Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment Appling for DYS, Port. question

We are finally getting our application done. We have filled out the reg. paperwork part, which was the biggest hurdle for us (If you saw how many of the works in the previous sentence I had to spell check....... lol)

I am going to put in all the test results he has gotten.

So that leave the portfolio. We have one piece for DS7 portfolio, he made a short spot action movie. It's fun and funny... very anti aesthetic, a little sophomoric and self indulgent... but he is 7. He made it himself, which is the important part, and was very driven about how it should look and the music. He sat at his computer for hours getting it just how he wanted it. It was cute.

What else should I add? I was thinking some pages of double digital multiplication? and then maybe some creative writing?

Are we in the right ball park?

Soup, you want to highlight whatever it is that makes him unique. I can't offer a concrete suggestion, as this can be different for every kid. What does he do that makes people stare in disbelief?

Think about academics, but also things he says, questions, speculations, and things created or imagined.

good luck!

I agree with Lorel, and for that reason I always recommend video (or at least audio) of him doing whatever it is he does that makes you think he's HG+. Get him talking about his passion and record that. I really think that if you see/hear an HG+ kid in action, you know it!

Creative writing and math pages are great, but even better is video of him doing the writing and/or math so they can see his thought process, with the work attached. Not only does this reaffirm that the child is not being coached, it also makes the HG+ness a lot more obvious. Math pages are dead. Video brings a child to life.

Just my opinion...

But don't forget the math pages. They want to see academic ability as well.

Or just closeups of the work on the video. That would probably suffice, too.

What about a little video of him talking about his movie -- a little "The Making of" bit -- and *then* the movie? That way they'll get a look at his enthusiasm and see how much he put into it.

OMG! thank you all so much! these ideas are great and I never would have thought of them! AWESOME!

He just finished the first stop action movie but is already talking about the next.... I could have him make a quicktime describing what he did to make the first and what he plans to do to make the next one... we could burn them both to the same DVD.

Maybe he an I could have a discussion about politics? He is very opinionated and knowledgeable... it freaks people out.

Anything he does that freaks people out is probably a good choice. LOL!

Yes! That sounds good! I'd like to see that video.

Good luck with the application.

I am also applying with a portfolio (and math achievement tests of 99.9%) for our DS7 and have similar questions. Your movie sounds great! I have a bunch of dinosaur drawings from when our son was 3-5. I had annotated them because he wasn't writing yet. The Diplodocus from when he was three says, "He hasn't found a tree or a rock yet." Do I need to explain that scientists think the large herbivores ate rocks to help digest their food? He was the kid who would get upset at the dinosaur picture books because the T-rex was with the Stegosaurus. He used to point out that it should really be an Allosaurus since the T-rex and Stegosaurus didn't live in the same time periods. Of course, it sounded much better coming from a three year-old.

We also have video of him playing with his Lego mini-figures that he makes into Greek gods, Odysseus, and Lewis and Clark. The videos are very raw. I wasn't sure if I should ask him questions about what he's doing in the video, which is what I would do without the video?