Fairfax County, VA · Advanced Academic Programs · 2026-27 · Checked November 1, 2026

FCPS AAP testing and screening,
explained for parents

Fairfax tests every second grader with the NGAT, but the test does not decide Full-Time AAP. A committee reads a whole portfolio. Here is what goes in it, the dates that matter this year, and what you can actually do as a parent.

Independent guide. iMasterly is not affiliated with Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS), Virginia. Every fact below links to the district's own page.

Quick answer

How does a child get into Full-Time AAP in Fairfax County?

A referral, from a parent or staff member, has to reach the school by December 15, 2026 (grade 2 students in the top group of the universal screener are referred automatically). The school builds a portfolio: progress reports, work samples, a HOPE rating scale, the parent questionnaire and test scores, including the NGAT that all grade 2 students took in October 2026. Six readers review it together, at least four must agree, and families hear in early April 2027.

Source: FCPS AAP and FCPS Full-Time screening process · Updated

Fairfax County at a glance

Advanced Academic Programs (AAP)

What the district says
Ability testNaglieri General Ability Tests (NGAT). It replaced the CogAT (grade 2) and NNAT3 (grade 1).
Who is testedAll grade 2 in October 2026; grades 3 to 7 with no score on file; children taking a one-time retest
Levels of serviceAccess to Rigor (all K-6), Subject-Specific (K-6), Part-Time (3-6), Full-Time (3-8)
Who decides Full-TimeA central committee: six readers per school, at least four must agree
How tests countNot weighted. Test scores are one part of a holistic portfolio
Outside testingAccepted from a licensed psychologist or George Mason’s Cognitive Assessment Program, but FCPS does not encourage it

Key dates for 2026-27

DateWhat happens
By September 30, 2026Request the one-time NGAT retest (through the AART or assistant principal)
October 2026NGAT for all grade 2 and for grades 3 to 7 with no score on file
October 15, 2026Full-Time referral deadline for students new to FCPS since January 2026 (fall cycle)
Early December 2026Grade 2 universal screener referral list announced
December 15, 2026Full-Time referral deadline for everyone else, grades 2 to 7. No exceptions
January 5, 2027Appeals due for fall-cycle decisions
March 2027Central committee meets; second NGAT window for some students being screened
Early April 2027Full-Time eligibility decisions sent
April 12 - May 5, 2027Orientations at elementary Full-Time AAP centers
May 3, 2027Appeals due for spring decisions
Fall 2027Eligible students start at Full-Time AAP centers

FCPS notes that all dates are pending school board approval. Private and homeschool families mail their files, postmarked by November 20, 2026 (fall) or January 27, 2027 (spring).

The four levels of AAP service

FCPS says it does not label children as gifted. Instead it matches each child to a level of service, and children can move between levels as their needs change.

  • Access to Rigor, grades K-6: every child gets critical and creative thinking lessons and AAP curriculum in the regular classroom. No screening.
  • Subject-Specific, grades K-6: AAP lessons in a child’s strongest subject, inside the regular class. Decided at the local school.
  • Part-Time, grades 3-6: AAP lessons in more than one subject, led by the school’s Advanced Academic Resource Teacher (AART). Decided at the local school.
  • Full-Time, grades 3-8: AAP curriculum all day, at an AAP center school. Decided by the central committee. In middle school, eligible students can attend their center or take honors classes at their base school.

Three ways into Full-Time screening

The universal screener refers about the top 10% of second graders automatically, using a formula of test scores compared within each school ("local building norms") with a national-norm component. FCPS is clear that this is not an advantage: those children go through exactly the same review.

A staff referral or a family referral works for grades 2 to 7. FCPS says about 70% of the children screened for Full-Time come in this way. If you want your child considered, send the referral form yourself; FCPS tells parents not to wait for the screener list.

What the committee reads

The local school puts together a portfolio and sends it to the central committee. Nothing in it is weighted more than anything else.

  • The referral form and the optional parent questionnaire
  • Progress reports
  • Work samples (parents may add up to two pages)
  • The HOPE rating scale, a strengths checklist filled in by staff at the school
  • Ability and achievement test scores (SOL scores are already included)
  • Private ability test results, if a parent submits them

After the decision

Only "ineligible" decisions from the current cycle can be appealed. The committee does not write an individual report explaining a decision, but families can ask the AART for a copy of their child’s screening portfolio, including the HOPE scale.

Awards, certificates and letters of recommendation are not part of the file, so there is no point collecting them.

What to do as a parent

  1. Decide by mid-December whether you want Full-Time screening. If yes, hand the referral form to your school’s AART before December 15, 2026.
  2. Add the parent questionnaire and up to two pages of your child’s own work. Choose work that shows thinking, not neatness.
  3. Keep an eye on the NGAT score report from your school. If a bad day hurt the score, FCPS allows one retest, requested by its fall deadline (September 30 in 2026).
  4. If the answer in April is "ineligible", read the portfolio before deciding on an appeal, and appeal by May 3, 2027.

Try a few NGAT-style nonverbal puzzles

The NGAT has Verbal, Quantitative and Nonverbal parts. These are original nonverbal reasoning items in a similar style, not FCPS or NGAT questions.

Loading sample questions…

Questions parents ask

Does a high NGAT score get my child into Full-Time AAP?
Not on its own. FCPS reviews a whole portfolio and does not weight the test score more than the work samples, progress reports or HOPE rating scale. Six readers vote, and at least four have to agree.
My child was not on the universal screener list. Is it too late?
No. Most children screened for Full-Time come through a parent or staff referral. Submit the referral form to the AART by December 15, 2026.
Can my child retake the NGAT?
Yes, once. FCPS allows one retest of one ability test per student, requested through the AART or assistant principal by September 30. FCPS no longer gives the CogAT or NNAT3, so retakes are on the NGAT.
Should we pay for private testing?
FCPS accepts private ability results from a licensed psychologist or George Mason’s Cognitive Assessment Program, but says it does not encourage extra testing, and scores are only one part of the file.
We are new to Fairfax. What is our deadline?
If your child started in FCPS after January 2026, the fall-cycle referral deadline was October 15, 2026. You can still refer by December 15, 2026 for the spring cycle. Private and homeschool families mail files postmarked by November 20, 2026 or January 27, 2027.
What happens if we miss December 15?
FCPS says referrals are not accepted after the window. Your child still gets AAP lessons through Access to Rigor, and you can refer for Subject-Specific or Part-Time services at any time of year.

Sources

Every fact on this page comes from Fairfax County's own pages, read on November 1, 2026. Dates can change during the year, so confirm anything you plan around. Last reviewed .

Other district guides

Montgomery County, MD →Accelerated and Enriched Instruction (AEI)Seattle →Highly Capable (HC) servicesNew York City →Gifted & Talented (G&T)Chicago →Selective Enrollment Elementary Schools (SEES)

More districts, with testing windows and referral deadlines: gifted testing dates 2026-27.

Know the format before test day

Short practice in the real question types, with every wrong answer explained, so test day holds no surprises.

NGAT guide →Nonverbal practiceCogAT practice