While we sell the entire Critical Thinking Company range of books and software, and love their award winning products, we do not recommend their OLSATŪ Test Prep bundles if you have a gifted child who will be tested in the next six months. The reason is that the contents of each grade level bundle are based on national performance standards for that grade level. If you have a gifted child they're probably doing advanced math and working at a higher level than their peers in other areas. You don't need a grade level math book and you probably want a higher level of Building Thinking Skills than would be used by the average child of your child's age.
We recommend our Test Preparation Bundles for Gifted Learners Taking the OLSATŪ or, if you have a specific need, browsing our selections for the OLSATŪ specifically by grade or for the skills your child needs to work on.
The Critical Thinking Company has been publishing award winning products to help students of all abilities achieve higher test scores for over 50 years. The contents of these bundles were selected by The Critical Thinking Company to ensure coverage of material tested on the Otis-Lennon School Ability TestŪ (OLSATŪ). Each activity requires students to analyze, synthesize, and apply what they learn. The more students think about what they are learning, the more students understand what they are learning.
The Critical Thinking Company is recommended by Mensa, Learning Magazine, The Well Trained Mind, Dr. Toy, Creative Child Magazine, and used by Sylvan Learning Centers, Club Z In-Home Tutoring, leading U.S. public schools, and gifted and talented programs in 57 countries throughout the world. They guarantee better grades and higher test scores.
The grade level designations on these bundles are for average children. The table below the bundles shows which level of the Otis-Lennon School Ability TestŪ (OLSATŪ) test Pearson Assessment recommends for use at each grade level and the Critical Thinking Prep Bundle we recommend for use with a gifted child.
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The table below shows which level of the OLSAT test Pearson Assessment recommends for use at each grade level and the Critical Thinking Prep Bundle we recommend.
The Critical Thinking Company bases the level of its material on national standards. A typical child working at grade level will be ready to use the material designated as suitable for that grade.
If your intent is to prepare your child to take a test for gifted program entry then we recommend browsing our specific recommendations (click on the grade level link in the table) and if you then decide to purchase a bundle purchase at least one grade ahead of your child's current grade. Gifted children, by definition, have cognitive abilities two to three years ahead of those of their age peers. The most difficult questions on the test will be at this higher level and you'll want to expose your children to questions they find difficult so that they're prepared for the unknown during testing.
In our opinion these grade level bundles would make a good choice if you are planning ahead to testing (test date six months or more away) as a starting point. You will probably want more difficult material nearer the testing date. If your child will be tested sooner than that we recommend browsing our specific recommendations and making selections from there. At some grade levels, in our opinion, the test prep bundles do not contain the optimal selection of titles. You'll save 10% but you'll purchase more than you need. We also strongly recommend mixing up formats if you've got a short time before testing. Your child will happily work for longer periods if you've got some software, some games and some puzzles.
If your test date is further away than six months we recommend more broad preparation. Building Thinking Skills and Mathematical Reasoning will always be good choices but browse our grade level bundles to see titles which integrate thinking skills into different subject areas and consider some of our offerings which look more like puzzles. SET is a great game to develop non-verbal reasoning skills. Quiddler develops verbal analysis. The Advanced Dot-to-Dot books we sell develop attention to detail and require a lot more reasoning than you might expect from a puzzle. Word Roots develops vocabulary - an important skill for any child. Choose something that your child will enjoy doing and you can't go wrong.
The contents of these bundles were determined by The Critical Thinking Co. and have not been reviewed by, nor are they endorsed, sponsored or approved by either the author or publisher of the tests. While the contents of these bundles will help prepare students to master most of the skills tested, they do not reflect the actual test items on any given test. Otis-Lennon School Ability TestŪ and OLSATŪ are trademarks, in the US and /or other countries, of Pearson Education, Inc. or its affiliate(s), or their licensors, which do not endorse these products.
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