Did anyone have their child take the Explore in the 3rd grade? Would you recommend taking it in 3rd grade or waiting a year or two before taking it? For anyone that has a child that has taken the Explore could you give us an idea of how it is presented and how long it takes.
We are considering signing DD8 up to take the test. We would like to know where she stands on an above-grade level test and we could maybe use her scores to help apply for DYS, which we are also considering. Our concern is that we have heard it takes about 3 hours and DD probably can't sit through a 3 hour test that covers some academic areas she has probably never even seen before. Another issue with DD is that when she goes some place she has never been before she has to check it all out and absorb everything in the room before she can really settle down and focus. For example - when she started piano lessons, which are held at the teacher's house, after 2 lessons the teacher asked if we really thought she wanted to take lessons because she didn't seem very interested. DD was interested. We had to explain that there were just too many distractions in the teacher's piano room and DD being able to watch the cats outside through the big bay window was not helping her stay focused either. Until DD could soak it all in and be able to ignore the cats (this one is very hard for her) she would be unsettled. It took about 4 more lessons before DD could really focus and now she is doing fine. So if DD goes into a totally unknown school to take the Explore she may not be focused on the test but more on the posters on the wall, etc.
