Learning LOVE
An emphasis on learning and literacy challenges using an executive function and root-cause approach, including a comprehensive learning evaluation.
Learning LOVE is for Children Who Present With Challenges Related to:
- Reading/Dyslexia
- Vocabulary
- Speech Sound Intelligibility
- Attention
- Inhibition/Self-Control
- Word Finding
- Math
- Following Directions
- Self-Awareness or Self-Monitoring
- Initiating a Task
- Writing
- Telling a Story or Having a Conversation
- Maintaining Topic or Organizing Thoughts
- Situational Awareness
- Processing of Information
- Working Memory
- Transitions
- Fixed Mindsets and Concrete Thinking
- Foresight and/or Hindsight, Sense of Time
- Planning
The Learning Lifeline Of Vital Emphasis (LOVE):
A CCC-SLP, The Seeds of Learning
" Children are not data. Children are not a diagnosis. Children are not something that can be categorized based on standard scores and percentiles. We must look beyond the standard scores and labels to find patterns of difficulty. We must dive into the warning signs of struggle to see where the breakdown is occurring. We must stop focusing on arbitrary test scores to tell us if our children are okay. We must meet our children where they are in development, guide them along the learning process, and support them exactly where they need support."
- Tera Sumpter, MA CCC-SLP, The Seeds of Learning Book*
Comprehensive Learning Evaluation
Consistent with the Seeds of Learning Cognitive Processing Model by Tera Sumpter, MA CCC-SLP*, Neurolosophy offers a comprehensive learning evaluation including measures to evaluate a child's executive functions, speech sound system, phonological processing system, visual imagery for symbols, language processing, and literacy skills. We will gather data from structured and unstructured tasks with the child, parent and teacher interviews, formal test measures, and additional empirical data as warranted. We are looking for patterns of behavior across a variety of means. Our goal is not a diagnosis or series of standardized test scores. We are looking for the root. Where in the cognitive processes is learning breaking down.
In addition to evaluating at the level of the cerebral cortex, we will also gather data related to the limbic system (mid-brain) where the emotional brain resides, as limbic dysfunction can wreak havoc on higher level thinking skills . Referring to the our collaborative network of professionals when warranted.
From there we will establish optimized treatment planning. It is not a short process, nor an easy one. Yet one that yields far greater fruit than spending countless hours or years treating symptoms without identifying and addressing the root cause.
Whenever possible, we will provide family-centered support services as well. However, should ongoing services not be feasible with our practice, we will provide a detailed treatment plan and resources to support the family and educational teams supporting the child.
Executive Function Therapy
Neurolosophy uses a functional intentionality approach to enhancing the executive function (EF) skills in every child we serve. Some children, however, (ADHD, ASD, learning disorders, etc.) require explicit, scaffolded skill building throughout the EF system. Our executive function system is the maestro to the cognitive orchestra and is unrelated to a child's capacity to learn (intelligence), rather, it has a greater impact on the child's ability to learn. It's the system that cues the rest of the brain to do what it knows. And when this system goes offline, there is a disconnect between a child's "cuer" and their "doer". A child may present with language delays, learning challenges, behavioral challenges (or all of the above) that are not consistent with their intellectual functioning. One of the primary indicators of executive dysfunction is inconsistency in performance. A child with executive function challenges may present with poor:
- perception
- focus
- sustained attention
- initiation
- stopping
- flexibility
- shifting
- self-monitoring/correcting
- verbal working memory
- nonverbal working memory
- planning and pacing
- organizing and prioritizing
"[The executive function system] makes sure that all subsystems of cognition are doing what they are supposed to be doing. The impact of executive function weakness on learning is immense. We may see gaps in any or all aspects of cognitive development, gaps in knowledge, difficulty acquiring and retaining information, and difficulty generating new ideas and tasks. Those affected children may be unorganized, forgetful, inflexible, easily distracted, and often off-task. They may rush through assignments with poor self-monitoring and self-correction, or they may seem to take forever due to poor focus, pace, time sense, prioritization, and initiation. When tasks have multiple steps and require layers of planning to execute, children with executive function difficulties may easily become overwhelmed." - Tera Sumpter, MA CCC-SLP, The Seeds of Learning Book*.
*Tera Sumpter, MA CCC-SLP The Seeds of Learning Book is Available HERE
What People Say About Learning LOVE
