How early do they test for "giftedness"?

[ShadowMom]

I have an acquaintance who is on WIC. She said that "they" (I assume she means someone associated with WIC, but I didn't ask) tested her almost 18 month old and found her to be "gifted".

She told me they want to enroll her in some program for gifted children. Can't remember what it's called.

I find the whole thing very strange. I was just curious - can anyone really identify with any accuracy whether someone who's not even 18 months is really "gifted"? That just seems so early to me.

I've been around her little girl and she didn't seem exceptionally advanced to me, but what do I know.

Anyway... just curious about this...

[Charles Baudelaire]

I think this will vary somewhat on the child and his or her degree of giftedness, but I believe that generally speaking, they're most accurate at about 4, although there are some types of tests that do screen for earlier ages than that, but they are generally less reliable.

Check this site for everything you wanted to know:

www.hoagiesgifted.org

Originally Posted by KristiMetz

I have an acquaintance who is on WIC. She said that "they" (I assume she means someone associated with WIC, but I didn't ask) tested her almost 18 month old and found her to be "gifted".

She told me they want to enroll her in some program for gifted children. Can't remember what it's called.

I find the whole thing very strange. I was just curious - can anyone really identify with any accuracy whether someone who's not even 18 months is really "gifted"? That just seems so early to me.

I've been around her little girl and she didn't seem exceptionally advanced to me, but what do I know.

Anyway... just curious about this...

[Shiloh]

It does seem odd, testing isn't a small thing to do in any age child.
18 months seems a bit young after all if at that age they are gifted I see little reason to 'test' as well it would be so obvious....

maybe they have programmes/money available for kids who fit into 'categories' .... so maybe by fitting her daughter not into learning disabled but 'gifted' they are able to get her a programme that is stimulating.

[NoHiddenFees]

Originally Posted by KristiMetz

I have an acquaintance who is on WIC. She said that "they" (I assume she means someone associated with WIC, but I didn't ask) tested her almost 18 month old and found her to be "gifted".

She told me they want to enroll her in some program for gifted children. Can't remember what it's called.

That's very odd. I believe that parents can tell with some gifted kids that early (certainly not all, nor even most), but IIRC formal testing cannot be done until 4 (and this is a lengthy process, not just a 5 minute interview). Could you find out more? What kind of program? For what purpose? Did they actually use the word "gifted" or just "advanced" or some other less specific word?

[velochic]

I have a friend who's grandson went through this testing and the gifted program at a near-by university. Scooter was about 2 when he was tested and started in the program. They found him to be gifted and every Saturday morning, he participated in a program at one of our state universities. He was like 3 years old and already learning about simple physical science facts and chemistry. He really was quite advanced for his age. This was 10 years ago, so I'm not sure where he is now or what he's doing, but the program seemed like a quality program. I remember him participating in science fairs at around the age of 5. I do believe it was through WIC.

[Kincaid]

Someone could have administered one of the following "IQ" tests at that age.

Bayley Scales of Infant Development, Second Edition (BSID-II)(1993) - 1 to 42 months
Mullen Scales of Early Learning, American Guidance Service (1996) - Birth to 69 months

Universities that train developmental or school psychologists teach graduate students to administer the tests, and the WIC offices are an easy place to put up flyers.

The reliability of the tests (especially if administered by a student, LOL) are hotly debated as you can imagine.

[ashleyhaugh]

i was tested in school, i think it was done in 1st grade, but my mom knew before that

[kofduke]

I believe most of the intelligence measures start around age 3, so I think it's unlikely that her DD was tested in a way that would hold up for special services at school age. However, if they're using this "test" to find a special preschool for her, and that is something that your friend is interested in, perhaps exact measures arent' important.

[boongirl]

I used to be a teacher of the gifted and have done many tests and been trained in giving group tests to ascertain giftedness. Group tests are considered unreliable for under age 6. Psychs can do individual tests for all ages but honestly I cannot imagine how they would determine an 18 mos old is gifted other than language skills and verbal acuity.

[eilonwy]

If I had to wager a guess, I'd say that they used the same sort of assessment that they use for Early Intervention at that age, which is based on developmental milestones (social and physical, as well as verbal abilities) as well as parental input. Using such a tool, it would be possible to state that a child is, on average, doing things about 30% earlier than their peers, which could be translated by some to mean that the child is gifted, or perhaps simply that they would benefit from a more stimulating enviroment than they're likely to recieve at home. I've never heard of such a thing happening through a WIC program, but I think it would be incredibly cool.

There are accepted IQ tests which can accurately (predictively?) measure intelligence in children as young as 2; I believe that the Stanford Binet IV begins at age 2 years, 0 months. I'm inclined to doubt that this is the test they administered to your friend's daughter, I can't see anything like that happening through WIC.

The WIC programs that I've been involved with have only recommended services to people with children who seem delayed and who are not already getting services through Early Intervention; if that's the case, then they'll give the mother a referal to EI so that the child can be assessed.