<p>And as an aside...the SAT is not an IQ test. This smart friend roughing it in the woods somewhere was a candidate for the Mensa society.</p>
<p>Although... </p>
<p>When she took the test again, they thought she had some kind of learning disability. So even the IQ test, isn't an IQ test! Don't start calling your daughter "less bright" yet, for God's sake!</p>
<p>I came looking for info on the Grand Ceremony at Duke on May 18. Is it worth missing 1 or perhaps 2 days of school?</p>
<p>Depends on the kids & family. We went one year to the ceremony--son was 2nd highest scorer in the state. He was called to the podium & took a picture with other recipients. The speaker was an 18-year-old graduating form college & going to Harvard Law in the fall. It was interesting to me as a parent, but S did not choose to go to the next year's ceremony (they hold it on weekends in HI). My D & other relatives had not chosen to attend either. If ceremonies mean a great deal to kids & family, you can consider it, but in the scheme of things, not a big deal to us.
It might be a good thing if you're trying to encourage your child to go to Duke & create bonds & memories of your kid with Duke, but otherwise, ask other parents in your area for a better idea of how worthwhile it is.</p>
<p>My kid wasn't in any "gifted" programs in middle school nor was she asked to take the SAT. Who cares, she's now a junior at Harvard.</p>
<p>I don't think it's worth missing school for the ceremony. Perhaps if you feel your kid is never recognized for anything in the rest of his life... Our son didn't need the ceremony what he needed was for his school to recognize that he was not merely bright, but that he was in need of some radical acceleration. His 7th grade scores which were above the 90th percentile for college seniors made the school administrators realize that we weren't deluding ourselves about his abilities.</p>
<p>Since this thread got bumped up, I'll make a comment. I had 2 gifted kids...both went to CTY, and it was the best thing we could have done for them. I don't necessarily feel that these programs predict future academic success in college, but I can certainly attest to their contribution to self-confidence, the major sense of "fitting in", and the assurance that being gifted is great, and not terribly abnormal. In our public middle and high schools, where being cool and popular usually (NOT ALWAYS) eliminates the "smart" kids who actually enjoy learning, it's nice to have a haven, even if it's only 3 weeks in a summer, to feel free to be yourself. Especially when this comes at such a formative time of adolescence. </p>
<p>I agree, parents who "push" their kids into taking the SAT early, or push them into gifted programs in middle school, probably don't really understand the "problems" that being gifted can raise. I agree, I'm much happier to have dealt with these "problems" than the myriad of other possibilities there are. However, when it's your kid who is being ridiculed for being smart, or becoming increasinly lethargic and apathetic because their school work is so mind-numbingly easy, these kinds of programs are a welcome gift.</p>
<p>A quick sermon ; "The Gospel of the PSAT"</p>
<p>For academically gifted kids, the PSAT, taken early in their Junior year of High School, is the single most important test of their lives. This is the PSAT/NMSQT. Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. The earlier sittings of this test do not count! The Junior sitting is it! It cannot be repeated and count!!!</p>
<p>This is their one, only and sole opportunity to qualify for the National Merit Scholarship program. Bomb the SAT? Retake it and colleges will take your highest score. Fail the bar the first (or third) time? Retake it until you pass and be a lawyer anyway. Medical boards too tough? Study more and recover. EIT get you down? Review thermo and try again.</p>
<p>National Merit Scholarships are not as great financially as they used to be for kids attending top schools. National Merit Finalist is still a great line item for a college application. For a middle class kid that wants a free ride to a solid state school, it is still wonderful.</p>
<p>Any resources of time, effort and money that are to be spent on standardized test preparation should be expended the summer between the sophomore and junior years. </p>
<p>My D is a NMF, S was commended (missed by three points). We learned from the son's misfortune. Consider me one with Coleridge's Ancient Mariner. The Albatross will be your child's groans if they miss this program by one point.(I know this is a badly mangled literary allusion. I just don't know how to motivate people I do not know and will never meet).</p>
<p>NMF was useless to S. But we knew that well before he took it. The schools he would want to apply to did not care for it or award any money for it.</p>
<p>Oh, and in case I have not mentioned it before, nobody in our school district gets asked to take the SAT in 7th grade. CTY is strictly word of mouth. The state as zippo gifted program. It does not matter.</p>
<p>Having taken the SAT twice as 7th/8th graders, as well as our school district having freshmen, sophomores, AND juniors taking the PSAT, contributed to my kids scoring well on the PSAT and the SAT.</p>
<p>Just wanted to chime in with others on how CTY can be a wonderful experience for some kids. Sometimes highly gifted kids don't get appropriate support or identification in school, with the result that they feel isolated and confused. D went to a very small elementary school, where unfortunately she got teased mercilessly for being "the brain". Kids would relish it and rub it in her face when she made a mistake or missed a question on a test. Fast forward to her going to CTY for the first time "Wow, nerd camp was really great!". She compared the experience to a "fun in the woods" summer camp she attended, and for her, CTY was tops. She gained much self-acceptance, and she can't wait to go back this summer. And no, it has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with grooming her to have better chances at college admissions - it is simply an opportunity for her to have fun with other kids like herself that she can relate to and relax and let down her hair. She doesn't have to worry about being teased about being smart at CTY. It is a place where she can go and say things like "I want to take more science classes because I want be a renaissance person", and few will laugh at her for saying that - the kids can laugh with each other about such ideas. And, it is a place where few of the students, parents and staff will doubt that she really does have an innate desire to be a scholar. For those of you who don't understand why this is a good thing, and why therefore in some cases it is a good thing for your child to take the SAT at the age of 12, I respectfully encourage you to open your hearts and minds to understanding that highly gifted kids have different and special needs that deserve respect and understanding.</p>
<p>The public schools our kids attended just held our kids to our higher standard because they scored so well on standardized test. Two of his private school English teachers told S he "should be a better writer" because he scored 800 on the verbal (she doesn't realize that his terse, concise writing style is how many science/math & tehcnical writers write & that the 800 reflects he has a great vocabulary & pretty good command of grammar. <sigh></sigh></p>
<p>Oh well, he's fine & doing great but still not fond of English teachers. Wonder why?</p>
<p>Hmmmm, astrophysicsmom, the experiment can't be run, but I'd be willing to bet that your kids would have scored about equally well on the PSAT and SAT without taking the tests multiple times. For those whose children haven't started the testing series yet: My personal belief is that a student who is bright, handles standardized tests reasonably well, and goes to a reasonably good high school can take the SAT once in high school, in the winter or spring of junior year (and perhaps once in middle school, for talent search purposes).</p>
<p>It is probably a good idea for a student who might qualify as National Merit Semi-Finalist to take the PSAT once as a sophomore and then once <em>for keeps</em> as a junior. Beyond that, I truly think it's optional. I also subscribe to the "take three in one day and call it quits" theory of the SAT II's.</p>
<p>To the OP: You could sign your third child up for the SAT in middle school, without the school's asking her to take it, if you thought it was advisable (and you were willing to pay for it); but it's not necessary. If she is aware that her older siblings took the SAT in 7th grade, and she expected to be taking it then too, you might consider it. Otherwise, I think your intention to avoid bringing it up is perfectly fine.</p>
<p>I'll add the opinion that even though National Merit Scholarships are not a lot of money by themselves, they do actually help! Noticeably! And if your child is considering a school that offers free tuition (or even more) to NMF's, it's well worth it.</p>
<p>OP back: So...two and a half months have passed since the 7th graders took the SAT. Out of the blue yesterday, D said, "Mom, I'm so glad you haven't made me take the SAT yet. Kelsey and Charin had to take it and they said it was terrible." Older daughter piped up: "You have to be *asked *to take the SAT in 7th grade. Mom doesn't just *sign you up. *Mom, was she asked to take it?"</p>
<p>The moment had arrived. I was never going to mention to any of the kids that D was not asked to take it. What to do? I was rinsing out some dishes in the kitchen....the water was on and I just pretended that I didn't hear any of the conversation and soon it turned to something else.</p>
<p>I'd let it ride until and unless it gets brought up again.</p>
<p>If asked, I'd just tell the truth: someone makes up a list and sends out the names, but taking the test is a decision of the parents/student.</p>
<p>Sounds like your youngest thinks she's LUCKY not having to take the test. If nothing is made of this, I bet she'll never think of it again.</p>
<p>My S (second child) was invited to take the SAT in the seventh grade, but his grade adviser discouraged the students from taking it. He said it was just a marketing tool and a way for college board to make more money. I didn't know any better, so I did not encourage S to take it. Now I wonder if he missed out on some good opportunities. He took the PSAT as a sophomore this year without any prep, and he scored a 225. I know this is a minor thing, but it still bugs me.</p>
<p>I wouldn't worry too much about it.</p>
<p>S was invited to take the SAT back in 7th grade through the Duke TIPS program..but I didn't make him..and he chose not to.</p>
<p>S will be attending an Ivy in the fall.</p>
<p>If you child WANTS to take the test & has scored at least 99% in a standardized test, you as parent can apply to be added to the list of kids who take the SAT in 7th or 8th grade.</p>
<p>CTY</a> Talent Search: Grades 7-8 is a website with more info, if you or your child are interested. </p>
<p>My S loves taking tests and jumped at the chance to take my by participating in JHU when I asked him whether he wanted to, so I applied on his behalf and D's. He started taking the above-grade level tests in grade school. D decided if brother was doing it, she wanted to as well, so we applied for both of them & both were accepted, since both consistently scored 99% in standardized grade level exams.
Both scored as high as college bound juniors & seniors when they took the SAT in 7th & 8th grades. S honestly enjoyed taking the exams--D just took them because she didn't want to "miss out" on anything older brother had done; she didn't and still doesn't enjoy standardized tests as much as S.</p>
<p>I think the only reason to take the SAT at such a young age is if you are interested in CTY or TIPS. But that's a pretty good reason--both of my kids have been to CTY, and they loved it. As others have said, it's not just an academic experience, but an intense social experience. If your kid is a bit of a "brain" and an outsider in his school, he will probably adore CTY. My daughter is in the 9th grade, and is about to go back for the third (and probably last) time, and she was relatively indifferent to what course she would take this time--it's much more about the overall experience.</p>
<p>we live in Florida, my S scored 99% in standardized test in math last year(the NRT) and 96% in reading with an 5/5 in both subjects on the Florida Test.. He will be place in gifted class next school year..i would like to know if it's possible for him to have a chance to take the ACT or SAT in 8th grade, just to giving him a boost for the PSAT and to be familiar with those tests.. we are from Europe and it's hard for us to find the right informations at the right time! We already missed a lot for my D!</p>
<p>Why not just buy a book and take some sample tests?</p>