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WISC Test Scores | Understand Your Child’s Scores
The WISC-V (Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, Fifth Edition) is scored by comparing your child’s individual performance against a group of other students born within a four-month age range of one another (this is called an “age band”). Age ranges are represented by the year number of the child followed by how many months after their birthday it’s been with a colon in the middle.
- A child who is 6 years old, born in October, and taking the test in December would be represented as 6:2
- A child who is 10 years old, born in March, and taking the test in November would be represented as 10:7
All students tested have three possible age bands they may fall into. For example, if your child is 7-years old, depending on when he was born, he would fall into one of the following age bands:
- 7 years, 0 months (7:0) to 7 years, 3 months (7:3)
- 7 years, 4 months (7:4) to 7 years, 7 months (7:7)
- 7 years, 8 months (7:8) to 7 years, 11 months (7:11)
If you want your child to be on the older or younger end of the age band in which his or her score will be calculated, you can schedule the test accordingly.
| WISC-V Age Groups (Yrs:Mos) | ||
|---|---|---|
| 6:0 – 6:3 | 10:0 – 10:3 | 14:0 – 14:3 |
| 6:4 – 6:7 | 10:4 – 10:7 | 14:4 – 14:7 |
| 6:8 – 6:11 | 10:8 – 10:11 | 14:8 – 14:11 |
| 7:0 – 7:3 | 11:0 – 11:3 | 15:0 – 15:3 |
| 7:4 – 7:7 | 11:4 – 11:7 | 15:4 – 15:7 |
| 7:8 – 7:11 | 11:8 – 11:11 | 15:8 – 15:11 |
| 8:0 – 8:3 | 12:0 – 12:3 | 16:0 – 16:3 |
| 8:4 – 8:7 | 12:4 – 12:7 | 16:4 – 16:7 |
| 8:8 – 8:11 | 12:8 – 12:11 | 16:8 – 16:11 |
| 9:0 – 9:3 | 13:0 – 13:3 | |
| 9:4 – 9:7 | 13:4 – 13:7 | |
| 9:8 – 9:11 | 13:8 – 13:11 | |
The age bands are then standardized and used to determine each child’s overall IQ score. The scores are calculated, based on the performance of a normative group of children who fall within that 4-month age bracket. The child’s cognitive abilities (verbal comprehension, working memory, visual processing speed, and fluid reasoning) are assessed and compared against performance level norms created from the standardized test sample.
The scores are obtained in a statistical manner, and are not based on the percentage of questions answered correctly. That means your child’s score will be in comparison to the other children within their age band that took the test, rather than by the number correct they got in total.
Thousands of children were given the assessment, and the results were standardized to determine various ranges of ability for each age. Given the results of the sample population, norms are created. Percentile rankings are correlated with a person’s performance level based on the norms created from the standardized sample. Your child’s score will be a comparison of how he or she performed compared to the standardized sample.
Here are all the Standard Score ranges for the WISC-V:
| Score Range | What to Expect |
|---|---|
| Borderline: 70-79. | Students who test in this range may struggle to keep up in school and are usually eligible for assistance. |
| Low Average: 80-89. | Students who test in this range may struggle to keep up in school, but are not generally eligible for special education or assistance. |
| Average: 90-109. | Students who test in this range are average and may or may not struggle to keep up in school. |
| High Average: 110-119. | Students who test in this range are high average and do not generally struggle in school. |
| Above Average: 120-129. | Students who test in this range are above average and do not generally struggle in school. |
| Moderately Gifted: 130-145. | Students who test in this range are moderately gifted and do not generally struggle in school. |
| Highly Gifted: 146-159. | Students who test in this range are highly/exceptionally gifted and do not generally struggle in school. |
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Tell us about your experiences
8 Responses
Jennifer
I think we have a problem if all intelligence levels may struggle to keep up in school!
Julia
Your description of highly gifted students is incorrect. Most kids with an IQ of >145 struggle in school because they are extremely different from their age-mates. Here is one source of information about those kids: http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/underserved.htm.
kasarathy@gmail.com
In the practice tests, how many answers should the child get inorder to be considered moderately gifted?
Erinne
My child is at 58th percentile for full scale. Is that special education?
Ari
My child got 95% last year in WISC test and so was not selected for gifted school, but he has one more chance to do the the test this year. Since his school board gives only 2 times to do the test, I am confused if he should wait this year or do the test this year. Please advice.
TestingMom.com
Hello,
Please reach out to our Parent Success Team at help@testingmom.com or by calling (877) 609-6203. They will be more than happy to assist you with this situation.
Shorya
Help
TestingMom.com
Hi Shorya,
Please reach out to our Parent Success Team at 877-609-6203 or help@testingmom.com. They are happy to help you!
All the best,
Marcus