Testing for gifted program...What to expect???

[mum4jenn]

My 6 yr old dd (kindergarten) brought home a letter yesterday asking for our permission to have her tested for the gifted program. Of course we signed the letter but what should we expect as far as the testing itself and if she is accepted in the program what things will she benefit from??

 

[doxdogy]

Bump. I am sure there is someone that can answer the question for you.

 

[Ella2]

Every school district is different on the tests they use and what the gifted program includes...you'll really need to talk to her teacher or the school gifted program coordinator.

For us there was a specific GATE (gifted and talented education) test given and students had to reach a specifc score on that to get in, OR they had to have had above 95% percentile on 3 subjects in the previous year's state testing OR they had to score above a certain IQ on one-on-one testing.

There are a few special classes for GATE kids at my child's school but they do not pull out the gifted kids into all one class or program. Teachers also differentiate the curriculum IN class a bit for the GATE kids. As I said, every school seems to handle it differently.

Good luck to your daughter.

 

[Mad4Mickey]

I knwo this wont help much at all but I wanted to tell you both of my kids went to Gifted and Talented classes 1st-6th grade . Thier work was a little harder and they had different clases for music and stuff ( they both play stringed instruments thanks to this program ) but they still did all the other fun things the rest of the kids did. In High school they both have evened out with the rest of thier classmates. DD will graduate next month and has a ton more credits then she needs . She stayed motivated , I myself think that the G&T taught her that .

Good luck to your DD

 

[two4ruff]

Of course, every school district is different but my oldest son has been tested and in gifted classes for about 5 years now. His program is a supplement to his regular classroom. He loves it, since they tend to dive deeped into subjects he is interested in such as science and math. ( Art and art history are also stressed in his program)


Good luck and have fun!

 

[mum4jenn]

All I really know is what was a part of the letter. On Mental Abilities...Cognitive Abilities Test..Verbal Component/Quantitave Componant/Non-Verbal Componant they want > 96th Percentile

Under Acheivement...Norm Referenced Test... Total Reading/Total Math/Total Battery they want >90th Percentile

Under Creativity...Torrence Test of Creative Thinking they want>90th Percentile

Under Motivation...Gifted Evaluation Scale2 they want >90th Percentile.

I really think she will do well but I was just curious as to how the process works.

She passed all of her Winter skills in the 1st six weeks of the winter semester and has now passed all of her Spring skills in the first 6 weeks of the Spring Semester.In the Fall she passed everything in the first 6 weeks except for one thing and then she mastered that a short time after.

She has always had a large vocabulary and alot of imagination and creativity. I guess that is mostly because of her being an only child!!

She loves learning and wants to be a Palentologist when she grows up!!

 

[shortbun]

In our school district, they don't test until 1st grade and
gifted and talented starts in 2nd grade. There are three ways
a child can get in the program. The MAT tests scores, the
Target Teach scores and by teacher recommendation of a
student who comes close to test scores but definitely qualifies.
Also, our G/T teacher includes all 2nd through 5th graders in
some of her programs. Our school has found that students who
are given more creative work test high eventually. We have a
93% proficiency pass rate and a little over 30% of the kids in
our school officially qualify for G/T. The program is sometimes
a pull out and sometimes includes the whole class room with
certain children mentoring. This year they've moved solidly into
algebra in math, have great social studies games and theatre,
all children are in G/T dance and music, have a classics book
for reading G/T that those children can choose to read from during
silent reading or when regular classroom work is completed.
I hope your daughter enjoys it like my son does. I'm so thankful
schools are working to keep the G/T interested just like they are
working to get the children that are behind up to speed!!

 

[Rock'n Robin]

In the district where I work they do half day enrichment in gr. 3, then full day in gr. 4. Where I live they start pulling them out for a whole day (except specials) in 4th grade--DD#2 just qualified for next year. Our requirements are a little stricter because so many kids qualify on the regular rules (95% on one of the Iowa tests OR 129 on the cognitive). In our district to qualify you have to have both. DD#2 got a 98% on the Iowa Math and a 133 on the Cognitive.
DD#1 missed the cognitive by 3 points 3 years ago but is recognized as gifted by the state for meeting the Iowa requirement, she just doesn't get the services. She was also identified as gifted in the arts by her music teacher, but that is just a title, no special stuff there either.
As others have posted, each state differs in requirements, and each district differs in level of services. They used to start in grade 3 but due to budget constraints moved it back to grade 4.
Robin M.