Hudson Literacy
Clinic
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Screening Tools/Assessments

There is no one definitive test for dyslexia.  Dyslexia testing can range from initial screenings (like those administered by the Hudson Literacy Clinic) to a full psycho-educational assessment that can only be administered by a licensed, qualified psychologist.

In a formal diagnosis (done by a psychologist), an individual undergoes a series of tests that measure cognitive functioning, language ability, academic achievement, as well as an individual’s learning style.

While we do not require a dyslexia diagnosis to begin intervention at the Hudson Literacy Clinic, a psycho-educational assessment can help us to better understand a person’s area of deficiency and provide insight for the most effective plan of action.  If your child has been fully assessed by a licensed psychologist for a learning disability, we ask that you bring a copy of the assessment to the initial parent meeting.  The more information we have, the better able we are to formulate a remediation program that will best meet the needs of the student.

In addition, please bring with you any of the following:

  • Most recent reading level
  • Writing samples
  • Spelling tests
  • Vision or hearing assessments (if applicable)
  • Information regarding the type of reading and spelling instruction your child has had

Screening tests and/or reading assessments can be administered by the Hudson Literacy Clinic, but it is important to keep in mind that dyslexia screenings determine symptoms only, and are not a diagnosis of a learning disability.  Screenings serve as a starting point to help us identify possible "traits" associated with dyslexia and/or to recognize any area(s) of difficulty.  A standardized reading assessment generally takes one or two hours depending on the nature of the test(s) and the age/ability of the individual being tested.

 

Dyslexia Screening Tests

The Hudson Literacy Clinic offers the following dyslexia testing/screening assessments:

Dyslexia Screening Test for Kindergarten (DST-K) A screening tool designed to evaluate students at the Kindergarten level who have not yet learned to encode or decode words and who may be at risk for dyslexia.  Cost:  $500

Dyslexia Screening Test (DST-J) A screener designed to identify students ages five to twelve years of age at risk for dyslexia. Cost:  $500

Dyslexia Screening Test (DST-S) A screener designed to identify students ages twelve to seventeen years of age at risk for dyslexia. Cost:  $500

Dyslexia Screening Test (DST-A) A screener designed to identify adults who exhibit traits consistent with dyslexia. Cost:  $500

Dyslexia Determination Test (DDT) A valuable testing tool which differentiates between the dyslexic student and the person who is struggling with reading, writing, or spelling for reasons other than those associated with dyslexia. Cost:  $500

The Fountas & Pinnell Benchmark Assessment System* (BAS) is a measure of a student's grade level reading equivalency and is included in all dyslexia screening tests.

 

Reading Assessments

The Hudson Literacy Clinic offers the following reading assessment(s):

*Fountas & Pinnell Benchmark Assessment System (BAS)  Cost:  $275
These assessments are conducted one-on-one and have been designed to measure a student’s instructional and independent reading level in either English or French.  The BAS determines the grade level reading ability of students from grade one through grade eight. 

The BAS assessment system encompasses a vast scope of literacy elements.   Depending upon the age and ability of the student being tested, the BAS assessment process may include any of the following sub-tests to explore the following:

  • Upper and lower case letters:  name/sound recognition and association
  • Orthographic awareness:  visual word memory/sight word retention
  • Decoding and encoding:  real and pseudo-words
  • Phonological awareness:  initial/final sounds
  • Phonological awareness:  blending words
  • Phonological awareness:  segmenting words
  • Phonological awareness:  rhyming words
  • Multisyllabic word recognition
  • Rapid naming of letters/sounds/words
  • Consonant blends
  • Vowel clusters
  • Prefixes/suffixes
  • Compound words
  • Synonyms, antonyms, and homophones
  • Concept words in isolation and in sentences
  • Contextual vocabulary