Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Age or Ability Specific Forums Pre-school Need some advice....

Hello all. This is my first post. Though I have read some older posts, trying to soak up at much information as I can. I'm not going to list my son's abilities and ask if he is gifted. I know he's smart, some-days he shocks me, but he is my normal. My son is 4 years old, was born premature but his interests are currently at the 7 t 9 year old level.

I'm concerned there is something I should be doing for him now. Should I have him tested or wait until kindergarten? If he doesn't test into the GT program, where does that leave me? He attends PReK three days a week and then comes home and builds a working fan. Not sure kindergarten is going to stimulate him.

I am reading over some of the recommended websites and blogs. It's a hole lot of information. Thanks for any advice.

I am in a similar spot myself. My daughter is pretty advanced already at the age of 3.5 and I feel like by the time she's Kindergarten age she's going to be way past it. I have always thought I wouldn't test until needed for educational purposes, but I don't know when I'll NEED it for educational purposes (not to be redundant). I'm curious, where in Texas do you live? My daughter needs some smart playmates!

I don't have any great suggestions, but just wanted to say, me too! My daughter is almost 3 and our nanny is in school to become a kindergarten teacher. She told me that the K teachers where she's doing student teaching are working on introducing an alphabet letter a day, when my daughter learned the whole alphabet months ago and is working on spelling words!

Right now my husband and I are just trying to investigate all the schooling options out there. We may get her tested to see if she can get into a local private school for gifted kids, but she's perfectly capable of blowing the test on purpose (ah, temperament!), so we're exploring all possibilities.

Hi BrandiT, we live in Spring, TX, near Houston.

I know our ISD requires testing the year prior to the year you qualify. So, in Kinder we will be testing for 1st grade. We will do the testing then and see how he does. My fear is he won't qualify with test scores but still need the GT curriculum. I guess having him tested now would give me some peace and let me know where we stand. My hubs wants to wait, so I think we shall. One thing I did read on this forum (which helped a lot) was consider private testing before you consider 17K a year for private school. It's better to spend a few hundred before 17K!

Another thing, does anyone have their kid(s) in counseling? Monthly or weekly sessions? Sometimes I think it would help for DS to talk to someone who can relate. He does have some social anxiety, getting overwhelmed, etc. Preschool has helped a lot but it still happens.
We had a party at our house. Just 4 adults and DS lost his mind! Crying, screaming, and hiding in my bedroom. I finally calmed him down but had to sit with him in my bedroom. It's one step forward and three steps back sometimes.

Also music seems to bother him. He likes classical music and playing his keyboard but he gets distressed when I play anything else. It's not loud music, just in general. Some times I think he just trying to get his way though

I too am in a similar position. My son is 4 and has always been extremely ahead. We are now trying to figure out what next fall is going to look like for him as far as school is concerned. I'm not sure when to test. We are in Los Angeles and a few of the schools for gifted children require testing for applying, but I'm nervous about putting him (and us) through that. But I don't want to hold him back, either. I appreciate everyone's insights here.

We all seem to be struggling a bit, trying to figure out what to do. At least we aren't alone in that

I am in the process of making an appointment with my son's pediatrician to see where we should start. My son is not enjoying preK, I think he is bored. Also, his teacher told me he is not making friends or engaging in group activities. Which I am already aware. I was hoping Preschool would bring him out of his shell, but not so much. He also is very emotional and gets overwhelmed. Sometimes I think homeschooling would be best for him, but I don't know if I have what it takes to teach him.

At 4+ you can do the full WPPSI-IV test (we did the under 4 edition which is a bit more limited). Even so we found the results helpful. You can't take the WISC till 6+ I think.

Hoagies has a state by state list of testers here:
http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/psychologists.htm

We are going the Gifted Private school route (and I agree that spending a few hundred on testing can be money very well spent if it helps avoid a lost year(s) for a child).

Yes. You can take the older preschool level of WPPSI-IV at age 4-0. You can take the WISC-IV or -V at age 6-0. The SBV and WJIIICOG can be administered beginning from age 2 (but I wouldn't put too much weight in anything administered at that young age). There have been various threads and posts about the value of achievement testing for four-year-olds. You can obtain some information from the WIAT-III, KTEA-II or -III, and WJIIIACH or IV, but all have significant limitations for preschoolers.

As long as you have realistic expectations for testing results, there is little harm in them, and some potential benefit: IQ numbers are notoriously unstable beneath the age of nine or so (for many reasons, not least of which is the unpredictability of small children in attending and complying with on-demand tasks).

Thank you. I'll read more on the tests.
I am very interested in having DS tested but my hubs isn't. We know it doesn't change anything but it gives me a starting point to work with and have more knowledge about our son. Hopefully I can win him over.
DS is an only child, so I am hoping the social issues are from the only child syndrome but something keeps nagging at me. At home he is fine. At school he shuts down. The private schools around here have long waiting lists. If we decide on private, I need to know soon.