Gifted Atlanta

The gifted education office of Clayton County Public Schools oversees all gifted testing and instruction. Their web site offers detailed information about the screening and testing process, as well as how gifted students are served. Here’s an overview:

Who gets tested for gifted services?

Students are automatically referred for gifted evaluation if they score exceptionally well on standardized tests – at the “Distinguished Learner” level on one or more sections of the Georgia Milestones tests, or at a high Lexile reading level.

Students also can be referred for testing by their teachers, based on a “Talent Search,” where teachers look for specific qualities and abilities in the students in their classes.

Parents who think their child may be gifted can request an evaluation, and even students can refer themselves for gifted testing.

See the gifted office’s overview of eligibility, referral and identification process.

How are students tested?

Testing takes place over a period of about 60 days. Students are tested in four areas: mental ability, achievement, creativity and motivation.

See what tests are used.

How are gifted students served?

The county lists more than a dozen service models it may use. Students may be put into small groups with gifted peers within their classroom, or put into groups with students across classrooms or even across multiple grades. In middle-school and high-school, gifted services may take the form of honors, advanced, or AP classes, internships, or independent study.

See the list of service delivery models.

What other options might be good for gifted students?

Clayton County has magnet schools with themes ranging from dual language to performing arts to medical science and STEM. The county’s school choice office has information on these schools and how to enroll.

This page was updated on January 25, 2021. If you find errors in the links or the information presented, please submit a correction using the Contact page on this site. Thank you.