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Gymnastics Moms...Question for you


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I coached both competitve and recreational gymnastics for over 10yrs, but all at the same gym. Unfortunately, it isn't the most competitive gym. We have several girls that did well on talent and some training, but the majority of our girls are average to slightly above average. That being said, we obviously don't have the more aggressive program out there.

 

DD 3.5yr has the talent to be really good. I say that not from behind my mommy goggles, but with my coach hat on. She is currently (with VERY minimal coaching from me at home) able to kick to handstand, do a cartwheel (though not pretty yet, but I doubt it would take much time to get it there), hold a headstand, do a forward roll to straddle stand, walk in releve on beam independently, do a bridge, do her splits (not all the way down, but quite a ways), etc. She loves it and is VERY eager to learn right now.

 

I've had her going to the gym I coached at for years since she was 2.5yr. She's now (with a little help from me) well beyond her preschool class. I hate to see her working on donkey kicks when she can kick to handstand. In some ways I almost feel like it's holding her back. Like they are almost undoing the more advanced version she learned by teaching her the normal preschool version.

 

So, I'm at a point where I'm thinking about exploring other options. Before I do that though I'm curious other people's experience at other gyms (particularly those that are more competitive or aggressive). Have your gyms had anything more advanced (like a TOPS program, developmental, or a pre-team program) for a 3 or 4yr old? I know it has to be done somewhere, or we wouldn't see 5-7yr old level 4's and 5's.

 

I don't want to burn her out, or having her going for countless hours a week, but I see a window here, and a lot of potential. I think she would enjoy something a little more at her level, and I would love to see her progressing.

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We've just been going to the local Y, which has two types of gymnastics classes. The regular one has kids at 2-3, 3-4, 4-5 and 6+ (where a child begins level 1). The second one is streamlined towards team, starting at ages 4-6, then a program for ages 6-8 which graduates directly into team at around 8. Most kids on the team went through the streamlined classes and very few came up through the regular school aged (level 1, level 2, etc...) program.

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I couldn't tell by the post if you are still actively coaching there. If so, can't you just take her in during a free time and practice with her yourself. If not, could you invest in a mat to have at home that you could then help her with the basics of tumbling? Unless you are thinking you want Olympics for her, then I wouldn't push her into the sport at this age and I don't know any gyms near us that would put a 3yo on preteam. I think our gym won't let them on preteam until they are 5 at youngest.

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The gym we used separates preschool gym from the rest, which are labeled beginner, intermediate, and advanced. They allow 5yos into beginner classes with coach recommendations, 6yos into intermediate, and 7yos into advanced (all of those ranging up to age 17).

 

It's a pretty well-known, competitive gym (for being in the middle of nowhere!), but they don't do more advanced training classes for the little ones. They do offer private lessons, but I would think you could do that on your own.

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I'm in a different country, so things work differently. But I have to tell you that my DD just transferred from a "middle of the road" gym to a highly competitive one (with many gymnasts at national level). DD *loves* it. She is finally being pushed at her own rhythm, whereas she was kept back at the previous gym. Now that she's progressing as fast as she can, she's enjoying gym even more.

 

Locally, they would take a 4yo into the beginner pre-team program. At 5, they can go into a provincial program called "Défi" (challenge). They don't compete against each other, but they have to demonstrate that they've reached a certain level of mastery. It's a 'pass or fail' program.

 

I do encourage you to find a gym that will take here where she is. It's made a huge difference for my daughter (although she's older than yours).

 

I wouldn't become her coach either. You'll be seen as the pushy parent who wants her child to be the next Shawn Johnson.

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We do have developmental programs - normally the dc is 6 for the "normal" kid. I know that my dd moved to Dev. at age 4.5 and was in w/ girls that were 6-8, but she did fine and loved it. The classes were an hour 2x's a week. She moved from there to pre-team and competed AAU and then level 4. At our gym we now have a dynamites and I think one before that - they are by invitation only and they don't compete. Then they can move to pre-team. All these would probably be in line w/ Levels 1-3. If a child aged 6 is ready they can move to and compete level 4 ---that age is set by USAG. Then they would progress from there.

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I think if you gave DD 6-8 months of working in a more advanced environment, she would have a gorgeous cartwheel, handstand, etc....and could probably work a level 2 bar routine by herself. I can work a little floor at home (which is how she learned the forward roll to straddle stand - we're working on backward rolls to pike now), but obviously can't do much more than that. But, if i can't find a program for her, she'll be stuck doing donkey kicks, frog jumps and skin the cats until she's 5.

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We have a team of 4-5yo's at our gym that are competing, some at Level 3 and some at Level 4. They came up through the preschool program there. My dd is in the optional levels, so I don't know much about what they do at that age, other than the gym name for them is "Hot Shots."

 

We are at a highly competitive gym with 2 girls that are alternates for the national team. As a team, we have never placed less than 2nd (and that was just once since I've been there the last two years) and usually place 1st. We do have a lead coach who was a coach for an Olympic gold medalist during the Olympic games (not USA).

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I'm guessing that you already looked at this link - but here it is anyway:

http://www.usa-gymnastics.org/pages/women/pages/overview_jo.html

 

If you can find a program she can compete or be placed w/ a level 1 program at 4 (level 2 is for age 4 too) then level 3 is age 5 and level 4 is 6. Now that's just for competing USAG.

 

There are also teams that compete AAU which could be younger depending upon the program.

 

I asked dd about the gym she's at --she's competes level 8 ---she said at 3.5 they would normally still be pre-school ---but that they will work individually at whatever skill level the child is and they can move up once they pass all the skills. That's why they have the option to come as many days as they want - then if they pass the skills they if they show potential they could be moved to dynamite or they could just move to developmental.

 

Could you look into private instruction for her?

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Guest mrsjamiesouth

My son is 6 and on the boys team Level 4 this year. Our gym advances girls based on ability and not age. A friend of mine whose son is on the team (he is 5) had private lessons for the last year and a half. I would look into that if you can afford it. Another thing, about equipment, we have found tons of good deals on Craigslist. I have a set of rings I got at IKEA. My husband reinforced them and hung them from the rafters of our barn out back. I used an older queen sized mattress that I zipped up into a plastic cover for landing. I got a set of parallel bars for $150. I have seen tons of balance beams for under $200. A friend of mine got 3 folding mats for $30!! This guy was selling them for his sister, I bet she was really mad when she found out how cheaply he sold them.

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Would the program be amenable to letting her practice with the older kids, but not compete with them? That way she'd get the higher level skills, but if there are age restrictions she wouldn't violate them.

 

I understand the not wanting to be a pushy parent when you teach the activity-I ran into that when my DD was ready to move up age levels early in our music program, and ultimately ended up moving her to a different instructor so I wouldn't have to explain to the parents of the kids I taught why I was moving my own DD up early when I was so reluctant to start THEIR children early.

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I was talking to DH...I'm thinking I might go talk to my old boss (the owner) and just be honest - even though I fear being THAT mom...the pushy one. I may ask him to take a look at her, and if he agrees....see if he might have another 3-4 girls like her. If he can come up with a few more girls, I'd offer to coach them 2x a week. Otherwise having him look at her is a moot point as there really is no place to move her up to.

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I would also talk to the ped about your daughter being involved and what moves that s/he thinks that are appropriate or not. My dd just started gymnastics this summer at 3.75 and after just three weeks invited her to be on the select team. If I would have done they she would have started training for competation. I dont have the time or the money and dance is her first love anyway. Anyway when I was talking with the coach about the moves that she would be doing the bridge was one that she said they will not do until after the age of five because of the research saying what that does the the growing back and muscles. She also wanted clearence from the ped that she was fit enough. She would have once class a week with kids older than her (you can only get in to this team by invitation only) and she would have been the only four year old the rest were five and six and the class is an hour and half.

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Our gym has Hot Shots, Prep 1, Prep 2, and a few other classes before you get to Pre-team. They're 90 min 1 day a week. The coaches say these classes are technically for ages 5 & up, but they definitely go by ability more than age. My son was placed in the boy's class just after he turned 4 (the owner coached his preschool class one day and said he should be in the boys class) and I know of at least one parent whose 3 yr old tried out the Hot Shots class because of aptitude - she just wasn't ready devolpmentally yet. The bigger kids scared her and she had trouble paying attention with all the other classes going on in the gym at the same time.

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