Best Methods for Fairfax County AAP

Sample Practice Questions

Children are required to take two tests of ability during their career in the Fairfax County Public School System. While in the first grade, all students are required to complete the NNAT. In second grade, students take the CogAT (Cognitive Abilities Test). Due to the competitive nature of the gifted and talented program, it is beneficial for students to begin their preparation as early as possible. The central committee assesses student entry by combining a child’s scores on both exams.

TestingMom.com offers extensive materials to prepare your child for exam day. Because the NNAT does not necessarily cover material from your child’s normal school curriculum, it is critical that you initially assess their strengths and weaknesses. Questions covering pattern completion, reasoning by analogy, serial reasoning, and spatial visualization, are intended to assess the child’s thinking and reasoning abilities. In order to keep your child from becoming overwhelmed, start by introducing a question from a singular category. Start by practicing a few of the questions alongside your child before letting them approach the material independently. This way you can see both what they understand and what they may need more clarity on.

Fortunately, when it comes to preparing for the CogAT there is some overlap with the NNAT in terms of its emphasis on visual spatial reasoning. Like the NNAT, the material on the CogAT test is not necessarily taught, or embedded, in an academic curriculum. Start by developing a practice method where you provide your child with one type of question. This may be a categorization, problem solving, or mathematical reasoning question. If you are working with your child, make sure that you have a solid grip on how to approach each content area. After going through each of the sample questions, provide your child with the opportunity to work through the questions. For this particular test, it is recommended that the child completes the practice test a few times.  Practice tests provide you with the opportunity to measure the child’s progression across their study sessions. Even if your child does not answer correctly, make sure to provide your child with positive reinforcement. For many children, studying and the thought of testing can be stressful. Make sure that the study sessions remain lighthearted, positive, and productive! The objective is for your child to go into the test as confident and self-assured as possible!

For additional preparation for the CogAT and NNAT, join TestingMom.com where we have hundreds more practice questions for your child, along with engaging on-line prep games.

Additional NNAT Resources

• What is the NNAT Test?
• Best Methods for NNAT Test Prep
• Sample NNAT Practice Questions
• How is the NNAT Scored?

Additional CogAT Resources

• What is the CogAT Test?
• Best Methods for CogAT Test Prep
• Sample CogAT Practice Questions
• How is the CogAT Scored?

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