#79 Stop Asking for Dyslexia Testing - Ask for This Instead

September 25, 2026

When your child is struggling to read, asking the school to "test for dyslexia" feels like the obvious first step, but it might be the exact request that gets you a no.

Today, I'm breaking down why the words you use when requesting an evaluation matter so much, the difference between a medical diagnosis and an educational disability category, plus more.

The focus of this conversation is giving you the exact language to use so your request can't be brushed aside…because the right words, in writing, start the clock and open the door.

My free resource, You're Right About Your Struggling Reader: 3 Red Flags When Working with the School, walks you through the three signs that mean it's time to stop waiting and start pushing for more support. Check off what feels true for your family and I'll tell you exactly what it means. Grab it now at https://www.literacyuntangled.com/shifts!

Would you like to understand reports, ask the right questions, and get schools to take you seriously? Together Through Dyslexia 6-month program provides expert mentorship for parents of dyslexics and struggling readers, and you can claim your spot now at https://www.literacyuntangled.com/together-through-dyslexia!

My mini-course, From Lost to Empowered: How to Get Your Struggling Reader: The 3-Step Evaluation Request Blueprint for Parents of Struggling Readers, is available now! This 3-step evaluation request blueprint walks you through everything you need to know, from documenting concerns with the right details to writing the evaluation request letter with language that triggers legal timelines, to handling what to do when schools try to push you off, and so much more. You can break through the barriers NOW and get instant access at https://www.literacyuntangled.com/from-lost-to-empowered.

Topics Covered:

The key reason to stop asking for dyslexia testing [2:02]
Why asking for a full and comprehensive evaluation works better than naming a specific category [3:28]
The 8 different areas a full comprehensive evaluation should cover [3:52]
The way that putting your evaluation request in writing protects your paper trail, and starts the legal clock [4:36]
Tips for using the SHIFT method to turn evaluation data into a real plan [5:50]

Key Takeaways:

Dyslexia is a real medical and legal term, but asking for "dyslexia testing" isn't the request that gets your child evaluated.
Naming one narrow category can accidentally limit what the school looks at.
Put your request in writing. An email creates the paper trail that starts the legal clock, but a phone call or hallway conversation doesn't.

When you're ready to work with me, here are 3 ways I can help you:

Claim your spot now to Together Through Dyslexia, my 6-month program providing expert mentorship for parents of dyslexics and struggling readers!

Subscribe to my Podcast Literacy Untangled Podcast for bimonthly episodes on navigating the dyslexia journey with your kid.

Want 1:1 help from an Orton-Gillingham expert? Book a call to see how I help kids who are struggling to learn how to read.

Have a question or want a certain topic covered? Send an email to [email protected] or a DM on Instagram.

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Episode Transcript

(0:00 - 1:03)
So when you ask for dyslexia testing, a lot of schools will tell you they can't diagnose a medical condition. And that sounds reasonable on the surface, but it's semantics. Nobody's asking them for a medical diagnosis.

I'm Jenny Sherson, ex-special educator turned dyslexia interventionist. It wasn't so long ago that I too was overwhelmed by balanced literacy versus structured literacy, education speed, and everything in between. Fast forward after many, many hours of self-driven education, and you'll see I've felt a thriving dyslexia practice helping students from age 6 to 18.

My specialties? Working with a quote-unquote difficult, almost always to read student, and breaking down the complexities of dyslexia into everyday language strategies and action steps. I had a parent tell me the school wouldn't evaluate her son. Not, we're looking into it.

(1:03 - 3:55)
Not, let's get back to you. A flat no. She'd ask three times.

Her name doesn't matter, but her story might sound familiar. Her son was in the second grade, behind in reading, and she knew something wasn't adding up. So she did what most of us would do.

She called the and asked for dyslexia testing, and the school told her no. Politely, but no. She called again a few weeks later.

Same answer. By the third time, she wasn't just frustrated, she was starting to doubt herself. Maybe she was overreacting.

Maybe this was normal. Maybe the school really did know best. She came to me feeling like she'd hit a wall with no door in it.

So I asked her one question. What exactly did you ask for? She said, I asked them to test him for dyslexia. And there it is.

That's the whole kit and caboodle. That's the wall. Here's the part almost nobody explains right.

And honestly, a lot of people working inside schools don't fully understand this either. Dyslexia is a real legitimate legal and medical term. You can get an official dyslexia diagnosis, but under the law that governs special education, there is a category, an umbrella term called specific learning disability or SLD.

And dyslexia falls under it right alongside all the other disses like dysgraphia and dyscalculia. It's actually named right inside the federal regulation as an example or as a category under SLD, not as a separate category schools have to evaluate for. So when you ask for dyslexia testing, a lot of schools will tell you they can't diagnose a medical condition.

And that sounds reasonable on the surface, but it's semantics. Nobody's asking them for a medical diagnosis. The school is being asked to evaluate for an educational disability category, SLD.

And they absolutely evaluate for that all day, every day. So I went back to this mom and I told her to ask for something else, not dyslexia testing and not even a narrow request naming one category. I told her to say she had concerns about her son's reading and to request a full and comprehensive evaluation.

That word comprehensive is doing a lot of work. If you name a specific category, like asking only for an SLD evaluation or an evaluation in reading, some schools will hear that as permission to look at reading and stop there and look at nothing else. But struggling readers often need to be looked at more broadly.

(3:56 - 7:06)
A full comprehensive evaluation should cover reading, writing, math, executive functioning, behavior, occupational therapy, speech and language, and cognitive processing. There's eight areas. And not because your child necessarily has a problem in all eight, but because you don't know which ones matter until someone actually looks into it and you get the data for it.

Same child, same concern, same kid who's been struggling quietly for two years. But now she wasn't asking a favor and she wasn't accidentally narrowing the door before she even walked through it. She was asking for a full picture.

She sent the email that same night, put it in writing, not a phone call, not a hallway conversation at pickup, an email so there's a date and a paper trail. Two weeks later, she had her evaluation meeting scheduled. For the full evaluation, not just a reading check or a reading screener.

Same parent, same son, same worry she'd been carrying for two years. The only thing that changed was the words she used. I think about this a lot.

How much of this comes down to knowing the language the whole school system runs on. Nobody hands you a glossary or a dictionary when your kids start struggling. You're expected to just know that naming a diagnosis gets you nowhere and that naming one narrow category can actually work against you.

While asking for a full comprehensive evaluation opens doors almost at once. So if you take one thing from this episode, let it be this. Don't ask for dyslexia testing.

Don't even ask for an SLD evaluation. Say you have concern about your child's reading and ask for a full and comprehensive evaluation. Put it in writing.

Keep a copy. The clock starts the day they receive it. Now here's what you need to know.

Every parent who gets their child the right help goes the same five steps and I call it the shift method. S, see the problem. H, harness the evidence.

I, interpret the data. F, formulate the plan. And T, track the progress.

That's the whole method from start to finish. And what we just talked about today, asking for the right evaluation instead of the wrong one, that's step two. That's the H, harness the evidence.

Or in other words, collect all the information and data you need to make informed decisions about your child's instruction. And I work on this and I use this method with all of my clients. If you want to know more, you can reach out to me by email or DM me in Instagram or Facebook.

Until next time. Bye bye. I hope you enjoyed this episode of Literacy Untangled.

If you love this episode as much as I did, head on over and rate and subscribe so you never miss an episode. If you want to continue the conversation or share your takeaways, head on over to our Instagram at Literacy Untangled and comment on your favorite part. I can't wait to hang out with you again soon.

Bye.

#79 Stop Asking for Dyslexia Testing - Ask for This Instead

Before You Go...
Are You Making These Reading Mistakes?

Are You Making These Reading Mistakes?

#79 Stop Asking for Dyslexia Testing - Ask for This Instead

Before You Go...Are You Making These Reading Mistakes?

Are You Making These Reading Mistakes?

Before You Go...
Are You Making These Reading Mistakes?