Karen Quinn, founder of TestingMom.com and widely known as “The Testing Mom,” was featured in a 2011 Chicago Tribune story exploring the mystery and pressure surrounding gifted-and-talented testing in Chicago Public Schools.
At the time, many Chicago-area parents were trying to understand the highly secretive testing process used to identify children for the district’s competitive gifted programs. Much like the gifted admissions process in New York City, the Chicago testing environment had become increasingly high-stakes, with parents searching for ways to help their young children feel prepared and confident before testing day.
The article examined how families were turning to private tutoring, educational games, and test-preparation resources—including materials developed by Karen Quinn and TestingMom.com- to help children practice the types of thinking and reasoning skills commonly found on gifted assessments.
One of the biggest topics discussed in the article was the secrecy surrounding the actual test used for pre-K gifted admissions in Chicago. While Chicago Public Schools did not publicly disclose all details about the assessment process, many parents and educators believed the exams measured abilities similar to those found on tests such as:
- OLSAT®
- Stanford-Binet®
- WPPSI®
- ERB®
and other cognitive and reasoning-based assessments.
The Chicago Tribune feature even included sample gifted-test style questions from TestingMom.com to help parents better understand the kinds of critical-thinking challenges children might encounter during testing.
Karen Quinn has long emphasized that although different school districts may use different assessments, the underlying concepts tested are often very similar. Whether a child is taking the OLSAT, WPPSI, CogAT, Stanford-Binet, or another gifted screening test, the focus is typically on reasoning skills such as:
- Pattern recognition
- Vocabulary and verbal reasoning
- Listening and following directions
- Problem solving
- Visual-spatial thinking
- Memory and attention
- Figure analogies and classifications
According to Quinn, helping children become familiar with these concepts can reduce anxiety and build confidence, especially for children between the ages of 4 and 7 who may be encountering formal testing for the very first time.
The article also highlighted Karen’s playful, child-friendly approach to learning. One memorable image from the feature showed a young girl enjoying Karen’s “IQ Fun Park” game, reinforcing the idea that gifted learning practice can be engaging and fun rather than stressful or intimidating.
The discussion generated significant attention among Chicago parents and education-focused communities. Even CPS Obsessed, a popular blog covering Chicago Public Schools, wrote positively about the article and the growing conversation around gifted testing preparation.
Today, TestingMom.com continues to help families prepare for gifted and talented assessments through practice questions, online tutoring, learning games, and parent resources designed to make the process less overwhelming and more empowering for both children and parents.
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