Possible Gifted and Talented Student

My son is in the 1st grade and is advanced in his academics. He has high intellectual and reading skills and many people feel he is a gifted and talented student. However, when I had him assessed for the highly gifted and talented program through Denver Public Schools (DPS), he scores significantly low. For the past 3 years, his teachers and others have recognized him as a high achiever. I don't know what to do or who to go to other than DPS. If I have him assessed again through DPS for the 3rd time, I am afraid he will score low again. All I want is for him to have the education he deserves for his academic needs. What should I do?

Parent Answers to "Possible Gifted and Talented Student"

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If you want to read more about "2e" or "twice exceptional" students, you can look at some of the resources I've listed at community.greatschools.net/groups/16042

Maybe your child is twice exceptional- I have 2 kids like this. Same scenario, teachers told me my son (6th grade) was gifted but he didn't score in the gifted range on the CoGat. He was tested one on one in Kindergarted with a another test and scored as highly gifted. two of my kids have sensory integration dysfunction and don't do well on the CoGat but are very advanced. The schools will NOT tell you if they thing he may have some other issues. Our school actually has a policy NOT to tell parents their kids should be tested because then they have to pay for the test. We talked to our pediatrician and then had the kids tested. That made all the difference in the World. You have to be your childn't advocate. No one else will. I have learned that the hard way. I am now looking for a different school to send my 1st and 4th graders because there is not enough challenge for them at our current school. Wish I would have moved sooner but you learn as you go.

Check out the Cherry Creek Challenge School. Have had 1 child there in 6th-8th grade (is a K-8) school. They have an excellent program for G&T and accept children out of district. Don't stay in DPS. They do not fund their schools

It would be helpful to know what exact tests are being used to determine your son's eligibility for their gifted programs. What areas does he score "significantly low" in? Some schools use "group screenings" rather than individually administering tests, and some kids actually have "high test anxiety" such that they don't perform as well on tests as in everyday situations.
There are plenty of private evaluators (Child Psychologists, or places like the Gifted Development Center which is in Colorado) that can give IQ and achievement tests to children, but again, you'd need to know whether the DPS would accept the results...

For now, you might be interested in joining Greatschools Gifted Group at community.greatschools.net/groups/11537

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