EARLY IDENTIFICATION OF
LANGUAGE-BASED READING DISABILITIES:
A
CHECKLIST
Child’s
Name:__________________________________
Birthday: ________________________
Date Completed: _______________________________ Age:
This
checklist is designed to identify children who are at risk for
language-based reading disabilities, it is intended
for use with children at the end of kindergarten or beginning of first
grade. Each of the descriptors listed below should be carefully
considered and those that characterize the child’s behavior/history
should be checked. A child receiving a large number of checks should
be referred for a more in-depth evaluation.
Speech
Sound Awareness
__
doesn’t understand and enjoy rhymes
__
doesn’t easily recognize that words may begin with the same sound
__
has difficulty counting the syllables in.spoken words
__
has problem clapping hands or tapping feet in rhythm with songs and/or
rhymes
__
demonstrates prob!ems learning sound-letter correspondences
Word
Retrieval
__ has difficulty retrieving a specific word (e.g., calls a sheep a “goat” or says "you know, a woolly animal”)
__
shows poor memory for classmates’ names
__ speech is hesitant, filled with pauses or vocalizations (e.g.. “um,”
“you know”)
__
frequently uses words lacking specificity (e.g., "stuff",
"thing,” “what you call it”)
__ has a problem remembering/retrieving verbal sequences (e.g., days
of the week, alphabet)
Verbal
Memory
__ has difficulty remembering instructions or directions
__ shows problems learning names of people or places
__ has difficulty remembering the words to songs or poems
__ has problems learning a second language
Speech
Production/Perception
__ has problems saying common words with
difficult sound patterns (e.g., animal, cinnamon, specific)
__ mishears and subsequently mispronounces words or names
__ confuses a similar sounding word with another word (e.g.,
saying “The Entire State. Building is in New York”)
__
combines sound patterns of similar words (e.g., saying “escavator”
for escalator)
__ shows frequent slips of the tongue (e.g., saying "true
blush” for blue brush.)
__ has difficulty with tongue twisters (e.g., she sells seashells,)
Comprehension
__ only responds to part of a multiple element request or instruction
__ requests multiple repetitions of instructions/directions with
little improvement in comprehension
__ relies too much on context to understand what is said
Expressive
Language
__ talks in short sentences
__ makes errors in grammar (e.g., “he goed to the store” or “me
want that”)
__ lacks variety in vocabulary (e.g., uses “good” to mean happy,
kind, polite)
__ has difficulty giving directions or explanations ~c.g., may show
multiple revisions or dead ends)
__ relates stories or events in a disorganized or incomplete manner
__ may have much to
say,
but provides little specific detail
__ has difficulty with the rules of conversation, such as turn taking;
staying on topic, indicating when he/she does not understand
Other
Important Factors
__ has a prior history of problems in language comprehension and/dr
production
Comments
Language,
Speech, and Hearing in Schools, Vol. 28 January 1997
This checklist was prepared by Hugh W. Catts, University of
Kansas. Some descriptors have been taken from Language for
Learning: A Checklist for Language Difficulties, Melbourne,
Australia: OZ Child. The American
Speech-Language-Hearing Association grants permission to ohotocopy
this checklist for professional use.
