I agree with ElizabethN. I am sure we can all argue each way but there is so much to be said for a school that is open and communicative (took your call, invited you in, honest about their offerings). I immediately felt more comfortable with this school. They also sound flexible and caring about each child, genuinely not just paying lip service. That is probably why they have a good reputation with disabled kids.
Close to home is always good for busy families and for making neighborhood friends.
Any school open to skipping kids has to be considered highly. Just because a GATE program exist doesn't mean it will serve your child. They come in so many different flavours. The more gifted your child is, often the more individual their needs and they can exceed the GATE programs offerings.
Schools with lots of programming can be great but they can also feel that what they have is enough and if it doesn't meet your child's needs they can be less likely to look outside the box.
When you wrote about the second school I heard a more rigid approach (no visits until 6 weeks before, no Immediate GT program and little interest in the specifics of your child eg re test scores). All those things make me read between the lines and make me hear the school say....we know best, we will decide what is good for your child and it will be instituted if and when we determine it is needed.
For that reason a flexible school offering acceleration as an option can be better than a rigid school with the purported promise of GATE. You might find that the flexible school has your child working at second grade or beyond very quickly where you could be twiddling your thumbs waiting for GATE to kick in at the second school.
One thing you might be worrying about is finding peers for your child. If that does become a problem then there are always extracurricular activities to expand peer relationships. My DD's best friend in grade 6 had an LD and was three years older but she was kind and caring and made a lovely friend.
As Elizabeth asks.....can you change later if you are unhappy?
