Preventing Developmental Delays
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Article Summary:
- Parents of children who show signs of inappropriate behaviour including lack of focus, inability to sit still, impulsiveness, and lack of self-control assume professional diagnosis of ADHD, Autism or specific developmental delays will be a first step towards fixing the issues.
- The development of young children is dependent on a range of factors, often troubling behaviour can be attributed to a lack of deliberate and thoughtful 1-on-1 attention to the development of crucial executive functioning skills.
- Many assessors are unable to discern between actual diagnosable conditions and behaviour mimicking these traits, leading to the misdiagnosis of young children in situations where other factors could explain their challenging behaviour.
- While early learning environments cater to (1) age and (2) developmentally appropriate practices, group-based settings are not designed to provide gifted and advanced young children with (3) level appropriate individualized stimulation, often leading to disruption or misbehaviour.
- Many professionals assessing children do not have significant academic knowledge nor extensive experience in Early Childhood Development. Assessment goes beyond testing, engaging a holistic approach where all aspects of a child's environment, background, personality, history, etc. are considered for the design of an action plan.
- I am the only Doctor of Early Childhood Development, Board Certified Cognitive Specialist (Neuroscience) with 25 years international experience in Private Education offering a research-based holistic approach to create individualized enrichment sessions for advanced and gifted children under 3. I also offer personalized second opinions and intervention plans for families concerned about their young children's learning, development, or behaviour.
ADHD/ Autism/Delay Misdiagnosis & Lack of Stimulation (Giftedness)
You have been struggling with your child's inappropriate behaviour for a while and an embarrassing episode in the shops / at a playgroup / at a sports event / at school prompts you to take action. After waiting several weeks, you take your child for an extremely expensive assessment where a professional draws a conclusion and gives your child a definitive diagnosis of ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), autism, anxiety disorder, global delay, learning delay, socio-emotional delay, or a syndrome of some kind. You are relieved - finally an answer for your child's strange or difficult behaviour and a label that describes your child's condition...
Are you sure about that?
Young Children Lack Skills
Most of the conditions listed above can occur due to a deficit or the unsuccessful development of executive function. Successful executive function development in turn is highly dependent on the deliberate introduction, repetition, practice, and eventual acquisition of a number of skills. These skills do not naturally develop, they are taught! Research supports that early detection and correction of challenges and delays, significantly improves the long-term success for young children! Furthermore, the all-round development of our young children is also strongly determined by:
- secure attachment
- daily bonding with a primary parent
- stability
- a multitude of factors in their home environment
- parenting styles
- socio-economic status
- quality of interpersonal relationships
- socialization
- access to quality medical care
- one-on-one attention
- physical well-being
- quality age-appropriate stimulation
Misdiagnosis and Overdiagnosis
Very few professional assessors available today have extensive knowledge, credentials, or experience in Early Childhood Development. Many are unable to discern between actual diagnosable conditions and behaviour mimicking these traits. A large number of children, especially young children, are exhibiting the behaviour because they have not yet mastered the skills necessary to perform certain tasks. These skills can include any of the criteria listed under DSM-5 ADHD diagnostic criteria: Inattention, Impulsivity, Hyperactivity, many of the domain development criteria under global delays and/or the behaviour described as autism spectrum disorder. Lack of knowledge and experience is leading to the overdiagnosis and misdiagnosis of our young children often better explained through:
- a lack of skill development
- overexposure to screen time
- social isolation
- lack of socialization
- giftedness
- deficient stimulation
- an issue with one of the four basic pillars of early development
Lack of Level-Appropriate Stimulation (Giftedness)
Research on early childhood development and learning often highlights the importance of developmentally appropriate practices (commonly known as DAP). Well-designed early learning environments focus strongly on including (1) age appropriate and (2) developmentally appropriate classroom activities, learning goals, materials, equipment, toys, and projects. Class-based environments support the needs of the group, catering to expectations and milestones of the average child of a specific age. Group-based activities do not cater for the individual stimulation needs of advanced and gifted young children who require adjusted (3) level-appropriate stimulation. The under-stimulation of exceptional and advanced children has often led to boredom, misbehaviour, distracting or disruptive behaviour in classrooms. In turn leading to the misdiagnosis of school aged children with ADHD, often preventable through correct level-appropriate stimulation in the early development years. Please consider that tailor-made individual sessions for our brightest young minds requires time, specialized expertise, and research-based knowledge. This necessitates holistic specialist with early development and early education expertise, and not occupational therapists or psychologist.
Investigate the Professionals
It is vitally important that parents demand service from professionals who are highly qualified and equipped to apply current research-based analysis to all aspects of a young child's development. Extensive investigation should first be conducted into the environment, medical history, home situation, etc. before proceeding with any form of assessment or further screening. Be an advocate for your child! If you are not satisfied with the service or diagnosis you have received keep searching for a service provider you trust.
Take Control of the Situation Today
Are you worried about your young child's behaviour or development? Has your child's nursery, preschool, nanny, or playgroup teachers indicated any concerns or need for an assessment? Is your very young child bored at home or at his regular lessons? Do you suspect (s)he is exceptional and requires level-appropriate stimulation beyond what group-lessons can offer him? I have the expertise, credentials, and knowledge to help you!
Contact me now for a personal session to discuss your concerns! The sooner we can identify and correct the foundational issues the sooner your child will learn, flourish, and grow. Focusing on the best international research available today, I will help you build a balanced solution that will ensure success for your young child.
What Research tells us
Boivin, M., & Bierman, K.L. (2013). Promoting School Readiness and Early Learning: Implications of Developmental Research for Practice. https://www.routledge.com/Promoting- School-Readiness-and-Early-Learning-Implications-of-Developmental-Research-for- Practice/Boivin-Bierman/p/book/9781462511457
Britto, P. R., Lye, S., Proulx, K., et al. (2017). Nurturing Care: Science and Effective Interventions to Promote Early Childhood Development. https://eprints.soton.ac.uk/404125/1/Nurturing%2520care%2520submitted.pdf
Ermisch J., Jantti, M., & Smeeding, T.M. (2012). From parents to children: The Intergenerational Transmission of Advantage. https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.7758/9781610447805
Ford-Jones, P.C. (2015). Misdiagnosis of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: 'Normal Behaviour' and Relative Maturity. https://academic.oup.com/pch/article- pdf/20/4/200/11015937/pch-20-200.pdf
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Kazda, L., Bell, K., Rae, T. et al. (2021). Overdiagnosis of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder in Children and Adolescents. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8042533/
McClelland, M.M., Tominey, S. L., Schmitt, S.A., & Duncan, R. (2017). SEL Interventions in Early Childhood. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED590403.pdf
Morgan, P.L., Woods, A.D., Wang, Y. (2022). Sociodemographic Disparities in Attention- Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Overdiagnosis and Overtreatment During Elementary School. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/00222194221099675
Paris, J., Bhat, V., & Thombs, B. (2015). Is Adult Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder being Overdiagnosed? https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4500182/
Schwandt, H., & Wuppermann, A. (2016). The Youngest Get the Pill: ADHD Misdiagnosis in Germany, its Regional Correlates and International Comparison. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0927537116300410
Weissenberger, S., Ptacek, R., Klicperova-Baker, M. (2017). ADHD, Lifestyles and Comorbodities: A Call for an Holistic Perspective – from Medical to Societal Intervening Factors. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00454/full