Bright Kids Who Can't Keep Up:
Help Your Child Overcome Slow Processing Speed and Succeed in a Fast-Paced World
Ellen Braaten and Brian Willoughby
'If you picture child development as a marathon, life for kids with processing speed issues is more like a steeplechase, with barriers and obstacles that have enormous implications for learning and social and emotional development. This book offers parents an extraordinary gift of knowledge and wisdom to aid in recognising, understanding, and addressing the challenges of slow processing speed.' - Jerrold F. Rosenbaum, MD, Chief of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, USA
‘If my kid is so smart, why is he so slow?’ Parents often feel helpless when their child has a problem and they have no idea how to make things better. The teacher thinks it's ADHD. The pediatrician believes it's a learning disability. The football coach says he's just unmotivated. But none of these diagnoses seem to fit the bill. You know your child can focus, and that he cares. He just can't do anything on time. What's the problem?
According to psychologists Ellen Braaten and Brian Willoughby, your child may have an issue with processing speed. Some children are naturally fast. They run, talk, draw, and do all sorts of things at a rate that seems appropriate for their age. Other children don't - or rather, they can't. These are children who have processing speed deficits. From choosing an outfit and eating breakfast, to completing ‘1-minute maths worksheets’ and making it to class on time, they simply take longer to get stuff done.
‘Because we place such a high value on doing things quickly in our culture, it can be difficult to live with a nervous system that needs more time to process information,’ write Drs. Braaten and Willoughby. But there are ways you can help. In their new book, Bright Kids Who Can't Keep Up (Guilford Press, September 2014, £9.99), they provide a crucial resource that demystifies processing speed and shows how to help children catch up in this key area of development.
Using an approach they term ‘The Three As’ (accept, accommodate, and advocate), they make specific suggestions for ways in which parents can boost their child's abilities at home and in school. At home, this can mean talking more slowly, keeping daily routines simple and consistent, and breaking down chores into manageable segments. At school, accommodations can include extra test-taking time, and written (rather than verbal) directions for all assignments. Throughout, Drs. Braaten and Willoughby offer tips and pointers - illustrated with vivid stories and examples - for fostering children's self-esteem and building skills for success.
‘If you are a parent of a child who is frequently described as always behind, never able to keep up, this book will restore some optimism to your family,’ they write. ‘Although there is no magic bullet that will solve a child's deficits, we do highlight the steps to take to help your child reach his full potential.’
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Author Bios:
Ellen Braaten, PhD, is Director of the Learning and Emotional Assessment Program (LEAP) at Massachusetts General Hospital and Assistant Professor of Psychology at Harvard Medical School. The coauthor of Straight Talk about Psychological Testing for Kids, Dr. Braaten lives with her family in Boston.
Brian Willoughby, PhD, is a Staff Psychologist at LEAP and a faculty member at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Willoughby specializes in neuropsychological assessments of children and adolescents with learning, developmental, and emotional concerns. He is married and lives in Boston.
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