Testing Information
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Testing Information
We offer testing three times per year for gifted placement. A student cannot take the test more than one time in 12 months. Once we identify a student as gifted, they will not need to take the test again to receive services in DVUSD. Your classroom teacher or I can provide you with testing dates and the necessary forms. The preferred time for testing is in the spring. Dates will be determined as we get closer to that time of year.
Students coming from other districts/states:
Please provide documentation of testing to the office as soon as possible so we can place your child in the appropriate classes. Transfer students may have to be tested again. Testing for these students is offered in September and January, or at the school's discretion.
Grades 2-5:
Students are tested with the Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAt). It is a reasoning test, not an achievement test. It shows how kids think, not what they know. It is not a test that students can study for. They just need to be prepared with plenty of sleep, a healthy breakfast, and a positive attitude. The CogAt tests three areas: Verbal (reading), Quantitative (math), and Non-Verbal (visual/spacial). A qualifying score in the state of Arizona is 97% or higher. DVUSD currently accepts students with a score of 95% for provisional placement.
Grades K-1:
Students are tested at the DVUSD district office with the Naglieri Non-Verbal skills test. As with the CogAt, children cannot study for this test and are best prepared by a relaxed, comfortable attitude, plenty of sleep, and a healthy diet. For more information on early identification for your kindergartener or first grader, please visit the DVUSD website gifted page.
Why didn't my child qualify for gifted services?
Your student may perform very well in class but not qualify for gifted services. There's nothing wrong with being intelligent, a hard worker, and a high achiever.
If a teacher nominates a student for testing, then they see those qualities, and those qualities set people up for success. Gifted students, on the other hand, sometimes have unique intellectual or social and emotional needs that can create risk factors. It is our goal, with testing, to identify gifted students and meet their varied needs. At Desert Sage, our teachers differentiate learning so that all students can be successful. Classrooms with differentiated learning assure that even the highest performing students will be appropriately challenged.
Students coming from other districts/states:
Please provide documentation of testing to the office as soon as possible so we can place your child in the appropriate classes. Transfer students may have to be tested again. Testing for these students is offered in September and January, or at the school's discretion.
Grades 2-5:
Students are tested with the Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAt). It is a reasoning test, not an achievement test. It shows how kids think, not what they know. It is not a test that students can study for. They just need to be prepared with plenty of sleep, a healthy breakfast, and a positive attitude. The CogAt tests three areas: Verbal (reading), Quantitative (math), and Non-Verbal (visual/spacial). A qualifying score in the state of Arizona is 97% or higher. DVUSD currently accepts students with a score of 95% for provisional placement.
Grades K-1:
Students are tested at the DVUSD district office with the Naglieri Non-Verbal skills test. As with the CogAt, children cannot study for this test and are best prepared by a relaxed, comfortable attitude, plenty of sleep, and a healthy diet. For more information on early identification for your kindergartener or first grader, please visit the DVUSD website gifted page.
Why didn't my child qualify for gifted services?
Your student may perform very well in class but not qualify for gifted services. There's nothing wrong with being intelligent, a hard worker, and a high achiever.
If a teacher nominates a student for testing, then they see those qualities, and those qualities set people up for success. Gifted students, on the other hand, sometimes have unique intellectual or social and emotional needs that can create risk factors. It is our goal, with testing, to identify gifted students and meet their varied needs. At Desert Sage, our teachers differentiate learning so that all students can be successful. Classrooms with differentiated learning assure that even the highest performing students will be appropriately challenged.