PS/IS 686 | Brooklyn, NY

Grades K-5 Admissions

  • Grades K-5 TK TK TK Admission Process

    Age Requirements:

    Kindergarten Dummy text in enrolling your child in any New York City Gifted and Talented Kindergarten class, you must begin the admissions process below in the fall of the calendar year in which your child turns four years old. In other words, children born on ANY date in 2011 will begin Kindergarten in the fall of 2016, so they must begin the admissions process in the fall of 2015.

    • Children born in 2010 – the DOE will NOT place children born in 2010 into a G&T Kindergarten class; those children must apply to first grade for fall 2016. The tests used for Kindergarten and 1st grade G&T admissions are normed (scored/compared) according to age and not grade.

    Grades 1, 2 or 3 If you are interested in applying to grades 1, 2 or 3, you must begin the admissions process below in the fall of your child’s Kindergarten, 1st or 2nd grade school year.

    STEP 1: You File the Request for Testing Form by Friday, November 6, 2015. 

    You must ask the Department of Education to administer the free testing to your child by filling out the Request for Testing Form. Beginning on Monday, October 5, 2015, you may fill out your Request for Testing Form online here. Submitting online is highly recommended (remember to print a receipt)! Parents who complete the form online are notified about test results and school placement earlier than those who submit a hard copy. That is an advantage in the spring, when you may want to tour the schools to which you are eligible to apply. You may need to register for tours immediately, as tours at many schools tend to fill up quickly.
    The Department of Education’s Gifted & Talented Program Handbook explains everything about the G&T admissions process. It includes sample questions that you should review with your child, as well as a hard copy of the Request for Testing Form. The handbooks can be downloaded here for children born in 2011, 2010, 2009, and 2008. Keep this handbook until next June – you will need to refer to it! Handbooks are also available in hard copy at all Borough Enrollment Offices and include a hard copy of the Request for Testing form. If you submit a hard copy of the form, remember to get a receipt!

    Again, all Request for Testing Forms must be submitted by Friday, November 6, 2015!

    STEP 2: Your Child is Tested

    After you have submitted your Request for Testing form, the DOE will arrange a time for your child to be tested. Testing usually takes 1 to 1-1/2 hours. (Any problems with the tester or the test site must be reported to the DOE within 48 hours after your child takes the test. Do not wait until the scores are reported!)

    • If your child is currently enrolled in a non-DOE school in grades Pre-K – 2, in a DOE Pre-K, or does not attend school, testing will take place on a weekend day in January, 2016 at a designated school site. The DOE will contact you with the exact time and place.
    • If your child currently attends a DOE school in grades Kindergarten – 2, he or she will be tested at his or her school during the regular school day between January 4 – January 29, 2016.

    STEP 3: You are Notified of the Test Score

    In early April, the DOE will notify you of your child’s test result. If your child achieves a score high enough to qualify for G&T placement, an application will be included. If your child’s score doesn’t meet the minimum eligibility, then your child can test again next year.

    STEP 4: You Rank Your School Choices

    If your child achieved a score high enough to be eligible to apply for G&T placement, the DOE will provide you with a personalized application with your G&T program options.
    • If your child achieved a total score in the 90th percentile or higher, then your child is eligible to apply to District G&T programs.
    • If your child achieves a total percentile score in the 97th percentile or higher, then your child is eligible to apply for District G&T programs as well as all the citywide G&T schools, including BSI, if you wish.
    • BSI will hold several Open House sessions in the spring, directly following the release of student test scores. Our administration highly recommends that you attend one of these events before ranking our school on your application. Please go to our Visiting Grades K-3 page to find out about visiting our school in the spring.

    You will rank your choices on the application in order of your preference. The DOE encourages families only to apply to schools to which they would be willing to attend. Placement will be determined by the DOE based on a lottery within each percentile, after eligible siblings are placed. There is no guarantee of a G&T placement, even if you rank all of the available choices on your application. All applications must be submitted to the DOE following the instructions they provide. Do NOT send the application to our school.

    All applications must be submitted to the DOE by the Friday, April 22, 2016 deadline. 

    STEP 5: The DOE Makes Placement Offers

    The DOE will send you a letter in late May, notifying you if your child is being offered a G&T placement or not. There is no appeals process.