Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment How did you introduce your child to testing?

My apologies in advance if this has already been addressed, but I couldn't figure out a key phrase to use for a search of the archives. So if there is already a related thread hereabouts, feel free to share.

I just received confirmation that our son will be meeting with the district psych for an acronym-laden day of fun and excitement right after school resumes. Both tests, although I'm still in the dark as to which ones will be used. Yay.

I've asked that I be notified a day or two in advance so that I could drill him with all of our old Uncle John's Bathroom Readers in preparation. And to make sure that he's not running any marathons or going on a hunger-strike the night before.

But I also want to know in advance so that I can let him know that he'll be meeting with someone who . . .

And that's where I draw the blank.

He doesn't appreciate surprises (of this nature, anyhow), so I definitely don't want him blindsided by the whole affair. Nor do I want him to worry/stew about it while waiting for "the" day (as I will undoubtedly be tied in knots already).

What approaches have been used by others?

We told DS that he was going to take a fun brain test (for the IQ), so that we could find out how he learned and then would be able to get him the best schooling. For the achievement testing on the WJ-III, which took place a year later, we told him he was going to do some more brain testing, but this time we knew sort of the types of things they would be asking, so we told him some basics (word recognition, nonsense words, math). He had fun during the IQ test, so he didn't really mind going doing the achievement.

Here is the thread from when I asked this question before my DS took the SB-V. There is a lot of good advice: http://giftedissues.davidsongifted....ce_on_what_to_tell_DS4_bef.html#Post9953

That's great that your school will be doing the the testing!

Bingo! That's exactly what I was looking for. I just took a quick peek at that thread and there are 14 pages of messages, so it should be more than enough. Thank you, thank you.

Hi Dandy,

I asked the same question a while back. Here was my post:

http://giftedissues.davidsongifted....ring_your_child_for_testi.html#Post36379

Hope this helps! Good luck to your son with testing!

Thanks for your link as well. The previous link provided was quite helpful, although it did run away on a tangent about Meyers-Briggs personality testing after a few pages.

I know there's no cut-n-dry approach, which is why I enjoy reading through all the anecdotes.

This link from Hoagies (found in both threads above) was also great:
http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/test_prep.htm

Thanks all for the best wishes... I'm sure he will do just fine. I don't why I let myself get worked up over these things... but I do.

Ooops! I forgot about the M-B thread. Sorry 'bout that...

No problem at all. BTW.. I'm an INTP! Not sure what that means, but so was Thomas Jefferson, so I guess I'm fine with that label.

Before my son did his above level achievement testing, I let him know this was to see what he knows. The test will go from too easy and to too hard. You will get to the point where you don't know some of the information and that's how it it suppose to be.
This may give you opportunites to do more challenging work at school. Does that sound OK? He said yes. He enjoyed the testing and probally the attenton too.

I just wanted to update this thread with what transpired.

I opted to wait until we were literally on our way to school and casually asked him if he'd met with his speech therapist yet (knowing he had). I then reminded him of a test she gave him last year -- knowing that she told him that he did really well.

I then explained that she'd shared the results with some of her co-workers, and that one of them was very impressed and wanted to get together to play some games with him & see what other things he could do.

Just as I was dropping him off, I added, "You know how we aren't supposed to brag, or show off about our abilities?"

"Yes," he said.

"Well this time is different. You do whatever you think you can do, have fun with her & flex your brain muscle all you want."

I really wish I could have seen my little "cheetah" running free.