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Therapy & support
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Therapy & support
How do I keep my young child engaged in online therapy?
Young children engage best in online therapy when it feels like play with a trusted grown-up beside them. Keep sessions short, sit close and join in, reduce distractions, use simple home props, and follow the therapist's lead. Restlessness is normal — engagement is built minute by minute.
Read the answer AnswerHow do I know if my child actually needs therapy?
Therapy may help when a child is consistently behind peers in communication, movement, play, understanding or social connection in a way that affects everyday life. You don't have to decide alone — a simple developmental check tells you whether to watch-and-wait or begin support. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerHow do I know if my child has ADHD or Childhood Anxiety?
ADHD and childhood anxiety can look alike — restlessness, poor focus, easily upset — but stem from different causes, and many children show features of both. Parents notice patterns; only a qualified clinician can make sense of them. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerHow do I know if my child has ADHD or Oppositional Defiant Disorder?
ADHD centres on attention, impulse control and activity level, while Oppositional Defiant Disorder centres on a lasting pattern of anger, defiance and arguing — and the two can overlap. You cannot tell which it is from a checklist; the picture comes from observing patterns across settings over months and a clinician's assessment. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerHow do I know if my child has ADHD or Sensory Processing Differences?
ADHD and sensory processing differences can look alike — a restless, easily overwhelmed child — but they come from different roots and can overlap. ADHD relates to attention, impulse and activity across settings; sensory differences relate to how a child responds to specific input like sound, touch or movement. You cannot tell them apart at home, and you don't need to — noting patterns and seeing a qualified clinician is the way forward. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerAutism Spectrum vs ADHD: How to Tell
Autism Spectrum and ADHD can look alike and often overlap; only a qualified clinician can tell them apart through a structured assessment. Broadly, autism centres on social communication and sameness, while ADHD centres on attention, impulse and restlessness. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerHow do I know if my child has Autism Spectrum or Global Developmental Delay?
Global developmental delay describes a young child significantly behind across several developmental areas at once, while Autism Spectrum is about how a child communicates and relates socially alongside focused interests and sensory differences; the two can overlap and only a qualified clinician can tell them apart. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerHow do I know if my child has Autism Spectrum or Sensory Processing Differences?
Autism and sensory processing differences can look alike, but autism affects social communication and connection alongside sensory differences, while sensory processing differences alone mainly affect how a child takes in everyday sensations. A home checklist cannot tell them apart; a structured clinician-administered assessment gives a clear answer. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerAutism Spectrum vs Social Communication Difficulties
Autism Spectrum and Social Communication Difficulties both affect how a child uses language and connects socially, and they overlap so much that they cannot be told apart at home. The distinguishing feature is that autism also involves repetitive behaviours, focused interests and routine or sensory needs, while Social (Pragmatic) Communication Disorder affects social language use without these. Only a qualified clinician can tell them apart, and supportive therapy helps either way. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerHow do I know if my child has Autism Spectrum or Speech and Language Delay?
A speech and language delay usually means a child still connects warmly — pointing, sharing, making eye contact — but is slow to talk, whereas Autism Spectrum involves a wider pattern across social communication, play and behaviour. The two overlap and a child can have both, so the right step is a qualified clinical assessment rather than self-diagnosis. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerChildhood Anxiety vs Separation Anxiety Disorder
Most children feel anxious sometimes; childhood anxiety is a broad term for ongoing worry, while Separation Anxiety Disorder is an intense, lasting fear of being apart that is beyond a child's age. Parents cannot tell which it is at home — note how long it lasts, how intense it is and how much it interferes with daily life, then seek a clinician. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerDCD vs Childhood Apraxia of Speech
Developmental Coordination Disorder affects motor planning of the body — clumsiness, difficulty with buttons, cutlery, catching or handwriting — while Childhood Apraxia of Speech affects motor planning of the mouth, making speech inconsistent and hard to understand despite good comprehension. A child can have one or both, and only a qualified clinician can tell which. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerDLD vs Childhood Apraxia of Speech
DLD is mainly about understanding and using language — vocabulary, sentences and word-finding — while Childhood Apraxia of Speech is a motor-planning difficulty where a child knows the word but struggles to make their mouth produce it consistently. Parents cannot reliably tell these apart at home; a speech-language pathologist distinguishes them, and a child may show features of both. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerHow do I know if my child has Dyslexia or Dysgraphia?
Dyslexia mainly affects reading and decoding words, while dysgraphia mainly affects the physical writing and getting thoughts onto paper; a child can have one or both. These are usually identified around ages 6–8 once formal literacy teaching is underway, and only a structured clinician-administered assessment can tell them apart clearly. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerHow do I know if my child has Dyslexia or a Specific Learning Disability?
Dyslexia is the reading-specific type of Specific Learning Disability, the broader umbrella that also covers writing and maths difficulties. You cannot confirm either at home; a structured assessment, usually meaningful from around 6–8 years, distinguishes them. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerGlobal Developmental Delay vs Intellectual Disability
Global Developmental Delay (GDD) describes a young child (usually under 5) significantly behind in two or more areas of development, while Intellectual Disability is only considered later, around age 5+, when reliable testing is possible. They are the same journey viewed at different ages, and early delay does not automatically become a lifelong diagnosis. The right step is a general developmental check, not self-diagnosis. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerHypotonia (Low Muscle Tone) vs Cerebral Palsy
Hypotonia (low muscle tone) is a finding of soft, floppy muscles with many possible causes, while cerebral palsy is a brain-based condition affecting movement and posture that can include low tone alongside other signs. They can look alike, so only a qualified clinician can tell them apart. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerHow do I know if my child has ODD or Conduct-Dissocial Disorder?
Oppositional Defiant Disorder and Conduct-Dissocial Disorder are clinical patterns only a qualified clinician can distinguish from normal childhood defiance. ODD centres on persistent anger and defiance; Conduct-Dissocial Disorder involves repeated violation of others' rights or rules. Both are supportable. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerPersistent Toe-Walking vs Cerebral Palsy
Simple persistent toe-walking usually affects both legs, allows the heels to come down flat when reminded, and comes with otherwise on-track development. Cerebral palsy is suggested by muscle tightness or stiffness, one-sided differences, developmental delays, or a difficult birth history. You cannot tell these apart with certainty at home, so any tightness, one-sidedness or delay deserves a prompt clinician check. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerHow do I know if my child has Selective Mutism or Autism Spectrum?
The clearest distinction is context: in Selective Mutism a child speaks freely at home but is silent in specific anxiety-provoking settings like school, while in Autism Spectrum communication and social differences appear across all settings alongside repetitive interests and sensory differences. The two can overlap, so only a qualified clinician can tell for certain. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerHow do I know if my child has Specific Learning Disability or Intellectual Disability?
Specific Learning Disability affects one area of learning — usually reading, writing or maths — in a child whose overall reasoning is otherwise typical, and becomes clear around age 6–8. Intellectual Disability affects reasoning, learning and daily-living skills broadly and shows from the early years. Only a structured clinical assessment can tell which applies. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerHow do I know if my child has Speech and Language Delay or Developmental Language Disorder?
A speech and language delay means a child develops language along the usual path but more slowly and may catch up, while Developmental Language Disorder is a more persistent difficulty needing ongoing targeted support. The two cannot be reliably told apart at home — a qualified speech-language therapist distinguishes them by observing understanding and expression over time. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerHow do I know if my child has Speech and Language Delay or Hearing Impairment?
A child who cannot hear well will also be slow to talk, so the two are hard to tell apart at home — which is why a hearing test is always the first step for any speech or language delay. Clues like responding to name and sounds, watching lips, or understanding more than they say can point one way, but testing gives a clear answer. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
Read the answer AnswerStereotyped Movement Disorder vs Tourette Syndrome
Stereotyped movements are rhythmic, identical, often early-onset actions like flapping or rocking, while Tourette Syndrome involves sudden, irregular motor and vocal tics that wax and wane and usually begin around age 5–7. Only a qualified clinician can tell which fits a child, so a gentle developmental check is the most useful step. AbilityScore® is part of Pinnacle’s developmental assessment. Diagnosis, where needed, requires an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.
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