Testing Your Gifted Child

Having a gifted child means considering the best academic course of action to take in order to provide him or her with the tools they need to encourage further growth. The purpose of gifted schools is primarily to do just that, and to ensure that gifted children continually learn new things that standard schools may neglect. Many parents suspect that their child is gifted, and one way to confirm this theory is by having your child tested. Here are some of the characteristics often associated with gifted children:

·         Advanced academic ability: ability to memorize quickly, special interests and expertise in a certain subject.

·         Creative thinking: ability to think independently, cultivate originality in written and oral assignments.

·         Leadership: often assumes responsibility for peers, sets goals, strong sense of self-expression.

·         Visual perception: observant and possesses strong sense of spatial relationships.

The Specifics of Testing

If the above characteristics apply to your child, the next step is to have him or her undergo educational testing, as recommended by the National Association for Gifted Children. Testing includes intelligence quotient (IQ) and cognitive abilities. Here are some of the tests accepted by most programs for gifted children:

·         Stanford Binet

·         Wescher Intelligence Scale for Children

·         Woodcock Johnson

·         CogAT

·         OLSAT

·         Hemmon-Nelson

·         Ravens Progressive Matrices

Once you have received the scores from the testing center, you can make an informed decision about whether or not you wish to send your child to a program specially designed for gifted children. Getting in touch with a school is often the first step in familiarizing yourself with the program.

Finding the Right Program

If you believe your child may be gifted, you might consider sending him or her to a school that caters to their individualized needs.  As is the case for all enrolled in an education program, is important for gifted children to be in an environment that cultivates learning at a level that matches and challenges their abilities.