Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment Out of level/early SAT

As others have mentioned above, it depends on the student. I am aware of students as young as 11 years old, with 7th grade placement, being curious to experience the high-stakes testing process and subsequently successfully sitting for the test with High School Juniors and Seniors... without experiencing awkwardness. Going into it without expecting any special treatment or consideration for one's age difference may be key. A government-issued picture ID was required.

I suspect it also depends on the school. With only 120 students total in the 11th and 12th grades here, outsiders stick out like a sore thumb, which is why I guessed that my students would be a focus of speculation. Still, my kids did say they'd have been fine with it, and my son is already in math class with nearly half the college-bound students so there would be familiar faces. But we might have a better, more anonymous experience going to a Saturday test date, even though the nearest site is about an hour away. We'll see if they still have seats after my daughter's birthday (which will be 4 days before the registration deadline)!

Well, as a follow up, my seventh and ninth graders both sat for the SAT today. They didn't want me to walk in with them, and all went well.

My DS15 says he had at least one question he wasn't confident of the answer. DD13 said it was a few more that she was uncertain of, and she particularly didn't like the dense nonfiction passages about science and politics. Chances are probably good that they didn't get DYS qualifying scores, but at least it was a chance for them to experience some independence, and to stretch themselves a bit, and they feel good about it. DS is looking forward to studying for a "for-real" SAT around his junior year. DD says it would have been a good experience IF she hadn't been annoyed that she was missing pottery class. (We had signed her up for the weekly Saturday morning class after the SAT was scheduled, and it didn't occur to me to just reschedule the SAT, until it was too late to do so.)

Thanks again for the advice and encouragement!

As suspected, they did not get DYS qualifying scores. My son was VERY interested in benchmarking his results, so I dug up the 9th grade cutoffs for CTY, TIP, and DYS eligibility and put them on a post-it. I explained that some of the numbers on the post-it were about getting access to high-level classes, so getting those scores meant that you have the background knowledge and ability to benefit from the classes. He blew those out of the water, so I told him that was a good clue that he got a relatively good score for a 9th grader. And I explained that the DYS number was about identifying students that are so far different in their learning style that they have extra challenges with school and need extra supports and resources for navigating. So he's pretty much okay that he didn't quite hit that level. I do have a little bit of a what-if in the back of my head, given that he is in a low-rigor school system and didn't study at all. But it is what it is.

Anyway, he's already researched how/whether scores improve on a second sitting, and he figures that if there are tutoring programs that GUARANTEE a 150-point score increase, then between studying and already being familiar with the test format, it's not unreasonable for him to shoot for a 1600 when he takes it next. LOL. I've already tried to temper his expectations and remind him that he's going to have a heavier course load when he's a junior and might not have the time and energy to commit to single-minded pursuit of the SAT. But we'll see.

(My daughter, who was slightly in a grump for the test day but still put in decent effort, also blew the CTY and TIP benchmarks out of the water and also came in a bit shy of DYS. Unfortunately she's disappointed in her score for reasons I'm not sure of, since I think I told her that anything above 800 would be pretty decent for a 7th grader. But she's also already put it out of her mind, so eh.)

Well said!


Your children sound awesome, sunnyday.
AND they may be lucky enough to have that level of high IQ which is considered "optimal".

Yes, I'm hopeful that's the case -- more hopeful than I've been in years. Still though, the optimum band of IQ is relative, IMO. For example in a big urban area, a 1 in 1000 child might find at least a few peers. But in a small rural area, a 1 in 250 child could be just as much of an outlier. And could have just as much of a challenge finding appropriate support. I'm grateful we're not dealing with the more extreme divergence, but it's still...a lot. Anyway, we've muddled through this far, and our kids aren't broken yet, so I guess we've got that going for us.

I completely agree with you on this point. The specific environment is as important, if not more so, then the IQ score itself. This is why I believe that some tests should include "local norms".

Looks like age <13 SATs are back, with a new parental consent form and a few extra logistical hoops. But also a possibly a digital option, which may address some of the questions regarding testing in a roomful of big teens. (I think it's probably still at a testing center, which might be with adults, which may or may not be an improvement for certain children.)

https://satsuite.collegeboard.org/sat/registration/additional-registration-options/students-under-13

Thanks for the update. I assume this would be good news for certain talent search programs, such as CTY SET.