We tested ds9 at the end of 3rd grade last year and he is taking it again in February. For us, it's a way to see growth, and a tool with which we can advocate for school differentiation. Ds11 took the EXPLORE in 4th and it resulted in the school really taking a different look at him. He took the SAT last Saturday, and the AMC8 in the fall. Again, I think it will just give us a better look at where he's at and what work would be appropriate. Our school district always responds more to achievement testing than ability testing. We were asked to have ds9 take the EXPLORE if possible, but he and his brother both wanted to take the EXPLORE/SAT this year.
When ds11 took the EXPLORE in 4th, we had to buy him a calculator the week before (we really didn't realize how advanced he was in math and hadn't ever done any enrichment). His results not only made the school take notice, it was a wake-up call for us too, and for him. The end result was that he had a 5th grade teacher who made a huge effort to challenge him, he easily placed into gifted math in middle school, he joined the math club, has done a few competitions, etc.. It's made him realize that he is good at math, which for me, is a great outcome even if he does nothing with it!
