. It was suggested that I help with his reading fluency and maths recall.
According to other websites, slow processing is often linked with dyslexia.
Tbh, I laughed, because the results of his cognitive testing bear little resemblance to the child I know and love. (He's 9 with a 16+ reading age)
I just felt that giving a child with ASD a 2 hour assessment was rather unkind - and little wonder the results were skewed!

I may be remembering wrong, but I think RTKangamum's ds has this, so she might be able to advise.

thanks, hope she sees this!