our district does a gifted screen for preschoolers in a group setting in an active library to find kids who are gifted who may qualify for early admittance to k. my sensory kid did not do as well as we thought he should, so we had him tested using a different test, privately, and he was in fact gifted. (the district knew he had sensory issues prior to the test, and did not discuss the testing situation with me before hand....we did not know until we showed up it would be like this - chaotic group.) so...one of the reasons our district does not want to label him as gifted is because they feel he should be able to perform equally as high under chaotic situations as that is a prerequisite for kindergarten????? huh?
my argument is that when we are testing children for a disability, the child should be in a distraction free environment to truly get a picture of their abilities. testing to see how they would do in an actual classroom environment should be separate. but can you think of anything else i can argue?
he is now reading at a 2nd-3rd grade level and writing about a 1st grade level at 4 1/2....with no end in sight. he wants to go to school. he is not hothoused- just a motivated self-learner. i can't imagine him out of school for ANOTHER year so that NEXT year he can go full day to learn his letters.
