Miss. B.

s case study
Demographics
Name: Miss. B.
School/Grade: She is in the first grade.
Date of Birth: 00/00/0000
Age: 6 years, 3 months and 17 days
Evaluation Date: November 17th, 2014 December 2nd, 2014
Evaluators: 163846523, 410528099, 751806847
Report Author: 163846523, 410528099, 751806847
Reason for Referral
Parents have concerns about Miss. B.s school performance. Both Miss. B.s tutor and teacher
expressed worries about a possible learning disability or need for special needs services. Overall,
she is below grade level in every subject, has difficulty with fine motor skills and has trouble
with short term memory. We are assessing to see if Miss. B. is eligible for special education
services.
Background
Developmental History
Misty, Miss. B.s mother, had a normal pregnancy. It wasnt until she was two or three that her
parents started to notice some concerns. At three years old, Miss. B. was placed in speech
therapy until she was four years old when she began speaking on level. In 2012 at four years old,
Miss. B. started occupational therapy services. From her mothers description, occupational
therapy services are to help strengthen Miss. B.s core muscles. Her weak core inhibits her from
jumping. Occupational therapy services were stopped at the end of the school year in 2013 2014, but were resumed again at the beginning of the 2014-2015 school year. Currently, she
attends occupational therapy once a week.
Family Information and Social/Emotional History
Miss. B.s teacher and parents both regard her as a sweet and loving child, who is very
determined and willing to try hard. Miss. B. has several friends, both in class and outside of
school. Most of Miss. B.s extended family lives nearby, and some within the same

neighborhood. Her mother and father met in high school and have been married for 13 years.
They grew up in Sugar City and love that they are raising their family in the same area. Miss.
B.s mother works at a local hair salon called Jagged Edge, where she owns and operates her
own booth, three days a week (40 hours total). Her father owns and operates ______________,
in which they are expanding and building their own shop. Most of the construction is being
completed by himself, so he is gone most of the day.
Miss. B. is the middle child of three kids. Her older sister, Oakley, is in second grade. Recently,
after feedback from her aunt, it is being assumed that Oakley has ADD, but no formal testing has
been done. Race is two years old, and is struggling with stage four kidney failure. His illness has
put a lot of stress on the family dynamics. All siblings have a strong relationship and love to play
together.
Medical
Miss. B. has no known allergies. Her major medical history was included as occupational
therapy and speech services. Occupational therapy is provided by an outside, private practice.
She does not qualify for occupational therapy through the school. Occupational therapy services
are attended once a week for an hour. Miss. B.s mother shared that her daughter is very clumsy.
The major area of concern at occupational therapy is her weak core.
Educational History
Miss. B. attends the first grade at Central Elementary School in Sugar City, Idaho. In
kindergarten, there were many concerns expressed, but it was deemed appropriate for her to
move on into the first grade. Mrs. T, her first grade teacher, expressed that Miss. B. is far below
grade level in all subjects and struggles with reading sight words in sentences, writing and
following along in class. However, because of recent improvement, the school is assuming that
she will be ineligible for services. She meets with her aunt, a retired school teacher, twice a week
for one on one tutoring. Her teacher and parents both acknowledge that they have seen Miss. B.
improve in reading and writing after working consistently with her aunt. Miss. B. receives title
one services, but that is the only formal difference from a standard educational experience. Miss.
B.s mother shared that she would like her daughter to have more one-on-one attention. Miss.
B.s mother and her teacher speak often and both are happy and comfortable with their
relationship.
Observations
General Observation: Classroom during reading time
Communication
Miss. B. is surrounded by kids that are willing to help her. The first time that Miss. B. got lost,
it was due to turning too many pages. Her classmate that sits next to her helped. The second time

that she got lost in the workbook, Miss. B. turned to the boy sitting on the other side of her and
asked him for help on finding the right page. During breaks in the workbook, Miss. B. turned to
the other students at her table and started to talk to them until the teacher started talking and then
she stopped.
Cognitive
When they were working in the workbook, she waited to write anything down in the book until
she saw all of the students around her writing. It was then that she copied what they were writing
on her piece of paper.
Adaptive self-help
Miss. B. found alternative ways of finding answers to workbook questions by copying students
answers or asking for help.
Social emotional
When they paired off at the end of class, she looked for a friend and then they went and played a
number game on the floor by the door.
General Observation: Classroom during centers and recess
Cognitive
At the computers, Miss. B. kept her eyes on the screen until the other girls at the station started
to talk and moved her focus to them. Once the teacher told the class to put away their stations,
Miss. B. immediately got up and did what she was directed to do.
Communication
During their big group time, the class read a book out loud together. Miss. B. sat and watched
her classmates say the words. About 5 times she tried to mouth the words, but was delayed and
allowed her class mates to say the beginning of the word and copied them. After, she would try
to say the word herself.
Motor
Miss. B. was able to put on her gloves and zip up her coat by herself. While on the computer,
she maneuvered the mouse around.
Social/Emotional

During computer time, Miss. B. sat one chair away from the other girls at the station. During
recess, she played with two others girls, but eventually parted ways and played by herself. She
ran up and down the hill, slipping and falling for about five minutes and made no effort to have
friends join in with her. At the end of recess, she joined the other girls again but only briefly.
When walking back into the school, she started with some friends and ended by herself once
again.
Adaptive/ Self-Help
She was able to complete all tasks without assistance.
Assessment Observation: Woodcock Johnson III Diagnostic Reading Battery
Cognitive
Miss. B. often mixed up B and D or P and Q. She was hesitant to give answers when not given
explicit instructions. For nonsense words, she would repeated a more familiar word, rather than
sounding out the written word.
Communication
Miss. B. shared what she ate for thanksgiving with test proctors. She also shared that during
recess she and her friends built a snowman. After testing, she invited both proctors to come to
her occupational therapy appointment later that day. She indicated that all she does at
occupational therapy is play.
Motor
When Miss. B. held a pencil (not using it to write), she held it full fisted. While writing, she held
the pencil correctly but struggled, making small circles around the answers Y or N to answer
questions.
Social/Emotional
When unsure of an answer or test question, she smiled at the test proctor until prompted make
your best guess. When she wasnt sure of the answers, she made herself go cross-eyed.
Adaptive/ Self-Help
As she was getting ready for recess, she put on her coat independently. She also tightened her
pony-tail when it became loose.

Test Administered:
Woodcock Johnson III Diagnostic Reading Battery
The Woodcock Johnson III Diagnostic Reading Battery is a measure of phonological awareness,
phonics knowledge, reading achievement and related oral language abilities. This test is
individually given and assesses achievement in reading abilities.
Kaufman Test of Educational Achievement Third Edition (K-TEA)
The K-TEA is a full battery test that provides an in-depth measure of academic skills.
Test Results:
WJ III DRB
Letter-Word
Identification
Passage Comprehension
Word Attack
Reading Vocabulary
Reading Fluency
Spelling of Sounds
Sound Awareness
Sound Blending
Oral Vocabulary
Oral Comprehension
Total Reading
Broad Reading
Brief Reading
Basic Reading Skills
Reading
Comprehension
Phonics Knowledge
Phonemic Awareness
Oral Language Comp
K-TEA
Letter-word Recognition
Reading Comprehension
Math concepts and
application
Math Computations
Written Expression
Spelling

Raw
Score
25

Standard
Score
106

Percentile
Rank
65

Grade
Equivalent
1.6

10
7
17
17
14
-

94
114
92
108
98
110
92
110
100
96
100
111
92

35
83
31
70
44
74
30
75
51
39
51
78
30

1.0
1.9
K.9
<K.8
1.6
1.1
2.8
K.4
2.5
1.3
1.2
1.3
1.7
1.0

112
104
101

79
60
52

1.8
1.5
1.4

Raw
Score
24
4
22

Standard
Score
96
94
86

Percentile
Rank
39
34
18

Grade
Equivalent
1
<1
K.8

6
141
11

91
85
95

27
16
37

K.10
K.9
<1

Listening Comprehension
Oral Expression
Phonological Awareness
Nonsense Word Decoding
Word Recognition Fluency
Decoding Fluency
Associational Fluency
Naming Facility (RAN)

14
25
10
3
5
3
12
8

90
73
78
99
89
100

25
4
7
47
23
50

K.3
K
<1
1.2
<1
2.6

Interpretations
Communication
Overall, Miss. B. is a well conversed child and often talks to her peers. Miss. B. received
significant speech services as a toddler. However, at this point in time, she does not need any
further speech assistance. The testing is showing that Miss. B. is above grade level when it
comes to her oral comprehension, but when it comes to her ability to use her listening skills to
comprehend she is only in the early kindergarten abilities. In a classroom setting, Miss. B. does
not ask the teacher questions or for help, but she does ask peers for help.
Miss. B. can consistently:
-

Respond to promptings that are given by her teacher

Demonstrate proficiency in communicating with her peers
Ask her peers for help

Miss. B. can partially or sometimes:

-

Give answers during math class

Spell words correctly
Write letters the correct the way

Miss. B. cannot yet:

-

Verbally ask for help from an adult

Verbally explain a picture
Read three syllable words

Social and Emotional:

Miss. B. is able to interact with her peers and family members without any help. Even though
she is behind in all subjects, Miss. B. has not shown any signs of recognition of struggling. She
interacts well with her siblings and friends. The testing does not give us any more information on
Miss. B.s ability in this area. According to her mother and teacher, Miss. B. is well liked and
has many friends. She is very eager to talk to others and loves to play tricks. She has no fear of
strangers and likes to have a good time. She is very receptive to the needs of her siblings and is

quick to comfort her brother and sister. This trait extends into the classroom, as she is very caring
towards her peers as stated by her teacher. Miss. B. may not realize how far behind she is, but
she will play and have fun with her peers.
Miss. B. can consistently:
-

Interact playfully with her peers in an appropriate way

Remain unfazed by strangers in her own home
Interact comfortably with strangers
Show eagerness to play with her siblings

Miss. B. can partially or sometimes:

-

Play by herself
Play with peers other than her sister at recess
Express that she likes or does not like something

Miss. B. cannot yet:

-

Express frustration with school work

Recognize that she is behind

Self-Help Skills:
Miss. B. is able to perform the basic necessities that are required of her. Miss. B. is able to
independently use the restroom. She is self-sufficient in dressing, putting on her coat and mittens.
Miss. B. is able to clean up her messes, tidy her desk on command and do classroom chores.
Miss. B. can independently feed herself and drink from a normal cup. Miss. B. is able to
complete any assignment that is given and will ask for help from her peers as needed.
Miss. B. can consistently:
-

Put on her coat independently

Find the correct classroom with no assistance
Clean up messes

Miss. B. can partially or sometimes:

-

Remember important dates

Complete a worksheet with help
Fix her hair

Miss. B. cannot yet:

-

Complete a worksheet independently

Correctly hold eating utensils

Motor Skills:
Miss. B. struggles with her fine motor skills and some gross motor skills. One of Miss. B.s
favorite things to do is ride her bike up and down the street. Her mother stated that Miss. B. just
recently learned how to ride a bike with no training wheels. Because of her weak core, Miss. B.
is unable to jump. However, Miss. B. is active with her siblings and they chase each other
around the house. The majority of the concern lies within her range of fine motor skills. Miss. B.
was unable to hold a pencil until she began occupational therapy services at age three. She can
hold a pencil now, but her writing is large and sloppy. She struggles to turn pages and spends
more time on these simple tasks than her classmates. Miss. B. is able to use a computer, type and
use the mouse. Miss. B. can do the basics, but she is not proficient in small, neat writing.
Miss. B. can consistently:
-

Ride her bike

Write
Run

Miss. B. can partially or sometimes:

-

Turn the correct amount of pages

Draw small circles
Build a snowman with assistance of peers

Miss. B. cannot yet:

-

Write neatly
Hold a pencil correctly
Jump

Cognitive Skills:
Miss. B. understands rules and expectations, but she does not understand that she is behind
where she is supposed to be. During the observation, she knew what the rules were and kept
them. She is able to recognize letters but often confuses the difference between B and D. G, S, B,
D and 6 are usually written backwards. According to the K-TEA, Miss. B. is only in the 39th
percentile, placing her in the low average range for her grade for letter and word recognition.
According to the Woodcock Johnson, she is in the 69th percentile, placing her in the above
average range for her grade for letter and word recognition. For Miss. B.s reading
comprehension the K-TEA places she below first grade and the Woodcock Johnson places her a
little above where she is at in school right now. She responds to a question, even if it is just a
guess. When reading, she sometimes confuses the order of letters, such as bat to tab. Overall,
we see a pattern of struggling behavior in the areas of reading and writing. She cannot yet follow
written or implicit directions; however, she can sometimes follow verbal directions. Her mother
stated that she demonstrates an inability to remember things and is concerned about her short

term memory. Miss. B. works hard and never gives up no matter how hard the work is for her.
Unfortunately she is still mixing up some of the basics.
Miss. B. can consistently:
-

Give a response to a question

Recognize letters
Tell the difference between a right and wrong decision

Miss. B. can partially or sometimes:

-

Differentiate between B and D

Follow directions without having them repeated
Follow verbal directions

Miss. B. cannot yet:

-

Follow written directions

Follow implicit instructions
Remember things long term

Recommendations
For the Professionals:
Miss. B. demonstrates many characteristics that are aligned with a student with dyslexia.
These characteristics include transposing letters, struggling with reading and spelling and
confusing the order of letters, such as writing left instead of felt. She also has
difficulty gripping a pencil, has a tough time sounding out unfamiliar words and has
trouble following a sequence of directions. Occupational therapy services should
continue to work with Miss. B. on developing fine and gross motor skills, specifically
improving writing.
For the Parent:
Miss. B. should continue attending tutoring sessions with her aunt. Reading should be
more of a focus in the home. It should be made a priority to read with Miss. B. for at
least 20 minutes every night. Communication should be open and frequent between
teacher and parents so that all changes, improvements or circumstances are known.
Occupational therapy services should be continued.
For the Classroom:
Miss. B. should be given support to boost memory skills inside and outside the
classroom. Communication should be open and frequent between teacher and parents so
that all changes, improvements or circumstances are known. The teacher should work

with professionals to provide data for diagnosis. If/when a diagnosis is given, the teacher
should take that information and start the process of an IEP.
Summary:
Miss. B. is a 6 year old girl in first grade at Central Elementary School in Sugar City, Idaho. She
enjoys playing with her siblings and loves to ride her bike. Miss. B. receives services for her
motor skills. Concerns were brought forth by the teacher, tutor and parent about the possibility of
a learning disability. Test results concluded that her academic abilities are at or just below grade
level. However, through observation and testing, it is recommended that she be tested for
dyslexia. Her current abilities are on the low average of the scale, but need to be reinforced or
she will fall further behind grade level.