EdPsych observing DS - what do I need to ask?

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5yo DS is being observed by anEdPsych next week at the request of the Head/class teacher.

He's very bright (recently assessed reading age put him at the top of the entire school) but is having what the teacher calls 'meltdowns'.

I'm in the middle of having him assessed by the OT for sensory issues, but I feel so sad for him. His teacher told me that he went absolutely mad the other day whensent to the back of the lunch queue for talking. He's not able to cope with (a) standing in line (b) waiting to eat (his blood sugar crashes are epic) and (c) he forgets what he's been told, so I feel like the school we're setting him up for this huge failure

I've requested to speak to the EdPsych before the observation. What do I tell her? He's brilliant at home, I feel like aspects of school are making him really anxious.

Bump

I would just give her all the background including any assessments he has had

Thank you buffy

What's your take on how that situation was handled? Am I being precious or should they be a bit more aware of his triggers?

I expect they just didn’t think. Once the assessment is done the Ed Psychologist should give specific recommendations and I would suggest that you follow up to ensure these are followed through and that the key staff who look after your child are fully aware of his needs. Good luck

Thank you

It can be difficult for staff - in particular whole school full of staff, including (as may have been the case here?) people such as mid day supervisors, to be making big adjustments for children, if there is no diagnosis. How do staff differentiate between a child with needs that do need to be catered for, and a child who has been used to getting their own way / doing as they wish ?
To be really clear, I'm not suggesting your dc falls into the second category, but I presume you can see the difficulty it can put a member of staff in, if a child doesn't yet have any diagnosis of anything.

Once he has been seen by the EP and the OT, then their reports will advise and guide the staff what they can do to support him.

In terms of what you can say, you need to think (an I would suggest write down) any things about your ds that you feel make him a little different from his peers. Write down any adjustments you make - or that previous teachers or Nursery staff, or adults in other places he's attended (I'm not sure how old he is), to make sure he doesn't have these meltdowns, and / or, to do with the sensory issues you've mentioned. Try to think about things you've just got used to doing that might not even seem an adjustment any more. The EP will want to know as much as (s)he can about ds, both at home and at school to form a rounded picture. Think about sleep patterns, any food issues, all sensory issues, any play preferences, what he is like socially, what his interests are, what his functional language is like.

Remember, the more (s)he knows, the better the advice, and so the more help and support your ds will get.

Thank you so much back I shall mention all of these things. He's 5 and in reception. He's got a really 'spiky' profile so on the one hand he's a free reader, and on the other he melts down when he makes a mistake and puts his hands over his ears if someone tries to give him advice I feel so bad for him.

Has no-one suggested getting a medical diagnosis for him ?

The EP can advise on adjustments within school, and can help apply for an EHCP if it is felt he needs one, but can't diagnoses anything.

The diagnostic procedure is different in different parts of the country, but here, the school can refer to the CDC (Child Development Centre) so they can see a Paediatrician. Nurseries can too. Universally GPs and HVs can refer. In some parts of the country (from what I've picked up on MN) apparently folk get referred to CAMHS but, as I say, it is different depending on where you are in the country.

Either way, there are long waiting lists wherever you live, so it is worth getting on that list sooner rather than later.

What might the medical diagnosis be?

I went to the GP but haven't managed to get his bloods done yet (Busy teacher!). The OT is looking at a sensory diet for him. I've just emailed the EdPsych outlining some of his behaviours.

Oh.
Well, obviously I am only going on what you've posted, but if my child had a combination of

• sensory issues,
• 'meltdowns',
• not able to cope with standing in line
• not able to cope with waiting to eat
• forgetting (?) - or either not processing spoken language , or - potentially not generalising to different situations) what he's been told
• being really anxious
• and "He's got a really 'spiky' profile so on the one hand he's a free reader, and on the other he melts down when he makes a mistake and puts his hands over his ears if someone tries to give him advice"

I would be asking for an assessment for autism.
I am really sorry if this hasn't been mentioned to you before, but, if you are a teacher, I'm also a bit surprised if it hasn't crossed your mind ?
As I say, obviously I can't diagnose, even if I knew him, but even less so from a brief description on the internet, but that is what I would be looking in to.

ASD has of course crossed my mind but I was thinking more medical as in perhaps diabetes or a 'physiological' cause, if that makes sense

Sorry I hadn't mentioned ASD - it was definitely at the forefront of my mind when considering his sensory issues etc, apologies for not making that clear

Phew

Always tricky to be the first to mention it.
The point being, and Ed Psych has an education background. You need a medical doctor to diagnose.

I could have written your post ! Following with interest although we are a little ahead in that we've had our ed psych assessment and although she was spot on in her evaluation we are now on day 1 of a 2 day exclusion for "violence towards teachers" as his meltdowns have escalated into fight (mostly) or flight responses and the school only seem to be making things worse !

Sorry to hear that badgercat - how old is your DS?

DS1 had his observation today and the EdPsych was lovely - she's got lots of ideas about how to help him. She thinks the problem is that he's operating at a high level of understanding/ability but has normal 5yo responses to things, so it's helping him cope with that.

He's 5 also, ed psych assessment was really brilliant for us, she identified he was behind in his communication skills so can't verbalise what's bothering him so it's coming out in frustration. I actually found I'd been making a huge amount of allowances and adaptions without realising they're not the norm for his age - tools they actually reccomend to help asd children such as "now and next" so they're able to prepare for what's to come during their day. He's ahead in reading and maths so we can just concentrate on the social aspects of school.

I'm quickly discovering this is a huge minefield to navigate 😔

badgercat it doesn't sound like the school have handled him very well in this case, did the EP give them strategies to help him?

Sorry, just reread and saw 'now and next' - DS1 finds transition hard to cope with. His main flashpoint is getting things wrong, he has no patience and cries/shouts when he messes up. I tend to make a joke out of it with him ('NO MISTAKES ALLOWED!' in a silly voice) but it's hard work!

EP saw DS1 yesterday and I met with her today.

She thinks he's working at a high level of understanding/enquiry, but a normal level of emotional development, and it's causing him frustration. She doesn't think he's ASD.

She does think he is very 'sensory' and has made recommendations to find him a spot to cool off if things are too noisy or he's feeling frustrated. She thinks he'll get better at managing his frustration if we do lots of modelling 'not caring' at home.