Cincinnati Public Schools gifted testing and NNAT® guide.

GATE stands for Gifted and Talented Education. In Ohio, families will more often see the phrase gifted services or gifted identification. NNAT® stands for Naglieri Nonverbal Ability Test, a visual reasoning test built around patterns, shapes, and spatial thinking. CPS uses the third edition, the NNAT3. CogAT® stands for Cognitive Abilities Test, a different reasoning test that CPS names for some reassessment and magnet entry decisions.

For a fuller overview of the assessment itself, see our guide to what the NNAT® measures.

What Cincinnati says about gifted assessment

Ohio requires districts to screen whole grades for gifted superior cognitive ability, reading, and math once in grades K-2 and once in grades 3-6. CPS does this every year in grades 2 and 6. No referral or sign-up is needed for these screenings. CPS lists three kinds of tests:

1. NNAT3: given to all 2nd and 6th graders in the fall for superior cognitive ability. Other grades are tested by referral in the fall or winter.
2. i-Ready or MAP Growth (Measures of Academic Progress): reading and math tests given to all students in grades 2 through 10 three times a year, used for gifted identification in reading and math.
3. Iowa Assessments: given by referral for science or social studies.

Anyone can refer a student for testing, including a parent, teacher, or the student. Referral forms are online and in every CPS school office, and parents return them to the school. CPS says to allow up to 30 days for a form to be reviewed. Ohio requires two testing opportunities each year, one in the fall and one in the spring.

After testing, parents are notified of results within 30 days. If a score is a little below the identification score, CPS retests: a cognitive score of 123 to 127, or the 90th to 94th percentile on an achievement test, is in its reassessment range. Parents can appeal any part of the process in writing to the superintendent or the Director of Equity and Inclusion.

For a parent-friendly overview of the visual reasoning format, see our guide to the four NNAT® question types.

Sample question

Try an NNAT® practice question

Find how the top picture changes, then apply the same change to the bottom picture.

Listen

ABCDE

A real GateBuddy practice question.

Choose one of the five answers.

Choose an answer

Practice preview

Let your child see the format before test day.

GateBuddy introduces the visual reasoning formats used on the NNAT® through short, age-appropriate practice with clear explanations.

• Built around the four NNAT® question types
• An explanation after every answer: what changed and what stayed the same
• Short adaptive sets plus full, timed practice tests
• A live view so parents can follow along

Try free questions

Real GateBuddy practice questions, one of each NNAT® question type.

Spencer Center and Cheviot: separate magnet entry rules

CPS runs full-time Gifted and Exceptional magnet programs at the Spencer Center for Gifted and Exceptional Students and at Cheviot School. Being identified as gifted does not place a child there by itself. Families must apply through the CPS Magnet Enrollment Lottery, and if selected, enrollment depends on proof of qualifying scores. CPS lists two sets of entry rules.

Gifted program entry, either of these:

1. Gifted in superior cognitive ability: an NNAT3 score of 125 in 2nd grade or 127 in 6th grade.
2. A score of at least 112 on a state-approved cognitive test, plus gifted identification in reading or math.

Exceptional program entry, any one of these:

1. A cognitive score of 123 or higher.
2. The 80th national percentile or higher in reading.
3. The 80th national percentile or higher in math, with reading at the 60th percentile or higher.

Scores earned in grades 2 through 5 count for entry into grades 3 through 6. Scores for grades 7 through 11 must be earned in 6th grade or later. CPS says families still waiting on fall test results should apply to the lottery anyway. The Spencer Center office at (513) 363-3400 handles score review.

What gifted services give your child in Cincinnati Public Schools

CPS notes that Ohio requires districts to identify gifted students but does not require them to serve them. The options CPS lists are:

1. Self-contained gifted classrooms, grades 3-11: the Spencer Center and Cheviot magnet programs, entered through the lottery.
2. Subject acceleration, grades K-12: moving ahead in one subject in the regular classroom.
3. Whole-grade acceleration, grades K-12: skipping a grade.
4. College Credit Plus, grades 7-12: college courses taken in middle or high school.
5. Visual and performing arts services, grades K-12.

CPS writes a Written Education Plan only in a student’s first year of subject or whole-grade acceleration. Outside the magnet programs and acceleration, services depend on the school, so ask what your child’s school offers. Walnut Hills High School entry is separate and uses 6th grade i-Ready scores, not the NNAT3.

Elementary schools in Cincinnati Public Schools

In most districts, a gifted-screening window applies across the district, while each school handles practical details inside that window.

Cincinnati elementary schools include:

• Academy of Multilingual Immersion Studies
• Academy of World Languages
• Bond Hill Academy
• Bramble Nature Campus
• Carson School
• Chase School
• Cheviot School
• Clifton Area Neighborhood School
• College Hill Academy
• Covedale School
• Dater Montessori School
• Dr. O’dell Owens Center for Learning
• Fairview-Clifton German Language School
• Frederick Douglass School
• Hays-Porter School
• Hyde Park School
• James N. Gamble Montessori Elementary School
• John J. Gilligan Digital Academy
• John P. Parker School
• Kilgour School
• LEAP Academy
• Midway School
• Mt. Airy School
• Mt. Washington School
• North Avondale Montessori School
• Oyler School
• Parker Woods Montessori School
• Pleasant Ridge Montessori School
• Rees E. Price Academy
• Roberts Academy
• Rockdale Academy
• Roll Hill School
• Roselawn Condon School
• Rothenberg Preparatory Academy
• School for Creative and Performing Arts
• Sands Montessori School
• Sayler Park School
• Silverton School
• Spencer Center for Gifted and Exceptional Students
• Westwood School
• William H. Taft Elementary School
• Winton Hills Academy
• Woodford Academy

Questions Cincinnati parents should ask

1. What date is our school giving the fall NNAT3 to 2nd or 6th graders?
2. If my child is in another grade, when is the referral deadline for fall or spring testing?
3. When and how will we receive results?
4. What gifted services does our school offer an identified student?
5. When is the magnet lottery deadline for the Spencer Center or Cheviot?

Our broader questions to ask your school guide can help you turn those into one clear conversation with the office or Gifted Services.

How to prepare effectively for the NNAT

Useful prep is about knowing the format, not cramming. A simple plan:

1. Learn the format first. Work through a few questions of each of the four NNAT® question types together, and after each one have your child say the rule out loud: what changed and what stayed the same. Our guide to the four NNAT® question types shows each one. GateBuddy shows an explanation after every question that names the rule, and it can read instructions and explanations out loud, which helps a child who is still building reading skills or simply learns better by hearing it.
2. Practice 10 to 15 minutes a day, for as long as you can. Reasoning skills build like a muscle, a little at a time. A few weeks of practice helps, but months of short, steady sessions build much more.
3. Spend extra time on the weakest question type. Once you see which type your child misses most, give it a larger share of each session. GateBuddy’s practice sets do this for you: each set of five leans toward the question types your child has seen least and adjusts how hard the next questions are based on recent answers. You can also pick one question type and a level (easy, medium, or hard) to work on a weak spot.
4. Take full, timed practice tests: at least two, and more is better. A full test is where your child learns pacing and how to work alone against a clock, the way test day works. Every GateBuddy plan includes eight full, timed NNAT® practice tests, so your child can take several along the way and still save the last two for the final few weeks as a dress rehearsal. While your child works on their own, GateBuddy’s Live View lets you follow along from your own phone: how many questions they have answered, the answer they just picked, and how many they have right so far. Your child gets the independence of test day, and you still see everything.

Practice teaches your child what the questions look like and ways to approach them, so test day feels familiar. Our guide to how to prepare for the NNAT® gives a simple weekly plan.