Hi,
It's been a while since you posted, so you may have found answers to your questions elsewhere, but if you still have questions feel free to pm me.
We're in Houston, and are in the HISD Vanguard program. IMHO, this program is more suited to bright high achievers than truly gifted kids (even at ROE). Approx 15% of HISD students are in a GT program. I have heard better things about SBISD. Any public school in Texas is going to be subject to the STAAR, which means teaching to the test. And it's not a very challenging test.
My DS' are more in the HG range, the eldest would technically qualify for DYS based on test scores, but we haven't pursued it. We are finishing out elementary in public, but will be transitioning to private in middle school. If we can. There are far more bright kids in Houston than there are spots in the best schools, unfortunately.
There is a gifted school, Rainard, but reviews are mixed. We tried one of their summer "camps" a couple of years ago, just to get a feel for the school and it was a bust.
