What grade for ACT?

[Myira]

DD is in 8th grade and her gifted teacher is suggesting she take the ACT this year. I’m pretty clueless at this point on this so I wanted to know any pros and cons of taking it in 8th grade.


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[NCGrandma]

Did the teacher give any specific reasons for taking it now?

When DC was in middle school (eons ago…), there were some "smart kid" summer programs around here that required the SAT etc to qualify. Between those and applying to our state's residential science and math high school, there was plenty of opportunity to get experience with that kind of test taking where it was linked to some desired outcome. I’m not sure we would have been as interested in taking these tests just for the experience.

But I defer to those with more current experience—times have definitely changed.


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[georgiegirl]

It’s up to you. My DD is formally identified as gifted by our district and she is in 10th and hasn’t taken any of those tests yet. She will next year as a junior. I don’t see any need to pay money for her to take a test that doesn’t have any purpose. She will take a prep course this summer then take SAT, PSAT, and ACT. She has a friend who has taken the tests every year since 8th grade.


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[o_mom]

DD is in 8th grade and her gifted teacher is suggesting she take the ACT this year. I’m pretty clueless at this point on this so I wanted to know any pros and cons of taking it in 8th grade.


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Taking the ACT in 8th grade (or earlier) can be useful for some students. It really depends on your child, how they feel about tests, and if you think that more exposure is better, or will it just make them more anxious, etc. We did one SAT test in 7th/8th for my older 2, and it was helpful.

Pros
- they get to experience the test, see what it is like, and hopefully understand what they will be expected to do on future tests
- See where you are without having a score on your record. IIRC, ACT only reports tests that you tell them to, unless you superscore, in which case they report all scores that contributed to the superscore. SAT automatically removes any pre-9th grade scores, but I think ACT you can delete them. I would check this out.
- Know what they need to practice most or work on - if they are scoring well, you may not feel that you need to spend $$$ on test prep.
- Access to some talent search programs - I know some kids take advantage of this, but we did not.

Cons
- cost
- time
- Possible test anxiety
- May feel like they failed - Since the test is aimed at HS Juniors, they may not have had the math that is on there, and in general won't do as well. It is important to put it into context for them, and I think they will get a report on how they did relative to other 8th graders.

[AnnieW625]

I took it once it’s the end of 10th grade. I would only have a child take this rest now if they really like taking standardized tests and want to take it for practice.


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[lizzywednesday]

Is this part of a "talent search" type program? I took the SAT in 7th grade through a program like this; I did OK, but I took it again for college admissions when I was a Junior in high school (wasn't doing early decision anywhere bc I was limited to in-state, public schools and none of those had that.)

[KpbS]

I recommend summer after 10th grade.

[klwa]

I'm another one who is assuming that this is part of a gifted program, etc. I took the SAT in 8th grade as part of the Duke TIP program, and found it helpful for taking it "for real" later.

[smilequeen]

I also remember taking the SAT in middle school for the Duke thing. My kids have test anxiety and did not inherit my natural test taking skills, so I’ve avoided anything extra for them (their school does practice ACT and PSAT starting in 9th, so they’ve done them, but we don’t pay extra for it). I’d ask what the purpose is and decide if it fits with your daughter.

[NCGrandma]

I'm another one who is assuming that this is part of a gifted program, etc. I took the SAT in 8th grade as part of the Duke TIP program, and found it helpful for taking it "for real" later.

Definitely helpful. The Duke TIP program was one of the things I was thinking about in my post. After posting, I looked on the Duke website and was surprised to learn that they have continued the residential summer programs until forced to postpone in summer 2020. They are hoping to resume whenever safe. TIP was founded in 1980, so that’s a lot of alumni.


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