Talented, Advanced and Gifted Identification

The identification process begins in 3rd grade. Annually in the fall, multiple pieces of data from the current and previous school year are analyzed seeking at least two corroborating pieces of data in order to identify a student.

NWEA Measurement of Academic Performance, or MAP, scores, Fountas and Pinnell (F & P) levels, Forward test data and other measures are reviewed in the identification process, always seeking at least two corroborating pieces of data. For a test like MAP, a student needs to have scored at the 95th percentile or above on 2 of the past 4 test sessions. An example of corroborating data is scoring at the 95th percentile in MAP reading at least twice and an F & P level at least 1.5 years above grade level to qualify for reading.

If only one piece of qualifying data exists, teachers will be asked to fill in an observation/nomination form. In addition, a cognitive ability test could be administered. Please see the graphic below for the types of acceptable data:

For the 2019-2020 school year, we will continue to emphasize reading and math identification, a continuation from Response to Intervention. In the future, we will expand our identification to include other areas so that we may be comprehensive in developing our students’ gifts.

Parents of students new to the district are invited to contact Nicole Brown (grades K-5) or Dr. Amy Abbott (grades 6-12) regarding identification. A student who was identified for gifted & talented/TAG programming in another school or district is not automatically identified in the Mequon-Thiensville School District, but parents may have cognitive ability test scores or other data from the other district's identification process that would qualify the student.