This section provides information about the Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT®) and recommendations for material which can be used to prepare your child to provide the best performance possible.
The CogAT (Cognitive Abilities Test), assesses reasoning and problem solving abilities in three areas - verbal, non-verbal and quantitative. The reasoning skills assessed by the CogAT are precisely what the range of books and software sold here are designed to teach. This section of our website identifies the products which focus most closely on skills tested in the CogAT.
The CogAT (Cognitive Abilities Test) is published by Riverside Publishing. It is frequently used in conjunction with the Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS) to provide an indication as to whether or not children are working up to their ability level and to assist teachers in tailoring instruction to benefit all students. It is also widely used as a screening test for gifted program entry.
The CogAT comes in two different formats. The Primary version is used in Gr K -2. The Multi-level version is used in Gr 2 and up. Each level of the CogAT has items of varying levels of difficulty. A block design is used and to change from the A to the B level of the test, for example, a block of the easiest questions is removed and replaced with a block of more difficult questions.
The test publisher recommends using a higher level of the CogAT test for testing high ability children than for testing average or low ability children. Your high ability child in kindergarten may be tested using the CogAT 1. Your high ability child in Gr 2 may be tested using the Multi-Level A rather than the Primary 2 version. Because of the overlapping nature of the questions on different levels of the test it's not essential to know what level your child will be tested at except for in Grade 2. There is a significant change in format between the CogAT Primary 2 and Multi-level A. If your child will be tested in Grade 2 it is worth asking your school district if they'll tell you which level of the test they'll be using.
Choose your child's grade level above for specific recommendations. Since the CogAT is most commonly used as a screening tool for gifted program entry these recommendations assume that you do indeed have a bright child. Most gifted and competitive entry programs attempt to identify children with cognitive abilities 2-3 years above those of their typical age peers. To answer the most difficult questions on the CogAT your child will need to be working at this higher level.
You may find that your child's abilities are not even across the different reasoning skills. This is quite normal and you may decide to purchase different levels of books for verbal, non-verbal and quantitative skills. If you have any doubts please email or phone and I'd be happy to help you make your selection.
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