Virginia Beach City Public Schools gifted testing and NNAT® guide.

Virginia Beach City Public Schools (VBCPS) identifies students for General Intellectual Aptitude (GIA) gifted services, plus gifted visual arts and dance. The NNAT® is the Naglieri Nonverbal Ability Test, a visual reasoning test that uses shapes and patterns instead of reading or math. VBCPS gives the Third Edition, the NNAT3.

This guide is for VBCPS families, mainly of 2nd graders, who want to understand how screening and the application fit together.

What VBCPS says about gifted screening

The NNAT3 is given to all 2nd and 5th graders by the Gifted Testing Office. Parents can opt out by contacting their school or the Office of Gifted Programs and completing the opt-out form. Students already identified as GIA gifted are not tested.

Students who score 90% or higher join a candidate pool, along with students who were referred. But the district's Local Plan is clear that for a child to move forward, a parent must submit an application and give consent for testing online. There is no minimum test score required to apply, so a child who scored below 90% can still apply.

How the application works

Parents apply online through the Gifted Application Management System (GAMS), using their child's 6-digit student ID and Chromebook password. After an application is submitted, the school's gifted resource teacher gathers evidence and the child is placed on a list to be tested with the CogAT. A committee then looks at a teacher checklist, a record review of achievements, test scores, and notes from the teacher or gifted resource teacher.

Three rules catch families off guard. Test scores stay valid for one year, and a child who already tested during screening that year is not retested. Testing done outside the district is not considered. And if something affected your child on test day, you have only two instructional days to notify the Gifted Testing Office in writing.

Students found eligible start gifted services in 3rd grade. Families of 2nd graders can also apply to Old Donation School, the district's gifted school for grades 3 to 8, where seats are limited.

Questions Virginia Beach parents should ask

1. When is this year's 2nd grade NNAT3 screening window?
2. Did my child score 90% or higher on the screener?
3. How do I log in to GAMS to submit the application?
4. When will my child take the CogAT after I apply?
5. What does the teacher checklist look for?
6. Should we also apply to Old Donation School?

Our broader questions to ask your school guide can help. The Gifted Testing Office is at 757-263-6870 or giftedtesting@vbschools.com.

How to prepare without adding pressure

Keep practice short and steady, 10 to 15 minutes a day, and talk through the reasoning after each question. At the 2nd grade level, the NNAT® adds spatial visualization to the other three question types, as our NNAT® question types guide explains. Before test day, do at least two full timed practice tests so pacing is 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. See how to prepare for the NNAT® for more.