Frequently Asked Questions About Gifted Testing

Parents are proud of their children, sure; but have you also thought about why schools offer gifted programs?  Schools offer gifted programs in the United States because our government recognizes that we need to identify and develop our gifted and talented students so that they can grow up and help America compete in the global marketplace.  We need gifted students and we need to help them achieve!

Why Test for Gifted?

The most common reason given for why parents test their children for giftedness is because they want their children to be placed in the gifted program at their local public school.  It is smart to want to provide the best academic environment for your child.  Parents want to help their children develop their interests, gifts, and talents.

How Do I Know If My Child Is Gifted?

Great question!  Sometimes parents notice that their child is particularly quick to learn things or that they ask really interesting questions, or that they have a surprising vocabulary for their age.  Other times, the parent had no idea that their child was gifted and the teacher was the first person to suspect giftedness.  Intellectual testing answers the question in a formal way, but even IQ test scores can vary on any given day for a variety of reasons, so additional testing is sometimes needed.

Can I Get My Child Tested at School?

In the school setting, gifted testing is a multi-step process.  Here are some links to Duval(The site takes you to the Chimney Lakes Elem. page, but there is ‘Select a School’ button that takes you to a list of Duval schools.  See also:   St. Johns County Gifted Services pages.

More info re:  2016 gifted testing  St. Johns County!

Did You Know?

• Screening instruments routinely used by schools to identify gifted children have a hit rate of only 68%!  That means that the screening test misses 1/3 of the children who are actually gifted!  If you or your child’s teacher suspects that your child is gifted make sure that you get a complete intellectual test, even if they “failed” the  screening.
• Not all gifted testing is alike!  Each measures intelligence, but in different ways.  Some tests include memory tasks as part of the total IQ score.  Some include tests of visual processing speed as part of the score.  Some include tests of mathematical reasoning as part of the score.  At First Coast Therapy we have three different IQ tests to choose from, allowing us to find the best IQ test for the individual.
• The best time to assess for intellectual giftedness is when your child is 5-8 years old, though we test at all ages from pre-k to adulthood.
• Siblings typically score within 5 points of each other, so if one child in your family is gifted, the others may be gifted too, even if they differ in interests and personality.
• Gifted testing provides more than just a single score.

At First Coast Therapy Group we specialize in testing children for intellectual giftedness!  Our test results are accepted by schools in Duval, St. Johns, and surrounding counties in NE Florida as well as by Mensa organizations worldwide.