Services
Evaluation
Dr. Hale’s evaluations address a wide range of questions related to children’s, adolescents’ and young adults’ learning, neuropsychological, developmental and mental health needs.
She believes that individually-tailored, comprehensive evaluation can uncover the missing or misunderstood pieces of how children and young adults learn and navigate the social-emotional milestones of growing up to the very best of their capabilities.
Common questions addressed in evaluations with Dr. Hale:
Click to expand each question.
Does my child have a disability?
Dr. Hale provides diagnostic clarification regarding a range of conditions impacting children, adolescents and young adults.
Examples include: Learning Disorders (including Dyslexia, Dyscalculia and Dysgraphia), Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, Autism Spectrum Disorder, Social Communication Disorder, Language Disorder, Anxiety Disorders, Depressive Disorders, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, Developmental Delay and Intellectual Disability.
She also recognizes the limitations of diagnostic labels and the critical importance of illuminating each unique landscape within which a diagnosis or disability may occur.
Is my child gifted?
Dr. Hale evaluates children, adolescents and young adults whose learning and social-emotional needs intersect with intellectual ability, academic aptitude and/or artistic ability that is well beyond their physical age and same-grade peers.
Dr. Hale’s practice serves students with a diverse range of strengths, talents and developmentally-advanced capabilities. She also works with adolescents and young adults who are preparing for careers as elite athletes, dancers and musicians.
Dr. Hale is well-versed in national standards for Gifted and Talented education in addition to state regulations governing Gifted and Talented programming.
Is my toddler or preschooler developing on time? Are there any delays that we need to get help for now?
Dr. Hale has specific expertise in developmental assessment and intervention planning for young children, including the early identification of vulnerabilities related to autism spectrum and other neurodevelopmental disabilities.
Dr. Hale is a strong advocate for young children receiving targeted interventions that are well-matched to an accurate understanding of their developmental needs.
She also places a high value on empowering parents as advocates and on celebrating children’s developmental successes, progress and resiliency.
Is there something different about how my brain works? Could I have an underlying problem that is holding me back? Would I benefit from certain accommodations and/or supports in college or graduate school?
Dr. Hale’s evaluations provide an avenue for older students to gain an appreciation for how they learn, process information, problem solve and cope with the many demands of growing up and becoming an independent adult.
She has extensive experience addressing the unique needs of this age-group, fostering students’ self-advocacy and outlining detailed recommendations to support transitions from high school to college and beyond.
What are my child’s strengths?
Dr. Hale is committed to conducting comprehensive evaluations that systematically uncover, measure and define areas of strength, competency and resiliency. Her recommendations are informed by strength-based assessment results and an in-depth understanding of how a child or young adult’s strengths can be fostered to further support academic, social-emotional and vocational success.
Is my child making progress? Are the interventions we have in place working? What other interventions are needed?
Dr. Hale’s evaluation process includes an extensive review of records and interviews with school and community providers in order to understand the history of how problem areas have developed and been addressed over time. She carefully assesses trajectory of progress across varied domains.
Dr. Hale’s evaluations emphasize meaningful and research-based recommendations that are directly linked to a child’s uniquely nuanced profile of strengths and challenges.
We’ve had evaluations before, but something is still getting in the way of our child’s success. What are we missing?
Dr. Hale’s evaluations are comprehensive, thorough, thoughtful and informed by the latest research and best practice standards.
Because of the breadth and depth of her assessment expertise across multiple domains of development and functioning (e.g., cognitive problem solving, executive function, learning, processing speed, fine motor, memory, social competency, language, emotional wellbeing, resiliency), she is able to decipher the underlying vulnerabilities that interact in complex ways to create obstacles to children’s growth and success.
Dr. Hale is equally invested in using neuropsychological, psychological, developmental, language and academic assessment measures to identify strengths and break down the barriers that prevent those strengths from shining through.
Is it “normal” for me/my child to feel or behave this way? Is this challenge typical for this age?
Dr. Hale uses a developmental framework for assessing concerns. Her evaluations explain what abilities, behaviors, challenges and/or symptoms fall within or outside of what research tells us is typically expected for a certain stage of development.
Dr. Hale’s evaluations also include an analysis of the disconnects, disparities or gaps in various abilities or skill-sets and how these gaps may contribute to frustration, avoidance, problem behaviors and/or anxiety.
Consultation
What is consultation?
Consultation is a model of mental health service provision in which a clinically trained specialist acts as a consultant to assist and guide an individual, group, of individuals, or organization (e.g., parents, teachers, schools, intervention providers) in addressing a problem or set of problems.
What is Dr. Hale’s consultation process?
Consultation with Dr. Hale typically involves two phases: 1) information gathering through questionnaires, interviews, review of records and/or observation; and 2) providing clients with added insights, resources, psychoeducation, guidance, and/or recommendations to address the problem(s) identified.
Many families seek Dr. Hale’s consultation as a follow-up to an earlier conducted evaluation in order to address new questions about interventions, supports, educational placement, progress and/or evolving areas of challenge, The timing of follow-up consultation varies, with parents and students seeking consultation anywhere from a few months to a few years after an evaluation.
Dr. Hale also welcomes new children, parents, families, and young adults to her consultation practice. An evaluation with her is not required for consultation services.
Consultation is not typically covered by insurance.
Common questions addressed in consultation with Dr. Hale:
Click to expand each question.
Questions related to improved understanding of needs, challenges and strengths:
How do we understand and address these new concerns or new behaviors?
Can you explain to our child what is happening in their brain and how they learn best?
Can you explain to our child what their disability means in a way that he/she/they will understand?
What do all these evaluation results from school and other providers really mean?
Can you help us, teachers, and those working with our child to better understand this new diagnosis, how our child learns and/or how to make sure our child’s strengths are recognized?
What else could be going on with our child that maybe hasn’t been assessed, identified, or treated?
Questions related to intervention and progress:
Do the interventions and supports we have in place match our child’s needs?
What are the best ways to educate and support our child given their unique profile?
Why isn’t our child making the gains we hoped for?
How do we help our child become invested in the supports they need?
Questions related to educational placement and school programming:
Is a new school or major change in school programming the right choice for our child?
Should we delay the start to kindergarten or have our child repeat a grade?
Is homeschooling a good option for our child and our family?
Why doesn’t our child’s school see what we see as strengths, problems, or challenges?
Should we ask our child’s school for a 504 Accommodation Plan, Individualized Education Program, Positive Behavior Support Plan, Response to Intervention Plan, Individual Family Service Plan and/or Individual Leaning Plan?
Questions related to transitions and concerns for young adults:
How do I know if I need accommodations in my college, graduate school or work setting?
What supports and interventions form when I was younger do I really still need?
How do I best prepare for going to college or starting a new graduate degree?
Should I take a gap year?
Why do I have so much trouble with this subject (e.g., math, foreign language) or this type of academic task (e.g., studying, test taking, reading, note taking), and what can I do about it?
Questions related to giftedness:
Our child has been identified for gifted and talented services but is still so bored in school. How do we change that?
Is acceleration the right step for our child?
How does information gained from different evaluations and school reports apply to our child’s progress as an athlete, musician or artist?
Can you help our child understand what giftedness really means?
How do we help teachers, coaches and interventionists understand our gifted child’s underlying disability and what that means for how they learn or pursue their career as an athlete, musician or artist?
Telehealth
Some of Dr. Hale’s consultation and evaluation services may be conducted over telehealth using a HIPAA-compatible platform for video-conferencing. Dr. Hale’s telehealth practice is grounded in evidence-based standards and guidelines put forth by the American Psychological Association, the American Telemedicine Association, and the Inter Organizational Practice Committee for Neuropsychology.
Please contact Dr. Hale to schedule an appointment.