What Really Happens During a Comprehensive Dyslexia Evaluation? A Parent-Friendly Guide
If your child is struggling with reading, spelling, or keeping up with classroom literacy tasks, you may have heard the term dyslexia evaluation. But what does that actually include? And how do professionals figure out why your child is having difficulty?
A true, research-aligned dyslexia evaluation is much more than a single test. It looks at how your child learns, how their brain processes language, and which skills are supporting—or holding back—their reading development.
Below is a clear, parent-friendly breakdown of what gets evaluated and why it matters.
1. Phonological Processing
This is one of the most important areas examined. Phonological processing refers to a child’s ability to hear, identify, and manipulate the sounds in words.
A dyslexia evaluation looks at skills such as:
Phonological awareness (breaking words into sounds, blending sounds, rhyming)
Phonological memory (remembering sound sequences)
Phonological retrieval (finding words in your brain quickly)
Children with dyslexia often have difficulty noticing and manipulating sounds, which then impacts decoding, spelling, and fluent reading.
2. Oral Language Skills
Before a child can read and write, they must understand and use spoken language effectively.
A comprehensive evaluation looks at:
Vocabulary
Sentence understanding
Grammar
Storytelling and explaining ideas
Understanding directions
Weak oral language skills can make it harder to learn phonics, understand what they read, or express ideas on paper.
3. Rapid Automatized Naming (RAN)
RAN measures how quickly a child can name familiar items, like colors, letters, or objects.
This skill is closely tied to reading fluency.
Kids with slow naming speed often:
Read more slowly
Struggle to gain automaticity
Use more mental effort to get through text
RAN does not measure intelligence—it simply reflects how efficiently a child retrieves language.
4. Working Memory
Working memory is your child’s “mental sticky note.”
It helps them:
Follow multi-step directions
Keep track of sounds while blending them
Hold information long enough to make sense of it
Weak working memory can affect decoding, spelling, math word problems, and writing.
5. Speech Sound Skills (Articulation & Phonology)
Speech sound development and literacy skills are closely connected.
A dyslexia assessment may examine whether your child:
Has difficulty producing certain sounds
Substitutes or simplifies sounds
Has a history of speech delays
Children who struggle with speech sounds sometimes also experience difficulty mapping sounds to letters—an important foundation for reading.
6. Written Language Skills
Reading and writing go hand in hand.
A thorough evaluation will look at how your child:
Spells words (phonetic spelling vs. memorized spelling)
Writes sentences
Organizes ideas
Uses grammar and punctuation
Writes paragraphs
These skills reveal a lot about how your child processes language and support accurate diagnosis and treatment planning.
7. Executive Function Skills
Executive functioning includes the mental skills we use to plan, organize, and complete tasks.
A dyslexia evaluation may assess:
Attention
Task initiation
Planning and organizing
Cognitive flexibility
Self-monitoring
These skills impact reading, writing, homework, completing long assignments, and working independently.
What Does All This Mean for My Child?
A high-quality dyslexia evaluation doesn’t just tell you if your child has dyslexia—it tells you:
Why your child is struggling
Which skills are strong and can be leveraged
Which skills need targeted support
What type of intervention will work best
This creates a roadmap for your child’s reading success, whether that includes structured literacy, speech-language therapy, accommodations in school, or a combination of supports.
Final Thoughts
If you’re considering a dyslexia evaluation, you’re already taking an important step toward helping your child thrive. With the right supports and a knowledgeable team, children with dyslexia can become confident, capable readers and writers.
If you’d like to learn more about evaluations, literacy intervention, or how to support your child at home, feel free to reach out—I’m always here to help families navigate this journey.
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What Really Happens During a Comprehensive Dyslexia Evaluation? A Parent-Friendly Guide for Monmouth & Ocean County, NJ Families
If your child is struggling with reading, spelling, or keeping up with classroom literacy tasks, you may be exploring a dyslexia evaluation in Monmouth County or Ocean County, New Jersey. Understanding the evaluation process can help you feel informed, empowered, and confident as you seek answers.
A comprehensive New Jersey dyslexia assessment is far more than a single test—it looks deeply at how your child processes language and learns to read. This helps professionals determine why your child is struggling and exactly what supports they need to make progress.
Below is a clear, parent-friendly breakdown of what gets evaluated and why it matters.
1. Phonological Processing
One of the strongest indicators of dyslexia is difficulty with phonological processing, which includes:
Identifying and manipulating sounds
Blending and segmenting
Remembering sound sequences
Retrieving words quickly
Many children with dyslexia—both in Monmouth County schools and across New Jersey—struggle with these foundational sound skills.
2. Oral Language Skills
Strong reading starts with strong spoken language.
During a comprehensive dyslexia evaluation in NJ, professionals assess:
Vocabulary
Understanding of sentences and grammar
Ability to follow directions
Storytelling and narrative skills
Weaknesses in these areas often make reading and writing more challenging.
3. Rapid Automatized Naming (RAN)
RAN measures how quickly a child can name letters, numbers, colors, or objects.
This is closely tied to reading fluency. Children who score low on RAN often:
Read more slowly
Have trouble with automaticity
Use extra effort to move through text
RAN testing is a core part of New Jersey dyslexia evaluations.
4. Working Memory
Working memory is crucial for reading, spelling, directions, and writing.
A dyslexia evaluation looks at a child’s ability to:
Hold information in mind
Manipulate sounds
Follow multi-step directions
Remember sequences
Many children evaluated in Monmouth County and Ocean County show working memory differences that interfere with literacy.
5. Speech Sound Skills (Articulation & Phonology)
Speech sound development and literacy development are strongly connected.
An evaluation may look at:
Sound substitutions
Sound distortions
Simplified sound patterns
History of speech delays
Children who struggle with speech sounds may also struggle with phonics and spelling—something we commonly see in New Jersey school-based and private evaluations.
6. Written Language Skills
A dyslexia evaluation also looks closely at writing, including:
Spelling patterns
Sentence structure
Grammar
Written expression
Organization
This helps determine whether your child needs structured literacy intervention, writing support, or both.
7. Executive Function Skills
Executive functioning challenges can make it difficult for a child to:
Pay attention
Stay organized
Plan writing
Complete schoolwork
Manage longer reading tasks
These skills are often included in a comprehensive evaluation to give a full picture of how your child learns.
Why This Matters for Families in Monmouth & Ocean County, NJ
A high-quality dyslexia evaluation doesn’t just answer the question, “Does my child have dyslexia?”
It also provides:
A clear explanation of why your child is struggling
A breakdown of strengths you can build on
A roadmap for intervention
Recommendations for school supports, accommodations, and structured literacy
With the right tools, children with dyslexia in Monmouth County, Ocean County, and throughout New Jersey can become confident, capable readers and writers.
Looking for Dyslexia Testing in Monmouth or Ocean County?
If you’re exploring a comprehensive dyslexia evaluation for your child, I’m here to help. I provide family-friendly, research-based assessments throughout Monmouth County, Ocean County, and surrounding New Jersey communities.
Feel free to reach out with questions or to schedule an evaluation—your child’s literacy journey can absolutely change with the right support.