1. It looks like he scored at > +3 SD above the mean on the MAP-PG, which usually suggests that the standard error is quite large. I would concur that performance on the MAP 2-5 would be a better indicator of where he stands in comparison to the two potential receiving classrooms.
2. When we were children, my parents made decisions about grade advancements (SSA or whole-grade) holistically (not just on academics). In particular, they targeted academic placement about .5 to 1 grade level below the best estimate of the child's true instructional level, on the premise that the additional EF and social-emotional maturity demands of the higher grade placement would be enough of a draw on cognition and coping skills that a lower academic level would leave resources for managing the other aspects of a skip, while still performing near the top of the class (reducing grade penalties from acceleration). (And yes, they did have to manage enough skip decisions to have developed a protocol for them.)
3. While not perfect, your gut is often quite perceptive.
