Denver Public Schools gifted and talented testing and NGAT guide.

Denver Public Schools (DPS) calls its program Gifted and Talented, or GT. Its universal screener is the NGAT, the Naglieri General Ability Tests. The NGAT has three picture-based batteries: Verbal, Nonverbal, and Quantitative. It is a newer test than the NNAT®, and it is not the same test.

This guide is for DPS families who want to know which grade tests when, what score matters, and how to get a child tested outside the screening grades.

What DPS says about GT screening

All 1st and 5th graders are tested in their classrooms in the fall. DPS's testing page says 1st graders take the full NGAT (all three batteries) and 5th graders take only the Verbal battery. One paragraph on the district's Universal Screening page says the reverse, but the testing menu, the FAQ, and the battery table all say 1st grade takes the full test, so that is what we report here.

Families can opt out, but the opt out must be in writing, through the district's Opt Out Form or a letter or email to the school's GT teacher. Students already labeled Highly Gifted (HGT) or Magnet Eligible are not rostered.

What the 95th percentile does and does not do

A score at the 95th percentile or higher does two things. It makes a student Magnet Eligible, meaning they can apply to attend a highly gifted magnet school through School Choice. It also counts as one qualifying data point toward formal gifted identification.

It does not identify a child as gifted by itself. DPS is clear that Colorado requires more data than one test score for a formal gifted label. A child who scores high but below the 95th percentile may be placed in a Talent Pool, depending on the school, and may be picked for more testing. The school's GT teacher is the person to ask.

How to get a child tested outside 1st and 5th grade

For preschool (ECE), kindergarten, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 6th through 12th grade, a parent, or a teacher with the parent's permission, submits the district's nomination form. Children must be at least 4 years old. Out-of-district, homeschool, and private school families can use the same form. The ECE nominees are the one group who still take the NNAT®, because it is normed for that age.

Two rules shape the timing. A student can take only one cognitive test per school year, and DPS recommends testing no more than once every three years. Outside testing, such as a WISC, can be sent in for a Data Committee Review. DPS also offers a spring nomination window, March 1 to April 29, 2027.

Questions DPS parents should ask

1. What day will my child's class take the NGAT this fall?
2. If my child scores high but below the 95th percentile, does our school use a Talent Pool?
3. What other data will the school collect toward a formal GT identification?
4. For a grade without screening: should we nominate this fall, or wait?
5. When will the score sheet come home, and who explains it?
6. If my child is Magnet Eligible, what are the School Choice deadlines?

Our broader questions to ask your school guide can help you turn those into one clear conversation with the GT teacher.

How to prepare without adding pressure

DPS says cognitive tests cannot be studied for in a way that changes scores. What a family can do is make sure the format is not a surprise. Look at the district's sample questions on its Testing: What to Expect page, keep practice short (10 to 15 minutes a day), and if you use full practice tests, do at least two timed ones so pacing feels normal. Our guide on how to prepare a young child for a gifted test covers the calm version of this.