Should I have Mr7 tested???

[BusyMum]

We pulled him out of ps in April as he was bored and disruptive. When we got his books home they were pretty much empty and his teachers said that he was behind in many areas.

 

Since coming home he has breezed through 1a & 1b of Singapore maths, and started 2a. He does 50 drill questions every day (25 addition and 25 subtraction) and hasn't got a single one wrong for months.

 

He has the reading level of at least a grade 4, probably more.

 

He just has to look at his spelling words to remember not just how to spell them, but also what order they were in the list. When we do spelling tests he is often three or four words ahead of me! :001_huh: And he retains this information well beyond that school day. We are using MCP Spelling C.

 

We are doing FLL3 and he is having no problems so far.

 

I have no teacher training so I have no idea where he is 'meant' to be at for his age (just turned 7) or year (yr 2).

 

When he was 4 we were having problems at his kindergarten so we took him to an educational psychologist who tested him and said that he was too young to be labelled as gifted but he was well ahead in many areas.

 

I am wondering whether it is worth paying for another assessment (around $400) or just keep on with what we are doing which is basically to find a level that he is comfortable working at - providing some challenges but also lots of achievements. Any thoughts?

[In The Great White North]

Did you see this thread?

 

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=53519

 

It discusses the reasons for testing. Basically, you need to decide if documentation of his ability will enable him to receive additional support that is worth the $400 to you or not. Are there programs you want that require a test score? Will he ever be pack in ps (where he would be stuck back in a class that is so boring he doesn't participate without a test to document "giftedness")?

 

If you are unsure that you will homeschool "forever," I'd be tempted to test (now, while he's 7-8) just in case. Many of the tests are not as accurate on older kids.

[Academy of Jedi Arts]

When he was 4 we were having problems at his kindergarten so we took him to an educational psychologist who tested him and said that he was too young to be labelled as gifted but he was well ahead in many areas.

 

Just so you know, my dd's scores at 4 were consistent with later testing.

[LaurieinCA]

He sounds gifted to me! I have a gifted 8 year old who is very much like your son. It is wonderful that you have chosen to homeschool him. Roll with it! If he is getting the material very easily, step it up a notch. For Spelling, try Spelling Power, which has lists of words based on phonics through the high school level. For vocabulary, take a look at Wordly Wise, and have him read and discuss good literature. Also, check our Michael Clay Thompson's Grammar Town series for Language Arts. Move as fast in Singapore Math as he is able! There is an online Placement Test - maybe he needs to move up a level. Use the Challenging Word Problems books, and not simply the workbook and textbook. Keep drilling the addition, subtraction, multiplication and division facts. If he likes the computer, firstinmath.com is wonderful for math fact drill. It sounds like you are off to a great start!

[ChristineMM]

Echoing that testing will not tell you what curriculum to use or what level within each curriculum. Remember curriculum shoots to the middle just like schools do. So we should not be surprised when some children can speed through it and 'get it' when they have 1:1 teaching in a peaceful home environment. Think about it, mom teaching, no classroom distractions, fixing errors when they happen, it all leads to faster learning.

 

I also use Spelling Power which has each child working at their ability level not just picking a general list of words by a grade number and forcing the kids to work though those lists.

 

I have been helped also by doing learning styles tests (Discover Your Child's Learning Style) and realizing one of my kids is "visual-spatial" aka "right-brained learner". Now I have tweaked some teaching methods with my RB learner who was not learning well with left brained methods. The spelling has zoomed ahead and learning is faster and easier now.

 

If you want to read more about right brained and left brained check the RB article by Dianne Craft here

 

http://www.diannecraft.org/article-002.htm

 

and the visual-spatial articles on Linda Silverman's site

 

http://www.gifteddevelopment.com/Visual_Spatial_Learner/vsl.htm

 

Much curriculum is written and geared for left-brained learners. If you want more info on LB check google. and this article might help

 

http://frank.mtsu.edu/~studskl/hd/learn.html

 

The other info in the test within the book "Discover Your Child's Learning Style" did help me a bit figure out which types of curriculum to stay away from and which methods to use or stay away from with my kids. It also helped me realize MY preferences and needs versus theirs and how we really need to be sure we are not just pushing our best way of learning onto our unique children who are NOT us. LOL.

 

HTH.

[cillakat]

If you can swing the testing it's worth it ime. He may be well above what he seems in several areas and it'll help you assess his level and how quickly he might be working above that level in terms of continuous progress. We found out that my little one needs work well above where we thought she did *and* it needs to go much more quickly (basically no drill/no repetition....doesn't need it). Iow, she's smarter than we realized. On the flip side, it did highlight some things to keep an eye on. while her reading at the time (end of last year) was 'grade level', there were some dyslexia sensitive markers that stood out. She was in montessori at the time so she was getting a fabulous phonics foundation every day. Fast forward four months...no montessori, no daily phonics and guess what....clear dyslexia markers emerging.

 

Testing is great for all kinds of things as long as it's comprehensive and as long as the tester has a good enough manner with your child to insure that the testing is reflective of true abilities.

 

For exceptionally profoundly bright children that may hit ceilings, testing at 6/7 will be more accurate than testing done at 10 or 11 etc

 

Here in atlanta, a full battery runs around 1800 for IQ and acheivement.

 

K

[BusyMum]

These are really helpful comments and advice. Thank you for taking the time to respond.

 

He baffles me sometimes. Especially how easily he runs through things like his spelling and maths. He memorised The Land of Nod with just reading it a few times!

 

I think I will look at getting him tested now but I will be aware that this won't help me with curriculum choices. I am pretty happy with what we are using currently and I am especially happy that we spent the extra and got all the extra practice books. He is loving it and finding it a breeze when he bothers to put his mind to it instead of chattering about the differences between mammals and amphibians and insects and....

 

Anyway, I am so glad we decided to homeschool him. He has gone from being away with the fairies during class and not being able to add a single digit number to a double digit number without using his fingers to just a few months later having no problems adding triple digit numbers to each other with carrying. I'm proud of my little monkey!