I first saw Janice Jeffries when she was twelve. A thin, shy, serious girl with long dark hair, she sat in my waiting room intently reading The Odyssey. She was a gifted child, precociously articulate, but she had some problems that made the social aspects of school a torment. She suffered from anxiety. Among her many fears—of being alone, of
By: Sara Brown, M.A., CCC-SLP/L Parents and caregivers frequently ask me how they can help encourage the development of their child’s language skills, especially over the summer months when academics are often not receiving as much attention. They are often surprised when I direct them to do a little online shopping or to take a trip to the lakefront with
By: Jaclyn Russo, M.A. A 2005 article in the New York Times entitled No Emotion Left Behind highlighted the importance of bridging academic and social and emotional learning (SEL) curriculums in schools. SEL skills can be thought of as “academic enablers,” leading to better relationships with peers and teachers and thus, more learning and achievement. At that time, many schools had
By: Anne Howard, Ph.D. As a clinician and scholarship manager at RNBC, I have the honor of seeing firsthand how our program impacts the lives of the children we serve. Earlier this month, I was a proud attendant of a middle school graduation for one of our scholarship recipients, Simon. I couldn’t help but think about the incredible progress he’s
By Leslie Baer Cohen, Ph.D. With summer upon us, many parents are actively exploring summer programs for their children. As a child psychologist, one of the more common questions that I hear from parents during this process is, “What, if anything, should I tell my child’s counselor/camp about his/her neurobehavioral problems?” For many parents, a tension exists between wanting to
By: Terese Burk, M.A. & Jacy Herman, M.S. Rush NeuroBehavioral Center’s Educational Services Department has developed an Executive Functions curriculum based upon organizational strategies that help a child become successful in and out of school. These strategies emphasize organizing materials, managing time, developing study skills, and setting goals. We know that these skills readily transfer into life beyond the classroom. They
Some children find their passion in the course of the school year: they begin to learn to paint in art class or become fascinated with physics or discover they have an aptitude as distance runners or soccer players in gym. But for many children the school day fails to arouse their deepest enthusiasm, and with it, their greatest gifts and
By: Andrea Victor, PhD The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) provides the criteria for diagnosing mental health disorders and is used throughout the medical community by therapists, physicians, and insurance providers. In May 2013, an updated version of the DSM will be released with changes in several diagnostic categories. The new DSM‑5 makes significant changes to the
In the past ten years the number of children regarded as having ADHD has risen by 53% to more than 6.4 million. In the past five years, sales of stimulant medications have risen from 4 billion to 9 billion annually. A lot of things affect how well a child with ADHD fares in society. One big factor is the set
The latest version of the Diagnostic & Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) will be released soon, and contains updated criteria that may impact autism spectrum disorder and ADHD diagnoses. Clark A. McKown, PhD, Executive Director of Rush NeuroBehavioral Center, discussed these updates along with data from the CDC suggesting that such diagnoses are on the rise. Q: Data released from