01Parent GuideFree
Know what the program actually requires.
Get the local program name, grades, identification process, services, deadlines, parent steps, and official instructions—all in plain language.
Fairfax County AAP Navigator Path sources checked September 16, 2026
Know exactly what
to do next.
Your child's grade and school situation change the AAP process. See the route that may apply, the next action, and a checklist tied to official FCPS instructions.
Official-source linksCurrent-cycle datesNo account required
Bloomfield is independent from FCPS. FCPS makes all eligibility and placement decisions.
01
Your pathway
See which FCPS route to explore for your child's grade and situation.
02
Your checklist
Know what to do now, what is optional, and what FCPS handles.
03
Your dates
Find the published deadlines alongside the original district source.
Straight answers
The questions parents ask first.
Short answers here. The official FCPS instructions are one click away.
Does my child need a particular test score?
No single file component is formally weighted. FCPS uses a holistic review for Full-Time eligibility. Read FCPS guidance ↗
Does the school have to refer my child?
No. Current FCPS families in Grades 2–7 may submit a Full-Time family referral during the published window. Grade 2 also has universal screening. See the FCPS timeline ↗
Can I include work samples?
FCPS allows up to two pages of student work samples as optional family material for this route. Check the current form before submitting. See current forms ↗
What if my child attends private school?
Private and homeschool families use a separate screening-file process and deadlines. See that route ↗
Source: Fairfax County Public Schools · Reviewed September 16, 2026
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How Bloomfield Academy helps
Understand the program.
Manage the process.
Build the learner.
Use the Parent Guide free. Choose Navigator when you want the process managed around your child. Choose Mentor when you want to connect that local opportunity to a longer-term interest, real projects, and a private record of growth. Bloomfield turns Fairfax County Advanced Academic Programs into three clear layers of support.
Use this guide ↓
02Navigator$79 / year
Turn the process into your family's plan.
Navigator adds a child-specific timeline, deadline and policy alerts, a guided checklist, and one place to organize forms, work samples, and questions for the school.
03Bloomfield Mentor$149 / year
Turn a future interest into work your child can do now.
Mentor includes Navigator plus a 12-week pathway, four short weekly challenges, one substantial monthly project, a Friday parent insight, and a private Growth Portfolio.
First: choose the service, not the label
“AAP” can mean four different elementary experiences.
A parent can misunderstand the entire process by treating AAP as one all-or-nothing program. Start with the level of challenge the child needs now; the decision-maker and referral route change by service.
Access to rigor
K–6
No screening
All elementary students receive critical and creative thinking opportunities. FCPS says AAP Curriculum Framework materials are used at least once per quarter.
Subject-specific services
K–6
Local school
For a student who needs greater challenge in one or more subjects. Students are re-evaluated each year; a family may submit the referral form at any time.
Part-Time AAP
3–6
Local school
Weekly pull-out or co-taught learning for students with advanced needs across multiple subjects. Schools screen students in Grades 3–6 each year.
Full-Time AAP
3–8
Central committee
Differentiated instruction across all four core subjects at a Local Full-Time program or Full-Time Center. Eligible students do not need annual re-evaluation.
Middle and high school are different.
Beginning in middle school, honors and other advanced coursework becomes open enrollment. In Grades 7–12, students can select advanced courses in the subjects where they want more challenge; high-school options include Honors, AP, IB, dual enrollment, and other pathways.
Full-Time AAP · current FCPS students
The parent action plan,
from interest to decision.
This is the practical route for a current FCPS student in Grades 2–7. Private, home-school, newly enrolled, and military-connected families have different instructions and should use the matching FCPS pathway.
- 01
Decide whether to refer
View stepOfficial FCPS processFamilies may refer current FCPS students in Grades 2–7 for the following school year. Grade 2 universal screening is another entry route, but it is not an eligibility decision or an advantage.
What the parent doesIf you want Full-Time consideration, do not assume universal screening will replace a family referral. Confirm the current cycle with the school AART.
- 02
Send the required referral
View stepOfficial FCPS processThe current-student Full-Time Referral Form goes to the elementary AART—or follow the middle-school direction—between the first day of school and December 15.
What the parent doesDownload the current form from FCPS, answer in specific examples, submit through the stated school channel, and retain the sent copy or confirmation.
- 03
Choose optional family evidence
View stepOfficial FCPS processFCPS permits a Parent/Guardian Questionnaire, up to two pages of student work samples, achievement results not already included, and private ability results.
What the parent doesUse optional material only when it adds information the school file may not show. Two strong, authentic pages with brief context are more useful than a polished packet.
- 04
Understand what the school adds
View stepOfficial FCPS processThe school assembles the screening portfolio. It can include progress reports, work samples, a HOPE Gifted Rating Scale, parent input, and test information.
What the parent doesAsk the AART what is already included before duplicating records. Keep your own one-page inventory of what you submitted and what question each item answers.
- 05
Track the decision and response
View stepOfficial FCPS processA central committee reviews Full-Time files, and FCPS says families are notified in April. Eligible families complete permission for placement; an appeal must follow the current letter and contain new information.
What the parent doesCalendar the expected notice, orientation, placement response, and any appeal deadline. If appealing, address genuinely new evidence rather than resubmitting the same argument.
A stronger parent response
Show what your child does—not just the adjectives.
See how one fictional parent turns a real observation into specific, honest evidence. Use the structure; never copy the story.
Explore the annotated example →Parent observationFictional example
Describe a time your child pursued an idea beyond the assignment.
“After her bridge collapsed, Maya changed one support at a time, recorded each result, and explained why the designs failed differently.”
01 Observable02 Child-led03 Need-focused
See why this works →Constructive preparation
Build visible habits,
not a test-taking performance.
These are Bloomfield recommendations—not FCPS requirements. They develop the reasoning, communication, curiosity, and persistence that advanced learning calls for, without imitating protected assessment items.
Explain, don't race
Twice a week, use one unfamiliar math or logic problem. Ask: What did you notice? What did you try? Why should that work? Save one explanation—not a score.
Read for evidence
After a challenging article or story, ask the child to make one claim and point to two details that support or complicate it.
Create under a constraint
Give a small design, writing, or investigation challenge with a limit on materials, time, or words. Ask the child to revise after feedback.
Follow a real curiosity
Let the child choose one question, find two trustworthy sources, make something that communicates the answer, and record what remains uncertain.
When choosing up to two work-sample pages
Show thinking the school may not already see.
- Use the child's authentic work, not an adult-redesigned presentation.
- Prefer work that shows reasoning, originality, depth, revision, or an unusual connection.
- Add only enough context to explain the task and what the child did independently.
- Do not treat a work sample as a résumé or claim it guarantees eligibility.
Support beyond this guide
Navigator keeps the process on track. Mentor builds the long-term path.
Navigator turns these FCPS steps into your child's dates, checklist, alerts, and evidence organizer. Mentor adds a 12-week interest pathway, weekly challenges, substantial projects, and a private Growth Portfolio.
What selection actually means
Prepare the child.
Understand the file.
Bloomfield translates published district language into constructive preparation. We do not promise eligibility, predict committee votes, or reproduce protected test content.
Academic need beyond grade-level peers
FCPS saysFCPS describes advanced services as a match for students who need greater depth, complexity, and pace.
Build it authenticallyGive your child unfamiliar problems that require explanation—not just faster answers.
Strength across authentic evidence
FCPS saysThe holistic review can include progress reports, work samples, school observations, parent input, and assessment information.
Build it authenticallyNotice and save original work that shows reasoning, curiosity, or an unusual connection.
A service match, not a single score
FCPS saysFCPS states that no item in the screening file receives a formal weight.
Build it authenticallyBuild durable thinking habits. Do not organize preparation around guessing a cutoff or rehearsing test items.
Bloomfield readiness map
Skills worth building—whether or not a committee is involved.
Each member plan turns these behaviors into short weekly challenges in mathematics, reading, writing, and interdisciplinary reasoning.
01Pattern reasoning
Find a rule, test it, and explain why it holds.
02Evidence
Support an answer with details from a text, table, or observation.
03Flexible strategy
Solve one problem in two different ways and compare them.
04Depth
Ask what changes, what stays true, and what follows next.
05Original thinking
Generate possibilities before choosing the strongest one.
06Productive struggle
Stay with a new problem and describe what was attempted.
Parent-to-parent
What would you tell another family?
Share practical, firsthand wisdom about Fairfax County Advanced Academic Programs. Parent experience is kept separate from the official program facts above.
Opening the parent discussion…
Trust is part of the product
Official facts, Bloomfield guidance, and parent experience never blur together.
Every claim carries a visible label, source, applicable school year, and last-checked date. Parent experience will be summarized only after moderation and will never be presented as an FCPS rule.
Official requirement
Directly linked to FCPS.
Bloomfield guidance
A plain-language explanation or practice recommendation.
Parent-reported insight
Dated, moderated, and identified by sample size.
Primary sources
Read the district language yourself.
01Current FCPS students: identification and placement ↗02Full-Time screening process ↗03AAP forms and deadlines ↗04Elementary continuum of services ↗
Last updated 09/09/2026. Program rules can change; confirm current instructions with FCPS and your school's Advanced Academic Resource Teacher before submitting.