Chicago CPS Gifted Testing

Hi M.,
Go to the CPS website and download the application. Submit it before the deadline, and they will give you a date to take your child in for testing. Once the test has been taken and you get the results, then they will let you know what school your child has gotten into. Remember, the selection is for the 2010/2011 school year, so you don't have to worry about this year. Basically, you won't have to worry about making changes until the summer.

All the Best!

Hello~

The application period is Oct 1 - Dec 18. So, some kids have already been tested if their application was submitted the first week or so. As long as you have your application submitted by Dec 18th, they will get tested - sometimes it takes until the end of Feb to get all the kids through all the testing.
PreK-3rd does not require current school stats and does not require the signature of a school official (the work-around for this once your child is in 4th grade or beyond and don't want the principal to know, you can have the school counselor fill out the paperwork. The counselors must maintain confidentiality).
MANY parents have their kids tested every single year, regardless of whether or not they are looking to move, just to keep their "options" open or see if their child is still scoring in the range of the program they are in. Testing doesn't affect your enrollment in your current program.

Due to the modified consent decree / degsegration court ruling there is COMPLETELY different criteria for the 2010-11 academic year that will only be in place for this year. The criteria will change again for 2011-12 and beyond once CPS establishes their policy. Race will not longer be used, but has been replaced with a socio-economic status formula.

Here is the link to the CPS website page that gives information on the new selection process as well as the town hall meeting schedule.
http://www.cpsoae.org/apps/news/show_news.jsp?REC_ID=1097...

In terms of your child's chances of getting in..... like all the other moms said, the gifted schools are highly competetive. The younger your child gets in, the more successful the transition, as gifted schools have an advanced curriculum and work about 12-18 months advanced. So, if your child is in 2nd grade this year most of the gifted programs will be using the curriculum and materials for the 3rd grade.

You can call the school and see if the 2nd grade class right now is at the student max. If the class is full right now there will only be an opening for 3rd grade (where you want your child next year) if one of the current students leaves the program. Some schools decrease the student/teacher ratio at 3rd grade so that also may open up one or two spots. You are still looking at what could be several hundred applications for 1 or 2 spots. That's why it's "easier" to get in at Kindergarten when all 28 spots are "open".

Good luck!

The testing date will be assigned after you turn in your application. I think they are in Jan-Feb, at least they were last year.
Your principal does not have to sign, that is for older than 3rd grade. K-3 are tested by CPS.
I don't want to dampen your spirits, but the odds are against you, at least for the gifted. They only admit entire classrooms at the entry level (K or 1st). Older than that, they only have openings if someone leaves. Classical schools tend to be bigger and may have more openings. I would go for it, you never know, and it's definitely worth the shot!

My son is a gifted student who has always tested at the top of the test ranges in all subjects and was ahead of many class subjects in 1-3rd grades. He doesn't go to a CPS school but they don't start pulling for gifted until 4th grade at our school.

Certainly I would say monitor your son's progress at school through their regular testing proceedures, etc. but don't rely on a 'gifted' program this early, as many schools just don't do them at that age. Encourage your son to read at his own level and work at home with him on flashcards, history or science projects, art and music, etc.

There are some very good reasons many schools don't do 'gifted' classes in 2nd grade or even 3rd. In third grade, kids start to get more 'real' homework' and that is also the year many of them start a regular course of social studies and science, more formalized than things they do in earlier years. There is a LOT to absorb socially and structurally in 3rd grade, even if your son seems academically ahead of other kids now.

Now in 4th grade, my son is pulled out for gifted sessions a few times each week, learning latin roots, and other things. However- he still has the same organizational skills as most 9 year olds! Even though he can DO all his homework easily, there is a lot more of it and just learning to be organized, keep track of things, and schedule himself is a big part of what 4th grade is for. In 3rd and 2nd, I remember worrying if he ought to have gifted classes then, but now I am VERY happy that they waited until he had a little more experience under his belt.

Enrich your child at home and monitor his progress with the school, but don't push him too fast, too young before he is mature and organized enough to succeed- you want gifted classes to be a challenge and interesting to him- not something that overshadows his early school experience.

most of the schools do their own testing. i would contact each school with a program you're considering and ask them what the procedure is. there are different rules/stats about admission to different types of programs. there are gifted, regional gifted and classical. my understanding is that the classical schools test the kids and admit based solely on scores, though i'm not positive about that.
if you need ideas about particular schools, i know that bell has a gifted program, decatur and edison are classical schools. good luck to you.

Information at:

http://cpsmagnet.org/

Download the application from the CPS website (or selectiveenrollment.org, I think) and turn it in before Dec. 18. Then they will schedule you for a test. They inform of scores and school choices in March. Due to the court decree handed down this year, CPS will not be using race as a criteria anymore, so you don't have to worry about a minority child getting picked over yours. Individual schools do not have their own tests; it is all done through the Office of Academic Enhancement. There are seperate tests for classicals schools (like Decatur) and for gifted (like Edison). Children will be tested until 3rd grade, when they will use standardized test scores as a qualifier.

Go to your local Chicago library or to the CPS web site for an application. The deadline is December 18th.

You do not get assigned a testing date until you submit and they receive your GEAP application.

I thought the current school grades are needed only for certain grades? I don't have the booklet with me right now so I don't remember if second graders need school grades. That might be for higher grades or going into highschool which I know IS required.

Hi M.,

You send in your application before December 18th and they will assign you a testing date. The application is different than the application for CSP and needs to be sent into the Office Of Academic Enhancement on Clark Street.

Details found online. My son is in the gifted class for 1st grade and I am having my preschool daughter tested. Good luck!