Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment Wppsi vs wisc or should we retest for DYS?

Backstory, DS 5 was tested at 4 with the wppsi. He scored FSIQ of 139, verbal was 147, visual was 129.

Since then he's been pulled out of preschool, and we are homeschooling K. There is also some concern about ADHD. I am contemplating getting a full evaluation when he turns 6 to sort out the ADHD business. I'm also really curious if he would qualify for DYS on the WISC, but from what I'm reading on this board, the WISC is usually lower than the WPPSI, so there is a slim chance he would qualify. The main reason I would like him to qualify is so that we would be able to attend the DYS events, and he can meet other kids like him. I'm not exactly sure if he's PG, he seems HG or EG to me, but then I read about other PG kids, and I think DS could be. Obviously it matters little in the end, and it's even less important if we comtine to homeschool.

So has anyone had their child score higher on the WISC? I guess his verbal would have gotten him in if it was the WISC. He had the achievement scores on the WJ at 4, but we didn't apply because of the iq score. (also DS was normed as a 1st grader, so the report was kind of weird, and not complete.)

Hi, Amber. Would it be possible to get the testing paid for by insurance, due perhaps to the ADHD possibility?

I don't think that DYS would be likely to provide enough of a benefit in your situation to make that a major consideration (i.e. child at age 6 and homeschooling, which negates the programs available later as well as advocacy). However, if it would be a major benefit to you to hook up with other DYS kids and parents in your area, and you're in a fairly densely populated area to make that likely, it could still be worth it. In any event, Explore would be a cheap way to test in on achievement later.

I've read that some children don't perform to their full potential on the WPPSI due to characteristics of the test itself, but mostly older children. Still, your son could well have just had a bad testing day-- and at 4 it was probably his first testing experience, so everything might have been strange and a bit scary to him. You're certainly in the ballpark for a 145 score on the WISC-IV, especially with the variability of early testing results and the fact that it will have been going on two years between tests.

In summary: it all depends.

dd11 took the wppsi at 6, and took the WISC last week. Her verbal and FSIQ both went up by almost 1 SD--IMO due to issues of perfectionism/fear of saying the wrong thing and the first tester not getting gifted kids. I had not expected to have DYS qualifying scores on the WISC but we did. I don't think it makes that much sense to retest with wppsi at this point.

edited to add: dd4 took the wppsi almost a year ago--she was not that cooperative, same tester who first tested older dd, and her FSIQ was 124. I know that is not a true picture of this kid, and fully expect the WISC score to be higher if she is cooperative(this is the kid who "looks" more like a DYS kid to me).

Thank you very much for the replies! FTR, I would definitely not retest with the wppsi, I would wait for the wisc.


I think at this point I'll wait until it becomes a more imminent need.

Mr W took the WPPSI when he was 3. PIQ around 150 but VIQ was around 110. At the same time he took ITBS for K and then the Bracken and ended up 99.9 on both with no missed verbal section questions. So, we just had to laugh about his WPPSI scores. I asked him about the WPPSI session and he told me she went too fast as he wanted to play with things.

I should also add that he took the SB-V about a year ago, for admission to a school. He scored 140. So I think his WPPSI is accurate. But he is in the ballpark, that's the only reason I'm a tiny bit curious if he'd score better on the WISC.