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Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 797
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Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 797 |
Rocky Mountain offers a choice without any advice. I think CTY offers both too, but suggests that very high kids don't take the Explore. I'm not sure about the others.
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 304
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 304 |
Mommy2, if your daughter found the test "comfy" if not easy, at barely 9, I'm sure she did quite well! DDalmost11 was pretty comfy this go around, but last year at almost 10 was somewhat overwhelmed (but still had reasonable scores!)
I think the ACT/SAT is absolutely the way to go for 6th, for the HG+, but maybe not MG. DD took both the SAT and the ACT last year, as a very young 7th grader, and the experience was overwhelming for her. Still, the Explore would have had ceiling issues, so perhaps that was the better choice? I can say for certain that DS9 won't be Exploring in 6th! Our main talent search uses the SAT for 7th and 8th.
Speaking of...there was a boy at the Explore yesterday that was easily taller than me, and probably taller than DD13, so maybe about 5'10". I thought my kids were tall! Do 6th grade boys really get that big? He spoke, and his voice hadn't yet changed, but man did he tower over the other testers! I think DD9's assessment of the test is partly because she viewed it as a "fun" test that she couldn't fail and it eased any nerves she may have had. She said a couple of the math questions she could narrow down to 2 and then work it backwards from the two answers. Not sure if this was a good strategy, but she said she could make one answer work this way. DD9 is also very tall, but not THAT tall, LOL. She is all legs and I suspect she will be taller than me in the next 2 years. I'm only 5'3" so its not that hard to do, but I think she got DHs genes when it comes to height.
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Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 778
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Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 778 |
Hi all,
My DS11 really enjoyed to Explore test again yesterday. It was his second time taking it and he felt very confident that it went well. However, he did not bring a watch, and ran out of time for three questions overall, he thinks in science and reading. He has always had a slow and methodical work style, so I understand how it happened.
We signed DS up for the Explore because our talent search (through Belin-Blank) only offers the Explore to sixth grade students. We later learned that the Midwest Academic Talent Search offers the SAT or ACT, in addition to the Explore, to sixth grade students who score at or above the 97 percentile on grade level, so we signed him up for the ACT later this spring. I really wish the PLAN test was available to middle school kids.
Both our kids have a tendency to miss easy questions, while correctly answering some more advanced questions, so I don�t expect a perfect score in any sub-test. Well, maybe math could be a possibility, but he fluctuates between 100% and 85% on his school math tests due to simple mistakes. However, they aren�t allowed even calculators at school; much less multiple choice for tests, so maybe the simple mistakes won�t be a factor on the Explore.
In any case, we haven�t made a big deal of this test this year. Aside from testing last year, his prep consisted of reading the Explore booklet on the way to the testing site. He has been completely task saturated with his science fair project for the last several weeks.
I�m glad all the kids enjoyed to test yesterday and my advice to those whose children will test in February is to BRING A WATCH!
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Joined: May 2006
Posts: 865
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Joined: May 2006
Posts: 865 |
I drove 3 hrs to another state for DS 9 to take the EXPLORE, stayed in a hotel, delivered him to the test, and upon picking him up, he said, "I got a zero on the English section because I didn't fill in the bubbles--I had all my answers on the scratch paper." My adrenalin pulsed. Then, after a moment, he said, "Only kidding." I told him I hated his sense of humor.
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 6,145
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 6,145 |
Kriston
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 1,134
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 1,134 |
Oh cym - what a little bugger! Talk about a heart attack.
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 304
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 304 |
We'll have to talk numbers in a PM when the time comes! It's interesting to me, with three kids, to compare their actual scores with their perceived performance. My oldest always tends to call things "extremely hard", yet does fairly well. DD10 is always overly confident, saying she did good, when she does more average. DS9 probably has the best feel for himself, but I've learned not to predict scores based on THEIR comments alone!
By the way, how's the calculator working out? Which one did you get? We ended up with TI-83. Although DD uses only the functions up to square root and exponents, she still loves it. And I love that it'll take her through high school and hopefully college!!!
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 304
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 304 |
I drove 3 hrs to another state for DS 9 to take the EXPLORE, stayed in a hotel, delivered him to the test, and upon picking him up, he said, "I got a zero on the English section because I didn't fill in the bubbles--I had all my answers on the scratch paper." My adrenalin pulsed. Then, after a moment, he said, "Only kidding." I told him I hated his sense of humor. Sounds like something DD would do. I would have gotten a few gray hairs from that comment!! 
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 304
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 304 |
Hey, here's something I meant to ask earlier...ask your kids if you would about surveys they might have taken. My kids took one on being GT and friendships. I pilfered one on the way out the door, and it was an interesting survey. This might have been something specific to C-MITES though.
Between that, the test, the break, etc....I'm thinking it's not that big of a step (time wise) to roll right into the SAT or ACT. DD9 said she was asked about friendships also. Mainly if she had friends in school, if she had difficulty making new friends, maintaining friendships etc. DD doesn't have a "best friend" in school this year and is not invited to parties etc. this year. But she still feels that she has friends and answered all questions positively. She must be an optimist or something, LOL.
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 304
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Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 304 |
Ah...more "bad" news.....while our February scores did come in 5 weeks, my friend's January scores (last year) took the entire 6 weeks to the day,  . How hard is it to run a bubble sheet through the machine? I could have done without that info, LOL. Couldn't they just run the bubble sheets through the machines, let us know the answers right away and then send us the comparative stuff later? 
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