Just adding to what Dottie said: The percentiles are compared to the norming sample for the above-level grade. So the percentiles for a 3rd grade child are compared to the 5th grade norms.
Having said that, I felt like the percentiles ought to be taken with a grain of salt. The test is short, and I don't know how accurate those norms are anymore.
At any rate, when you get the booklet, you can get a rough idea of your DS's percentiles compared to the other talent search participants in his actual grade. I say a "rough" idea, because the bar graphs are the data from the previous year and I would imagine that they change somewhat from year to year. Unfortunately, they don't give you those percentiles. You actually have to add up the numbers and calculate it yourself.
