Fairfax County AAP and NGAT guide.

Fairfax County Public Schools calls its gifted services Advanced Academic Programs (AAP). The ability test is now the Naglieri General Ability Tests (NGAT). FCPS says the NGAT replaces both the CogAT it used to give all 2nd graders and the NNAT3 it used to give all 1st graders.

This guide focuses on the Grade 2 process for full-time (Level IV) AAP services, which start in 3rd grade.

What FCPS says about identification

There are two ways into full-time AAP screening. The Grade 2 universal screener automatically refers roughly the top 10% of 2nd graders on the district test; families can ask for an exemption. The other way is a referral from staff, a parent or guardian, the student, or a peer, open in grades 2 through 7 from the first day of school through December 15.

FCPS says about 70% of students screened for full-time services come through referrals, and it tells parents who want their child screened to refer rather than wait for the universal screener. Being on the screener list gives no advantage. Referral forms are due before test scores come back, and FCPS says no exceptions are made to the deadline.

A central committee reviews each file as a whole. FCPS says no specific score on any one measure determines eligibility. The file includes ability test scores, the HOPE Rating Scale, progress reports, and optional work samples, achievement scores and a parent questionnaire.

The NGAT's Nonverbal test is the part closest in style to the NNAT®. FCPS does not publish which NGAT tests it gives in grade 2, so ask your school's Advanced Academic Resource Teacher (AART).

The retest deadline comes first

FCPS allows one retake of one ability test per student. For 2026-27 the request goes to your school's AART or assistant principal by September 30, 2026, before the October test. FCPS no longer offers the CogAT or NNAT3, so older scores on those tests cannot be retaken.

Private testing from a state-licensed psychologist can be submitted, and FCPS accepts NGAT, CogAT, NNAT3, WISC-V and several others. FCPS also says it does not encourage families to seek additional testing, since testing is only one piece of the file.

How to prepare

If you want your child to be comfortable with this kind of test, keep it short: 10 to 15 minutes a day of reasoning puzzles, plus at least two full timed practice tests before October so the length and pacing are not a surprise. Practice teaches your child what the questions look like and gives them ways to approach and think through them, so test day feels familiar instead of surprising. Our guide to preparing a young child covers how to keep it low pressure.

Questions FCPS parents should ask

1. What day in October will 2nd graders take the NGAT at our school?
2. Which NGAT tests are included in grade 2?
3. Should I submit a referral now, even before scores and the screener list come out?
4. What work samples do you recommend for the screening file?
5. How is the HOPE Rating Scale completed, and by whom?
6. If my child is not found eligible for full-time services, what part-time or school-based AAP services are available?

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