Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy We're officially applying to DYS! Now...

The WISC is done, and DS6 scored 151 in Perceptual Reasoning! Yahoo! That means he has DYS-worthy scores on both the WISC and the WJ3, and hopefully DYS will accept him.

So now I'm wondering how often DYS rejects kids with qualifying scores. Any ideas? Does having the scores mean you're pretty much in, or is that just the first of many layers of requirements? Should I spend a lot of time carefully crafting every answer on the app, or can I just "get 'er done" because the scores are what really matter?

Thanks for any help you can offer, friends!

Nervously,

K-

P.S. Interestingly, DS6 showed more verbal on the SB5 and more visual-spatial on the WISC. That seems weird to me! Why would he seem more verbal on the test for V-S kids and more V-S on the test for verbal kids? Any thoughts?

He *is* a very verbal kid who is also really good at puzzles and patterns. Maybe it just means he's both, somehow? ???

Thanks for thinking of us, CFK! So nice!

Yes, the WISC was apparently a much better fit for DS6. (Though his verbal score was just a 132 or something like that, if memory serves. That seemed low to me. But whatever...) That helped.

He also slept well in his own bed last night and wasn't getting sick like he was the last time, so it was an all-around better test day. If he hadn't made the cut, this would have been the last try for a good long while because it was a good test day. So it worked out well for us.



You're so right! I'm just glad to finally feel like we KNOW something! After the SB5, when we didn't get any real answers one way or the other, I felt so frustrated, so clueless. This confirmation that yes, he really is *that* smart is very, very nice. It's a big relief.

Thanks for letting me share. It's nice to have friends!

Those are awesome numbers! He sounds similar to my son. High PIQ, lower but still gifted VIQ.

I was wondering the same thing about DYS and scores. We will find out in a few weeks.

Good luck with the application. It's pretty long but doable with a glass of wine or two

Congrats Kriston! That must feel great.

I have no idea if kids with scores in the DYS range get rejected. Understandably, people are not always forthcoming about getting rejected!

Good luck to your DS! He sure sounds like a YS kid to me.

Go Kriston's DS! I have no idea, but vote for the 'go as fast as you can' approach. They are quite comfortable asking for 'more please!'
Grinity

LOL! I don't have the written report yet, if that makes you feel any better. But both this psych and the other one we used gave us immediate verbal feedback on the tests.

It certainly is a load off my mind!

Thanks for all the well-wishes and advice and info, everyone. What in the world would I do without all of my e-friends to get me through this stuff!?!

P.S. I'm starting to fill out the DYS app now, and I'll get'er done as fast as I can. I've already handed a recommendation form to our babysitter. Fast it is!

Our tester is 8 months pregnant, so she wants it done and off her desk as much as we do! Ha! So I'm expecting to get it pretty fast. She knows we're applying to DYS, and she thinks he needs it, so that's helpful.

(Plus I have no trouble with doing some nagging of the tester if necessary. LOL!)

Hope you're in, LMom!

Kriston,
I so happy to hear your son earned such high scores!

Best wishes to everyone with the DYS application. Don�t stress too much about it. You know your children best and will give the best account of their individual precocity and needs.

Thanks, delbows!

Yikes! Oh, that would be SO unfortunate, for everyone. (Tester included!)

Yes, here's hoping!

Kriston, Sheryl here. It's wonderful to hear of your DS6's scores; you must be thrilled! I send you my best wishes and a dose of patience in working through the application process. Mine took quite some time to put together - it was a real project (certainly it took a good deal of thought and gathering of resources) - but I am still as happy with what I wrote today as when I sent it in. Take the time - it's worth it! My son was selected as a 2008 DYS just this month. Good luck!

Oh, yay, Kriston! And you were so worried ... can I say, I told you so?

Very, very best of luck with DYS -- I'm hoping for a big fat acceptance letter for your ds!

Thanks, Mia. I'm sending you a PM...

Good luck Kriston!!!!!!!!!!

Incog

Hi. I don't know if they reject children with qualifying scores but I can tell you that for my son, who has qualifying scores, we were sent a letter asking for work samples displaying 2-3 grade levels above his age peers. My son just turned seven last week. So, they may still ask for more. Or they may not, I don't know why they wanted more from us. I am a bit surprised and am not sure how to display this with a first grader!:-) Good luck to you.

Thanks, tdha. I'll try to keep in mind that my answers should show that he's working significantly above grade level. That's very helpful!

Roll call, sound off!

If I may ask, who else is applying to DYS in February?

Our application goes in the mail tomorrow--sent via expensive 2-day mail because I couldn't get the WISC testers' report until then! We'll meet her at 1 p.m. and race over to the post office at 1:30.

Good luck to all applying!

I wish I was putting ours in the mail tomorrow. I am hoping to make the March deadline. These questions are just taking me lots of time to answer and last week was a 80+ hour work week. I think that's a good enough excuse.

Good luck to you and your son, Kriston!

No excuses necessary, crisc! The application is huge!

I had answered a lot of these questions for my tester, so I was ahead of the game there. Otherwise I'm not sure I'd be making the February deadline.

Hi Krison,

We are submitting the additional info they requested for DD7. DH was supposed to fax it in last week, but has promised to do it Monday.

I'll cross my fingers for both of our kids!

Incog

Hi Kriston,

We're also applying for the 2/15 deadline for DS8. He took the WISC and WIAT in 11/07. The WIAT scores ceilinged out at 160 for both math and reading; WISC FSIQ was 147 with a VCI of 148.

We finally were able to select someone to do a reference for us; moving every 2 years + homeschooling = few non-family people to write references! Our reference-writer sent in her recommendation last week.

I'm just finishing the application this evening and will be sending it out tomorrow. I'm sort of glad that I'm sending in our app toward the deadline, because it means we won't be waiting so long for an answer.

Of course I am nervous and don't want to depend on a "yes" response, even though all of his scores are above their minimums. I feel that he will need advocacy in the near future and it would be wonderful to have DYS support. At 8 (2nd grade) he's doing middle/high school work as a homeschooler, but will need to take traditional classes in advanced subjects soon. I never even took Calculus and couldn't teach it to him - he would need to take a class. At his current pace, he'll be ready for it around age 11, and I know it that DYS assistance would be helpful when that time comes.

Aside from that practical assistance with advocacy, I would appreciate being part of a community of families who deal with a similar parenting experience. I don't know anyone else who has a kid like mine, and many times we feel emotionally isolated as a result. He has good friends, but consciously self-limits around them since they are on a different level in many ways. I would love to help him find a true peer, even just one.

Well. That was quite a ramble! Good luck to you as you wait for your answer. We'll have to post back to this thread when we get our replies. I promise to let you know how we do, even if we are rejected *sob*.

"last week was a 80+ hour work week"

Poor you! I used to have those, but thankfully, no more. Good luck!

Back at you, 'Neato!

Your post left me feeling nervous about the future, czechdrum! My DS is not yet 7, so I haven't even thought about calculus yet! (Though I know I'll have to deal with it sooner than I want to believe...) Ah, that GT denial gets me again. Just when I think I'm through with it, something slaps me in the face!

And I empathize with you about the rec. Homeschooling does make that more challenging to find, and we haven't moved like you have.

Best of luck, friends! I'll be waiting to hear what happens for you! Keep me updated, please!

Good luck to all of you!

Good luck to all of you!

czechdrum you really, really don't need a portfolio on top of all that LOL

Luckily we are a math family and it will take a while before our son reaches the end of our math abilities. One of the very few things we don't have to worry about.

It's done! Whew. I'm UPSing it this afternoon. What a relief.

I'm glad to hear that you don't think we'll need portfolio items. We decided not to include them. If they want them in addition to the app and test reports, I guess we'll find out soon enough.

Kriston, the only reason I'm thinking about Calculus is that he's taking Algebra I now. His current math pace has him blowing through a course like that in about 7 months. Since we do lessons year-round (with some periodic breaks), he could very well be ready for Calc by age 11. I feel like I need to be planning NOW so that I have my resources available when he needs them.

This is a huge reason why we're applying to DYS. Our local school proposed a "solution" where he is with his age-mates in 2nd grade for PE, art and music, but then is put on various bus transports throughout the school day to go to all of his other classes at the middle and high school. He can maintain an A average in these subjects, but that doesn't mean I want my newly-turned-8yo wandering around the local high school in a sea of thousands of teenagers for most of the school day. Not yet, anyway. So...we continue to homeschool until we can find a solution that is equally comfortable for quality of education and age-appropriateness. I hope that if he is ready to take Calc at 11 (for example), DYS would help advocate for him to get into a community college course or perhaps hook him up with a tutor or mentor.

Good luck to you! I hope that both of us get positive responses.

Tara

((Snort))
Don't I wish that were true - one would like to think that a child at a bricks and mortar school would have tons of folks who would be happy to write a reccomendation. Didn't happen in our case - more like "he's not the strongest Math student" and "we have handfuls like him in Middle School"

Well, sometimes it's true...
Grinity

I am SO not ready for this!

Dottie - I know. I probably would have been okay with one daily building change/bus trip and most of his classes in the middle school. The middle schools in our district aren't small but manageable sizewise in my opinion.

The high school is just...mammoth. We went to some planetarium programs there (yes, our local high school has its own planetarium in the building) and the walk from the parking lot to the planetarium took almost 15 minutes. Our son was shaking his head and saying, "I wonder how the kids here don't get lost!"

I just couldn't fathom dropping him off at the ES, then having a bus transport him to MS around lunchtime (where presumably he'd fit right in at the cafeteria) and then having another bus transport him from the MS to the high school for the rest of the day. I wish I had the option to homeschool him and enroll him PT in individual classes at the high school, but that isn't allowed in our district.

Tara

The question on another thread about Dottie's child's explore scores reminded me...

DYS results for February should be coming in eventually. I'm hoping everyone will share results here. Hopefully we'll have no commiserating to do, only celebrating together.

Anyone hear anything?

Well, right now it's mostly just nerve-wracking!

LOL! Sure, I can see that.

I was just coming here to check in and see if anyone had heard anything. Nothing here. I had put the DYS thing on the mental back burner, but now that we're into March, I can reasonably expect to get a response soon.

I'll definitely post here about our response, even if it's a disappointing "thanks, but no thanks." *sob*

Tara

<fingers drumming impatiently>

Nothing here either...Thanks for asking, czechdrum!

Who else is waiting? I have been so involved in my own little world, I lost track of who was applying in Feb. Anyone else care to chime in so we can all e-hold hands, like they do on Miss America before they announce the results?

We are.

Anyone have any guesses about when we'll hear something?

I'm still mostly trying not to think about it, but every day that passes makes it harder to hold fast to my resolve!

We applied in January and our acceptance letter was dated January 29th. I would say you may get your letter any day now.

Good luck.

I've been thinking about you guys, Kriston ... fingers crossed! I've actually been checking in and lurking just to see what happens. :-)

I'm glad you're still around, Mia. I miss news of your delightful son, not to mention your wit and wisdom.

And thanks for the help, LMom. Maybe tomorrow we'll all know something. Maybe Dottie's explore scores will come in, too!

I am anxiously awaiting the February group to get responses since then it will be closer to the March application review where our application is going to be looked at. I did receive my e-mail stating ours had been received--it's going to be a long wait.

Oh, we're around ... I'm adding when I have something to add. Still fighting school and even *I'm* getting sick of it! I'll post when something actually happens -- or sooner if the spirit moves me. :-) I'm waiting on the principal *still* to get going with the IAS ... I'm thinking she figures that as long as it's not available, she won't have to deal with me. Sigh.

But anyway, Kriston, I've got my fingers crossed triple for you guys.

Sorry, Mia and crisc for your various waits.

Ah, if only impatience actually made the wheels of beauracracy move faster!

Hi all,
Can someone point me to the advantages of the DYS program? (Is it a program) ..as you tell newbie here.
thanks,

I recommend that you check out their website:

http://www.ditdgifted.org/Article/Davidson_Young_Scholars_Program_147.aspx

They do a much better job of explaining than I would!

March 3rd mail update: nada!

Tara

Me neither, czechdrum.

<sigh>

How 'bout ones that smell okay, Dottie?

<smirk>

LOL! I'm such a wiseacre, I don't know why you put up with me, Dottie.

I'm sure both sets of Explore scores will smell like vanilla and cinnamon!

Even so, I'm not holding my breath for tomorrow's mail. February is a short month, even with that extra day in there this year, so I assume it's going to take the full month for the DYS scores, just as you're assuming it will take the full 6 weeks for the Explore scores.

Expect the worst and hope for the best, no?

We obviously have not heard anything either.

Will check in with results.

I

Yes please, 'Neato!

The DYS team must be very busy. I called about something yesterday afternoon, and they sent me an email response saying that they didn't have time to answer all the phone calls, and could I please email my question instead. That has never happened to me before; they are usually very prompt about returning calls.

I think they are getting many more applicants these days, as word spreads about the program.

...but not in the mail. Nothing today.

Ooooh! Books! Yummy!

What book did you get Dottie??? (I just LOVE books!) And you can give Lorel a free plug!

Sounds fun. I do love that Bright Minds stuff!

No news today...

Sorry. Just me, reminding people to post. I keep hoping that someone out west will get results, and then I'll know that ours will probably come a day or so later.

Or am I being too optimistic?

I'm voting for a yes on Thursday, although I guess you'd take it on Friday, too.

I like it! Though those of you who have received scores before will have a better idea of the weight than the rest of us.

Still, if it passes the time while we wait and keeps me distracted, I'm totally game for it!

Oh, I thought we were guessing actual ounces, like at a baby shower! LOL!

My bad!

I'd hate to guess "thin" for someone though...

That doesn't seem like it fits with the supportive nature of the forum.

<imitating Heidi Klum on "Project Runway">

"One day you're in, the next day, you're out!"

Youch!

Can I guess 26s?

<3

(Sending love, not mooning you!)

Oh no! No worries, Dottie. I'm sure everyone here is completely aware of how kind you are. I didn't mean to suggest otherwise. We're just playing here!

And my kids were 9-4 and 8-10. I could have pushed an 8-3 kid out of my nostril, I think. I have friends who talked about loving when their babies were new and had "little stick arms and legs." My response: "Huh?"

Yup, I know. But that's how much of the love I was sending. Think "Spinal Tap" and going to 11!

I loved Spinal Tap! I'll sing some of the tamer lyrics... "listen to what the flower people say..." but you must know that's not the first ditty to come to mind.

Of course not!

My fav is "Big Bottoms, my gal's got 'em!"

Of course, I like "Fat-Bottomed Girls" by Queen, too, so my taste in such things may be rather questionable! Great to exercise to though!

Oh, Dottie & Kriston I hope you get news soon. I'm vicariously checking your mail boxes each day in anticipation. I remember driving home (26 mi RT) on my lunch hour to see if my law school acceptance letter had arrived. I'm not good at patiently waiting. Your fortitude is impressive!

We also are still waiting for Explore scores. The CTD website says 4-5 weeks but I knew from reading here that it's more like 6 weeks. But my mail has not arrived for today yet, so there is still hope....

Jen

Sorry Dottie, no news today either. I saw a bunch of big envelopes in the mailbox and got excited for a moment,but they ended up being junk mail....

Let's hope tomorrow is THE day:)

I had a thick packet today...

...

...

...

But NO! It was my copy of "Secular Homeschooling" Magazine.

I've never been so disappointed by something I like to read in my life. The teasing is just not fair!

Same bat-time, same bat-channel!

Of course not! I can't imagine anyone would accuse you of such a thing!

<grin>

I just got the mail for today and there's nothing from DYS. At least we only have about a week left to wait. They wouldn't take this past March's application deadline, would they?

I'm in a state of limbo about something else, similarly exciting. We adopted a stray at the end of January. Recently, her belly has started to protrude noticeably. You know where this is going! We think she could be pregnant, but we're not sure (and we are resisting the $200 pregnancy test from the vet). If she is knocked up, it would had to have happened prior to us taking her in; in that case, we would only have another few weeks left before kittens arrive. Yikes!

Or, she could just be getting fat.

Tara

Nope, nothing for us either. <sad face>

And $200 for a pregnancy test for a cat? That's insane.

In grad school, my nutty then-boyfriend of mine adopted a pregnant cat without knowing she was preggers when he lived in a place that didn't allow pets. (Yes, get the laughter and teasing out of your systems...go on...okay? Shall I continue?) Guess who took car of the cat and delivered the litter?

Anyway, the vet just palpated her tummy and could tell she was "with kitten." Can't your vet do that?

LOL - I'm trying to imagine getting your cat to pee on a stick.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

"Heeeere kitty, kitty, kitty..."

I use clumping litter for my geriatric feline. Now I'm envisioning the "clumping action" on a stick test. I'm easily distracted. I should be reading for school.

OMG Kriston - this cracked me up!!! I'm still snickering.

Every time someone posts on this thread I am hoping that everyone had received their thick envelopes.

Anyone planning on joining me in the March deadline wait?

Confession time- I still have my positive result stick from my youngest. What a strange keepsake, huh?

Lorel-I have the positive results from both of my kids. I guess we can be strange together! LOL!

Hope everyone hears something soon!!!

Heck, at this rate we all may be joining you in the March wait!

Well, my vet said that she couldn't promise that she would be able to confirm or deny pregnancy by feeling the cat's belly, so she'd recommend an ultrasound or x-ray. Her basic exam fee is something like $60, and then for imaging costs on top of that, we'd be looking at about $200. Hence the $200 pregnancy test. I'm loathe to even pay the $60 exam fee, so I'm trying to get comfortable with uncertainty.

I watched her sleep on her side today, and either her belly was twitching oddly, or I saw some kitten fetal movement!

A friend and I were joking about using a Clear Blue Easy on the cat, too! Too bad they don't make a version that detects cat growth hormone instead of human growth hormone.

Tara

Does it amuse anyone else how wildly OT this thread gets?

I have to admit, I love it! I don't feel good about doing that to anyone else, but since this was my thread to begin with, I just have to say that I think it's marvelous fun and I'm glad we're doing it!

But, then, I have a small streak of the rebel in me...

So thanks to all who have posted ridiculously random things here or followed me as I have. You make me smile! (That goes double for you, czechdrum!)

Dottie, you could crash here even without Explore scores! <3

(Oh, and that time, I was mooning you! tee-hee-hee!)

LOL! Apparently the moon is full tonight. Ha!

You know, my kids never leave enough room for me to sit down, and my reply is always that "I need more space for my great big Mommy bottom."

Well, there we go!

Dottie,

Sorry about the extended wait for explore score, that stinks!
I'm glad you called though, at least you know is won't be coming soon instead of waiting for the mail the next week or so.

I never thought to save my pregnancy test stick, that's kind of cool.
Ditto for vaccination bandages, I'm lucky I have pictures and some video's of the kiddies!

Maybe if I had a bigger house........

Incog

Dottie,

Did they give a reason for the delay? Of course I didn't receive our scores either, not sure if the CTD scores are late also...

I am officially stalking our mailman who pretty much threw our mail all over our lawn and I raced for it like a bridesmaid at the bouquet toss, LOL!!! Not really, but I walk a bit faster each day only to find junk mail and bills. So it sounds like I still have hope for tomorrow......

Jen

((Hugs)) to all! I hate to think of you all out there waiting impatiently. I actually feel vaugly guilty that I didn't push DS11 into taking the SAT last time around, and I just put it on my 'to do' list.

Interestingly, he was in a very 'don't try to teach me anything' phase for what seemed like 6 months, which seems to be dissolving - horray! Three cheers for his school and his gradeskip!


Smiles,
Grinity

Dottie and Jen,
Check your mail! We just got our Explore results today-exactly six weeks after the test.

DS11 did well. His composite went up over-all, but his English did go down. It may have been one of the two subtests which he didn�t finish- or not. We are going to have to work on time for the ACT in April, but I won�t hold my breath on his finishing all of it.

delbows,
I don't think that finishing every section of the ACT is a reasonable goal for most talent search kids. DS finished English and Reading, but not Math or Science. When he got the five minute warning he did fill in the rest of the bubbles, though, and then used the rest of the time to do a couple more problems.

WOO-HOO! Let those results come rolling in!

Dottie,
We used Belin-Blank for the talent search. Your comment puts it in perspective about the English score-he did do very well in it last year, so it is not unlikely that it could go down.
He missed the perfect score in math, however, it was his highest at 24. It is also the only subject were he receives acceleration at school.

Acs,
Thanks for the heads up about the ACT and talent search participants. I�ll be sure to pass on the information so my perfectionist daughter doesn�t get upset during the test.

Just to give you a sense of how many you can miss and still get a good score, I just checked my ACT book.

To get 25's you would need to get the following number right:
English 55 out of 75
Math 40 out of 60
Reading 25 out of 40
Science 29 out of 40

These vary a bit from test to test, but you can see that you really don't have to get them all finished to do well as long as you do well on the ones you answer. But there is no penalty for guessing so it it worth it to fill in on the bubbles even if you don't finish. That what's so great about these tests for most of our kids, finally lots ceiling.

To get scores in the 30's you'd have to finish and I know there are kids who do finish. But there is no shame in not finishing.

This is really useful information for our family!

Thanks.