Hall County · GA
What matters most here
The earliest test that affects placement is NWEA MAP Growth, starting in Kindergarten.
The bar: Published only as a restatement of the state rule (SBOE Rule 160-4-2-.38): 99th percentile for grades K-2 or 96th percentile for grades 3-12 on the composite or full-scale score of a standardized mental-ability test plus one achievement criterion, or qualification in three of the four categories. No Hall-specific cut score is published, and no test instrument is named. (SEARCH gifted testing (Hall County gifted program))
What schools usually do with these scores
- Grouping. Screener results sort kids into small skill groups for reading and math. Groups are re-dealt after each testing window — fall, winter, spring — so a score follows your kid for about a trimester, not a year.
- Extra help and enrichment. Kids below benchmark usually get small-group support, checked every week or two. Kids far above it are the pool schools draw on for enrichment.
- Placement. Advanced-track decisions almost never hang on one test. Districts combine an ability test, an achievement measure, and teacher input into a matrix — which is why each score below earns its keep.
The path to the advanced track
- K–8 · NWEA MAP Growth
- K–5 · SEARCH gifted testing
- 3–8 · Georgia Milestones End of Grade
MAP is an automatic trigger into SEARCH (gifted) screening.
Your kid's grade
Pick a grade — the page narrows to what your kid actually takes.
What 5th Grade takes
5 of Hall County's 8 assessments apply to 5th Grade. Tap a test for what it measures and why it matters.
Got a score report?
Your kid's scores come home without context. Check one against the published bar — free, no account.
Not every test here has a published benchmark — where there isn't one, we won't invent a bar. And one score is one data point: schools decide from several measures across the year, plus the teacher's judgment.
How GAdecides who's gifted — the state rule
Georgia sets gifted eligibility statewide. A student qualifies either on test scores alone, or by meeting three of four categories.
Option 1: Test scores alone
Mental ability at or above the 99th percentile (grades K-2) or 96th percentile (grades 3-12) on a norm-referenced composite or full-scale score, plus one achievement criterion.
Option 2: Three of four categories
Qualify through a multiple-criteria process by meeting the criteria in any three of the four categories below.
- Mental ability:
- 96th percentile or above, composite or full-scale, on a norm-referenced test
- Achievement:
- 90th percentile or above on total battery, total math, or total reading
- Creativity:
- 90th percentile or above on a standardized rating scale
- Motivation:
- 90th percentile or above, or a 3.5/4.0 GPA for grades 6-12