Dear Parent:

Over the past 23 years of working one-on-one with students I have helped families who are dealing with a number of different learning challenges from focus issues, ADD/ADHD, dysgraphia, dyslexia, to audio processing disorder.

Many families are not aware that there are accommodations available to help their child in high school, for all standardized tests (PSAT/SAT/ACT/AP/SAT Subject Tests), and in college.

Why Test Accommodations Matter

Students with focus and other learning challenges, in my experience, benefit from extended time or multiple day testing.

College Board Accommodations

The College Board, authors of the PSAT10, PSAT/NMSQT, SAT, AP, and SAT Subject Tests, provide a number of accommodations. These accommodations can be setup in 9th or 10th grade so that the accommodations will apply to all College Board tests for a student’s high school career.

ACT Accommodations

The ACT provides testing accommodations for Aspire as well as the ACT. The main difference is that Aspire accommodations do not apply to the ACT. Parents should also note that the College Board and ACT are two separate companies. Accommodations for one do not apply to the other.

Where to Begin

While I have helped families explore school and testing accommodations I am by no means an expert. If you believe your son or daughter is working with some kind of learning disability, first contact your school counselor and/or a local psychologist well versed in childhood learning disabilities.

Understood.org has a wealth of information about 504 plans & IEPs.