Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment New - Should we test DD after SPS test results

Hi -
I'm new both to this site and to G/T ideas altogether. Our DD just entered 2nd grade at a new school this year and as part of the intake, took the computer adaptive Scantron Performance Series test. She's a young 2nd grader, as her 7th bday falls in mid-August. Prior to this, she has never taken a standardized test so the results are enlightening for us. Her K and 1st grade years were in a preschool environment and weren't particularly rigorous but focused a lot on social-emotional development.

Her scores were 90th national percentile rank for language arts, 93rd percentile for maths and 99th for reading. Her reading GLE was 8th - 10th grade equivalent for "fiction" and "nonfiction" passages and 6th grade level for "long passage" (which included things like nuance and implied character motivation). Her reading rate was "NM" (not measurable) because she read each passage in under 5 seconds. Her teachers and I suspect she is a speed reader.

While her math score was more conservative, it was the subscores that were really interesting. Her "numbers and operations" and "measurement" units were rated above average but not earth-shattering (GLE of 3rd - 4th grade), but her "data analysis and probability" section was WAY higher - closer to 6th - 8th grade level. Given the little math instruction she's had up til now, we were surprised by these scores.

While we knew she was an extraordinary reader, we hadn't ever worried much about it. She's also our only child so I guess we didn't have a sense of her ability vs. more typical kids. She taught herself to read by 3 and we've just supplied her with a lot of books but otherwise never thought much of labels... we knew she was intelligent, but it really never occurred to us she might be gifted.

Since we got back the results we're awaiting a meeting with her teachers to discuss what they mean. In the meantime, we're not sure if we should get her tested further. She's already in a small, private school that uses a multi-age, individual-learning-plan type model, so testing wouldn't be needed for access to some G/T school program. But we're wondering if we need to know more about her development if she's potentially gifted - at least in terms of reading.

Since we're just now looking into GT stuff, we're realizing some other descriptors of GT kids fit her: her development is quite uneven. IE, her exceptional reading is balanced with lower-than average fine motor skills. Her handwriting is almost illegible and she's completely uninterested in improving it.

Would you recommend testing? I've checked out the Hoagie's testing page and a few others, but I'm still coming to terms with her Scantron results and if they merit further investigation. I'm not sure if she's just a high achiever or warrants GT testing based on her results.

Thanks for your help.

Hello Beatnik.
I have a DD6, so, not too far in age from yours. Mine also is advanced with significant handwriting challenges. I think the good news is that you seem to be in a school that does independent learning and they want to meet with you to discuss options for your DD. This is huge!! So, do you *need* to do IQ testing? Probably not at the moment. I personally wanted to test because I feel more comfortable having more information. An IQ test *can* give you some ideas about what to expect in the future, although not always. It can also open up certain opportunities such as DYS and some summer camps and schools. If you are pretty laid back and have a good school fit, then maybe you don't need to test currently. But if you are the kind of person, like me, who NEEDS information, or if it might help explain things or help you plan, then yes, you may want to look for a respected tester in your area. Good luck!

I am usually somewhat conservative about testing (even though it's what keeps me employed), but in your case, I would consider it, more because of the handwriting issues. If the school is flexible, and willing to adapt to her learning needs, then there is otherwise no particular pressure to evaluate.

Welcome Beatnik! I too had a kid that tested at 99% in the Scantron Performance Series testing several years back, but it was in Math instead of Reading. SPS is an adaptive test that tests out of level, so you probably should pay attention to the actual Scaled Score in comparison with the testing group. What we had found is that my kid scored 150 points higher than the highest score of kids two years older than her. At that point we decided to do both achievement and ability testing, and ended up doing an additional grade skip in Math.

Your DD's other scores are not too shabby either, and the SPS scores do vary over time. That particular test is multiple choice, and it gets progressively harder with each correct answer and easier with each incorrect answer.

With regard to additional testing, we did find that very beneficial, as we were able to isolate relative weaknesses and gain insight on my DD's true abilities, as well as finding proper placement in school.

Gook luck!

Thanks so much for these responses.

ChasingTwo - I am very much the type of person who thrives on having the additional knowledge. Interestingly, I've learned through this experience that my DH was identified as GT as child, however, he is less interested (but open to) further testing. He has said he felt the label was problematic for him as a student, since he felt - at the time - that being gifted meant things should come easily to him, so he was put off by subjects that he couldn't master quickly. I'm thinking that her experience (esp as a girl) could be quite different than his was, growing up as a boy in the early 80's.

I just feel daft not knowing how exceptional she is or might be. We knew she was a good reader... but I didn't think it was that far above average. I think I'm having a sense of impostor syndrome about even asking if her scores merit further testing, so your reassurances are really helpful.

aeh - yes, exactly! I'm wondering if there are other deficiencies her early reading has kept us from seeing as well.

TX G Mom - Thanks for this perspective. DD7's scaled score for reading was 2871 and SIP (Standard Items Pool score - estimated percent she could score correctly from all items in the national test bank) was 97 (out of 100).

Her scores for subsections were:
Fiction 3063
Nonfiction 2915
Vocab 2787
Long Passage 2648

Her curve equivalent and national rank were both 99%.

I really appreciate the reassurances. If we do test, it will be to identify what her ceilings are, identify what other areas of relative weakness we might not be seeing (such as fine motor), share the information with her school as they create their yearly individualized plans and to provide supplemental support at home.

I'll echo aeh's reply above re considering testing due to the fine motor issues you've observed. I'm not familiar with the test your dd's school administered, but fwiw, it's possible that the subtest scores that look low vs high in math may have been impacted by fine motor - for instance, if it takes your dd a long time to form numbers using handwriting relative to same-age or same-grade peers. This is a complete guess on my part, but it seems that math subtests requiring calculation were lower scores for your dd than math subtests requiring thinking ability - and it's possible that there's a second difference between those subtests beyond the type of math being assessed in each: a calculation subtest might require a student to write down numbers, and a higher-level thinking subtest might be multiple choice and only require a circle. If your dd does have a fine motor challenge, the fine motor could be a large part of what the test is measuring rather than math ability alone.


This is a bit of pet peeve of mine - kids who are high achievers vs technically way out there highly intellectually gifted need to be given the appropriate level of academic challenge in school too! I realize you're reaching out and doing just that... but I do think that sometimes when people happen onto a forum like this where parents with extremely high IQ kids are chatting, they may downplay the needs for children who aren't really all that out-there in terms of IQ, and the reality is - the kids who have those not-quite-out-there IQs who do extremely well in school and end up at the top of the class also need that something extra in school - sometimes even more so than a student who's got a sky-high IQ number but is happy where he/she is at in the classroom (and that can happen!). The benefit of testing for all students (no matter what their FSIQ) is that it shows where strength/weaknesses are and helps you as a parent understand their learning style and needs. The downside is having to pay for it if you aren't in a situation where school will test. For kids who aren't struggling, I'd say don't bother with testing, especially when your child is in a school program that allows for differentiation and different academic needs. But if you're seeing a potential area of concern, which fine motor struggles still happening in 2nd grade might be - then I'd pursue testing. In this case, you might be able to request the testing through your school district (for fine motor), and it will typically include ability vs achievement testing even though your concern is fine motor.

Hope that makes sense!

polarbear