What Is Causing My Child’s Slow Processing Speed?

Most kids who display slow processing speed have inherited this trait. Take a look at yourself, your spouse, or your child’s other relatives, and you’ll probably be able to identify someone else with slow processing speed. They might be the person who is always late to events or the last one to finish his meal at a family dinner, or perhaps he is noticeably slower in responding during conversations. There are many causes of slow processing speed, but they generally involve brain-based features such as variations in genes, the composition of neurons, the spacing between neurons, and even the structure of the brain’s white matter.

It is often difficult to identify slow processing speed, which is why I recommend a full neuropsychological evaluation to assess these concerns. Once processing-speed issues are identified, parents and schools can develop adjustments and accommodations for them. Once these are in place, a child can be helped to understand these concerns and develop methods to improve slow processing speed.

To learn more about the brain-based biological reasons for slow processing speed, check out the following articles:

Articles

What Causes Slow Processing Speed?
By LearningWorks For Kids: Children who suffer from slow processing speed can sometimes be hard to understand. Many parents don’t quite understand why their child is falling behind or taking longer to understand seemingly simple tasks. This is where LW4K comes in. They house a plethora of resources to help parents better understand and help their children struggling with slow processing speed.

What You Should Know about Slow Processing Speed
By ColemanVision: Informing yourself about slow processing speed is one of the first steps in being able to advocate for and help your child. Knowing the many different tasks that are difficult for them and some of the warning signs can better equip you, as a parent, to get your child the extra assistance they may be requiring.

Slow Processing Speed and Executive Functions
By LearningWorks for Kids: If my child is struggling with slow processing speed, is there any other functioning difficulties I should be worried about? The answer is maybe. Here LW4K dives deeper into the correlation between slow processing speed and executive functioning skills.

A Day in the Life of a Child With Slow Processing Speed
By Julie Rawe: Children who are struggling with slow processing speed are, among other things, widely misunderstood. Parents and teachers who are not aware of or educated about slow processing speed can miss the warning signs. Here, Understood.org has laid out a day in the life of a child with slow processing speed. Hopefully it gives you an entirely new opinion of these children.

Understanding, Diagnosing, and Coping with Slow Processing Speed
By S Butnik: The Davidson Institue’s article speaks to gifted children with slow processing speed. These kiddos may be under intensified pressure from parents and teachers because “we know you can do it!” However, gifted kids with slow processing speed need some extra assistance sometimes as well.