We recommend being as specific as you can when describing the evaluation to your child. For instance, if your child complains about doing homework, you can say that we are doing an evaluation to see why homework is difficult and what you and the teachers can do to help. You can also ask them what they would like to learn from the process, as many children know what is difficult for them. Including them in the process will result in greater involvement, a sense of empowerment, and self-advocacy.

If you want to be more general, you can also tell your child that we are doing an evaluation to learn more about them (e.g., how they learn, what is easier and more difficult for them at school, how they are feeling) and how you and the teachers can help.

We recommend that you tell your child that we will be doing thinking and academic tasks and activities. We will also ask them to complete questionnaires to learn about their perspective.