Assessing and Intervening with Children with Nonverbal Learning Disabilities

This chapter briefly discusses the nonverbal learning disabilities (NLD) diagnostic criteria that are in development, provides an overview of the emerging neuroimaging and neuropsychological research underlying NLD, and discusses suggested assessment and intervention strategies. It is also important to discuss that there may be two types of NLD: medically based NLD and developmental NLD. Rourke’s model described a three‐tiered developmental process involved in the NLD phenotype. Neurobiological models of NLD and high functioning autism suggest deficits in early, likely neonatal brain development, which consequently affect the development of normal social interaction. Multi‐faceted intervention is essential for children with NLD and should encompass several aspects of the child’s life: academic, social, and emotional. Consistent with several reviews of empirical studies in NLD, the main aspects of NLD continue to be visual‐spatial difficulties and mathematical problems.