I have a son in first grade. We didn't know he was more than moderately gifted before kindergarten. He has a fall birthday, but I never thought of sending him early. And I actually still don't regret it.
Ditto everything she said about my DS6.5, only his BD is in spring so he was one of the youngest in his grade (in an area the loves to red-shirt boys). It all still applies.
My point of all that is, another option is to do kindergarten (maybe even 1/2 day if you can do that) and skip to 2nd (as we should have but we had our sights set on another school we didn't get into, and no one does a grade skip around here) if she is currently happy and engaged with age mates. Kindergarten just seems to be a bit more flexible and less dry than first, and then you can make the skip after to 2nd.
I second this, too. DS6 was very happy in half-day, not highly academic K, but was miserable in all-day, "learn to read" 1st grade. I'm glad he had 2 years of preschool and was in the K he was in. I wish we'd skipped 1st grade entirely and gone straight to 2nd.
FWIW...
And, yes, to answer your first question, kickball, sometimes I think wistfully of the smooth-sailing educational track I had assumed my child would have, and I mourn. I think it's only natural. But then I sigh and go back to real life! <shrug> It's all we can do, no?
