Non verbal Learning Disabilities Scale

Fran

Former desparate mom
Thought this might be helpful.


CHILDREN’S NONVERBAL LEARNING DISABILITIES SCALE
David B. Goldstein, Ph.D.



Parents: Please answer all of the following questions.





NAME OF CHILD: ________________________________________________
DATE OF BIRTH: __________ AGE: ____________ SEX________

GRADE: ________________ SCHOOL: _______________________

HANDEDNESS: RIGHT ______ LEFT _______ BOTH ______



This Questionnaire has been completed by: Mother____ Father____ Other (Please Describe your relationship)__________________________



1. Motor Skills

a. My child has problems with balance (e.g. never learned to ride a bike).

Never/Rarely____ Sometimes____ Often/Always____ I don’t know____



b. My child displays impaired fine motor skills (e.g. significant difficulties learning to tie shoes).

Never/Rarely____ Sometimes____ Often/Always____ I don’t know____



c. My child has problems writing or extremely slow writing.

Never/Rarely____ Sometimes____ Often/Always____ I don’t know____



d. My child seems unusually clumsy.

Never/Rarely____ Sometimes____ Often/Always____ I don’t know____



2. Visual-Spatial Skills

a. My child has difficulty remembering and organizing visual or spatial information (e.g. has difficulty lining up numbers to do a math problem or lining up words neatly on a page).

Never/Rarely____ Sometimes____ Often/Always____ I don’t know____



b. My child appears disoriented, lost, or confused when entering a new situation.

Never/Rarely____ Sometimes____ Often/Always____ I don’t know____



c. My child is slow to become familiar with new physical locations (e.g. continues to appear lost or disoriented after repeated exposures to the same location).

Never/Rarely____ Sometimes____ Often/Always____ I don’t know____



d. My child has difficulty remembering the faces of people he or she has met.

Never/Rarely____ Sometimes____ Often/Always____ I don’t know____



e. My child has an auditory memory like a tape recorder.

Yes____ No____ I don’t know____



f. My child loses his or her way and needs help finding his or her way around.

Never/Rarely____ Sometimes____ Often/Always____ I don’t know____



g. My child has unusually strong verbal skills (e.g. an impressive vocabulary or early speech).

Yes____ No____ I don’t know____



3. Interpersonal Skills

a. My child often does not get the humor in a joke because he or she interprets everything so literally.

Never/Rarely____ Sometimes____ Often/Always____ I don’t know____



b. When interacting with others my child has difficulty reading the other person’s non-verbal cues, such as tone of voice or facial expression.

Never/Rarely____ Sometimes____ Often/Always____ I don’t know____



c. My child interprets what I say very literally (for example, if I tell my child ‘to pick themselves up by his or her bootstraps’, they appear confused).

Never/Rarely____ Sometimes____ Often/Always____ I don’t know____



d. My child has difficulty transferring what he or she learns in one social situation to similar social situations. For e.g. my child appears confused when confronted with slight changes in a frequently encountered social situation.

Never/Rarely____ Sometimes____ Often/Always____ I don’t know____





Guidelines for Scoring the Children’s Nonverbal
Learning Disabilities Scale


The syndrome of NonVerbal Learning Disorder (NVLD) includes a number of specific symptoms. Rourke (1995) has organized these into three primary areas: neuropsychological deficits, academic deficits, and social-emotional/adaptational deficits. Neuropsychological deficits include difficulties with tactile and visual perception, psychomotor coordination, tactile and visual attention, nonverbal memory, reasoning, executive functions, and specific aspects of speech and language. Deficits in mathematical reasoning, math calculations, reading comprehension, specific aspects of written language, and handwriting are primary academic concerns. Deficits in social expertise include problems with social cognition and perception as well as difficulties in social interaction.



- Some of the symptoms identified with Nonverbal Learning Disabilities are similar to those described for other disorders. Individuals with right hemisphere dysfunction, Asperger's syndrome, and sensori-motor deficiencies each possess a number of characteristics that overlap with those of a Nonverbal Learning Disability. An evaluation by a Neuropsychologist can often assist in differential diagnosis.



- Section H is a checklist of characteristics that may be indicative of a Nonverbal Learning Disability. A referral for a more detailed evaluation by a pediatric neuropsychologist to rule in or rule out a Nonverbal learning disability requires that the parent report symptoms in all three spheres noted in the DSRI; deficiencies in motor-skills, visual-spatial skills, and interpersonal skills.



A referral to a neuropsychologist or for a more in-depth evaluation of a Nonverbal Learning Disability could be considered if the parent reports deficits “Sometimes” or “Often” on over half the items examining motor skills (at least 3 of the 4 items), visual-spatial skills (at least 4 of the 7 items), and interpersonal skills (at least 3 or the 4 items).



References
Rourke, B.P. “Neuropsychological Assessment of Children with Learning Disabilities:

Measurement Issues.” In G. Reid Lyons (ed.), Frames of Reference for the Assessment

of Learning Disabilities: New Views on Measurement Issues. Baltimore, Md., Paul H.

Brooks, Publisher, 1994.
 

Fran

Former desparate mom
My difficult child has everyone of these marked as often/always too. :frown:
 

Coriwyn

Member
Since Jame is already diagnosis'd with NonVerbal Learning Disorder (NVLD), it doesn't surprise me that she meets the criteria listed here. The areas of deviation for Jame comes in physical geography. Jame rarely gets lost within the city. However, she has no concept of distance, size, weight, ect. Jame also appears to get many jokes and is not a literal as in the phrase 'to pick themselves up by his or her bootstraps’. Jame seems to get these. However, many things that Jame thinks is funny is not really funny and I am not always sure that Jame actually understands the joke as much as she understands that she should laugh when the other people are laughing.

The one thing missing from this check list is the hyperverbal that is common with NonVerbal Learning Disorder (NVLD) individuals. Jame has this in spades.

Corey
 

SRL

Active Member
Thanks Fran. As usual my difficult child doesn't plug in perfectly. There are shades of NLD there but for instance he does understand jokes and loves to come up with riddles and jokes using word play. His gross motor skills were delayed and he rarely would attempt demanding motor challenges until he was good and ready. But when he was ready and put his mind to it he learned very quickly, as in roller blading and his two wheeler in only a few days on his own.

I read this screening tool right after arriving home from an outing with difficult child. I observed him on the way in the front door to his bedroom where he was heading to get ready for bed, and undressing on the way. I really think this tool is lacking one item: :wink:

2 g. My child drops and/or everything in the location it is last needed.
Never/Rarely____ Sometimes____ Often/Always____ I don’t know____
 

shad11_8

Active Member
thanks Fran, Of course Adam is also often/always on every one. Last night after I saw this, he was messing around getting ready for bed and I told him hed better pull himself up by his bootstraps...He smiled confused looking and his reply...--What are you trying to tell me?? LOL. At least he recognizes theres a message there. sonja
 

Fran

Former desparate mom
There are a few items missing as you have pointed out.

difficult child is hyperverbal to the max.

difficult child leaves everything where he has removed it last. (I can't say much since husband has the same dropsey disease)


My difficult child walked at 10mo but he ran which made him clumsy and fell often. He is more cautious because I don't think he knows where his body is in space nor grasps where his center of gravity is. Not because he is a cautious person(that would imply that he got cause and effect)

He works on humor. He will now, dissect a funny comment to understand or grasp what it is that makes it funny.
(he is a funny kid, believe me but he doesn't know why we think his comments are funny)
 
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