If you have outside testing, your school district may consider it. Our school district administers CoGat but takes a "body of evidence" approach. Also, what type of program are you looking at? If your child is performing below grade level in reading, it may be difficult for your child to keep up with the language arts curriculum in a stand-alone gt classroom. I would ask a lot of questions regarding their experience with 2e kids. How would they handle your DC if he/she is significantly below the ability level of the rest of the class? I also would find out whether they have any flexibility in their program, i.e. could your child be in the gifted class for math, science and social studies but in specialized instruction or a regular class for reading? If it is a pullout program, maybe your child could attend only in his/her area of strength. You may want to contact your district's gt department and start asking questions if you have concerns that can't wait until you get test results.
I have a highly gifted dyslexic kid who is in a gifted classroom. We are not in quite the same situation. DD9 still reads above grade level, though not as far above as many in her class, but she reads slowly. In 4th grade, they are studying books that many schools don't tackle until middle school. The teacher includes a lot of classic literature to challenge the students with respect to vocabulary while keeping content age appropriate. DD loves learning the new words but her comprehension skills are stretched to the breaking point by unfamiliar syntax and dialect. DD's big struggles are with writing and spelling, in particular, which make her feel "stupid." She constantly compares her language arts skills to kids who truly are advanced readers and writers. She has suffered from self-esteem issues being in a gifted class with a learning disability. That said, DD thinks deeply and differently than typical 4th graders so she benefits from being around peers who also think deeply. It is imperfect but, for now, still better than the alternative.
