Case Examples

• Meet Maggie and Suzie – both are qualified for SLD under Reading comprehension

• By digging deeper and understanding their patterns of strengths and weaknesses, we see that their programming looks very different

Case 1 - Maggie

• Weakness in Phonological Awareness (detecting or discriminating differences in phonemes or speech sounds)– Part of Acquisition of Information

• Weakness in Listening Comprehension (Achievement Area)

• Weakness in Oral Expression (Achievement Area)• Weakness in Working Memory (BPP)• Weakness in Processing Speed (BPP)

Case 1 - Maggie

• Things we can remediate (intervention)– Phonological processing – focus on teaching her skills in this

area• Things we can modify

– No verbal administration of assessments (weakness in listening comprehension)

– Allowed to write answers if oral exam (weakness in oral expression)

• Things we can accommodate– Break down tasks into chunks (Working Memory weakness)– Extended time on tests (Processing Speed Weakness)

Case 2 - Suzie

• Weakness in inferencing (achievement area)• Weakness in understanding text structure

(achievement area)• Weakness in sustained attention (BPP)– Part of Acquisition of Information

• Weakness in Working Memory (BPP)

Case 2 - Suzie

• Things we can remediate (intervention)– Teaching inferencing skills

• Things we can modify– Shortened reading passages (weakness in

sustained attention)• Things we can accommodate– Provide written supports for verbal instructions

(weakness in working memory)

Conclusion - Overarching Theme

• You need multiple sources of data to tell you what the pattern of strengths and weaknesses are within a student’s processing in order to help alleviate the impact of their disability through either remediation or adaptations and modifications.