Build reasoning language first.
For younger children, focus on puzzles, patterns, and explaining thinking. The district rules become important when a testing or referral window is close.
Read the age guide -> Gifted testing hub
Start with the rule that applies to your child.
Gifted testing is not one national process. The useful path starts with your district, your child's grade, and the test or referral window named by the school system.
Choose the next step by where your child is now.
Check whether your district screens early.
Some districts name first-grade ability testing; others use classroom observation or later referral. Start with the district index before reading generic cutoff advice.
Read the age guide ->Universal screening often starts here.
Many local processes have a Grade 2 testing or screening point. In FCPS, Grade 2 has a universal screener pathway, but referral remains the main route for many Full-Time AAP files.
Read the age guide ->Referrals, appeals, and transfer paths matter more.
Older elementary students often move through referral windows, central review, appeals, or new-student pathways rather than a simple automatic screening notice.
Read the age guide ->Everything currently published in the gifted-testing cluster
Signs Is my child gifted?
Start with a calm K-2 evidence guide before treating a behavior, score, or school mismatch as a final answer.
Kindergarten Signs of a gifted kindergartenerUse age-specific observations tied to pattern recognition, picture analogies, classification, and early quantity reasoning.
First grade Is my first grader gifted?Read first-grade signs through reasoning patterns, classroom fit, and the district screening window that applies next.
Testing age When do schools test for gifted programs?Compare verified district testing grades, universal screening windows, referrals, and source links in one table.
Tests NGAT vs CogAT vs NNAT vs OLSATSee what each gifted-test family measures before choosing practice or interpreting a score report.
Scores Gifted testing scores explainedUse the score explainer and DB cutoff summaries without invented score crosswalks.
Advanced Gifted vs advanced learnerSeparate advanced achievement, reasoning evidence, and the school service question.
Programs What is a gifted and talented program?Understand enrichment, acceleration, subject services, full-time placement, and local policy differences.
School fit First grader bored at schoolUse a calm enrichment ladder before turning boredom into a gifted-test conclusion.
FCPS AAP FCPS AAP, explained plainlyA narrative guide to screening paths, Level I-IV services, portfolio review, timelines, appeals, and private/homeschool applications.
Districts Compare district rulesSee which tests each verified district names, which grades are screened, and whether cutoffs are published.
Lookup Find your district testing processSearch a district or acronym for an instant answer card with test, grade window, pathway, cutoff framing, and next guide link.
Timeline Build a testing timelineSelect a district and grade to map referral, testing, decision, placement, and appeal windows from the verified record.
FCPS facts FCPS gifted facts pageUse the structured FCPS page when you need the quick facts, official source list, and district-specific testing summary.
NGAT NGAT parent guideUnderstand the reasoning test FCPS names for the current AAP screening cycle and how scores are reported.
CogAT CogAT parent guideReview CogAT batteries, score types, and calm practice guidance for districts that still use CogAT.
Scores MAP scores explainedRead MAP Growth score context without turning a percentile or RIT score into a fake gifted cutoff.
Tracker NGAT district trackerA strict official-source tracker of districts that publicly name the Naglieri General Ability Tests.
Practice Original sample questionsTry low-pressure reasoning practice after you know which test and district process actually matter.
District first
Local rules change the answer.
One district may screen every second grader. Another may rely on referrals. A third may publish numeric criteria for one placement but not a final gifted cutoff. That is why the district pages come before broad practice advice.
Verified district guides
- FCPS: Fairfax County Public Schools
- LCPS: Loudoun County Public Schools
- APS: Arlington Public Schools
- MCPS: Montgomery County Public Schools
- ACPS: Alexandria City Public Schools
- FCCPS: Falls Church City Public Schools
- HCPSS: Howard County Public School System
- PWCS: Prince William County Public Schools
Districts using NGAT
Grade 2 universal screening or testing
FCPS AAP
The FCPS path needs its own guide.
Fairfax County families face a specific mix: NGAT, a Grade 2 universal screener pathway, staff and family referrals, holistic central portfolio review, Level I-IV services, appeal rules, and private/homeschool windows.
Interactive tools
Use the database without reading every district page.
The lookup answers what your district uses. The timeline turns the verified district record into a parent planning sequence.
Updates
Get gifted-testing updates without a PDF gate.
Join the list for new district guides, testing-window updates, and low-pressure practice links. Tell us the test, grade, or district if you already know it.