I don't like starting discussions/disagreements, but I would like to share my thoughts on this a bit because I have very strong feelings about this subject.
MAG predominantly relies on the adult strength that boys do not develop until after puberty. There are many skills in biys gymnastics, that you simply can not reach them until the teen years when they are developing those adult muscles.
For girls it is generally the opposite and it’s easier to teach skills prior to puberty, their strength to body ratio is different.
First of all, for girls I think it depends on the skill. After puberty the ratio is different, but they tend to have more strength and focus. Puberty does allow for easier muscle development I believe, tho far less so than in boys. I've been the oldest in a group for a while, and that also made me by far the strongest in the group.
Secondly, we can currently see that elite gymnasts are perfectly capable of being competetive and being the best long after puberty. I feel like we can conclude from that that skills don't get any less achievable after puberty. Teaching skills before puberty sometimes just means reteaching them after puberty, which isn't ideal either. I'm not saying you shouldn't teach skills before puberty, because it helps build the basis and grow etc. But it's not like girls are better gymnasts before puberty than after. Puberty just gives an adjustment period.
Starting at the very beginning with your 4-6 year old gymnasts. Girls at this age in general listen better, follow instructions better, can focus on detail, focus for longer etc. they are ready for a structured more technical program earlier.
Unfortunatly this is true in a lot of societies right now. If you treat them the same, boys and girls will both be able to be equally attentive. However, in many cultures boys grow up constantly hearing believes that boys cant behave, being treated like they cant behave, and given more leeway. You can do your best in your gym to treat boys and girls the same, but it may not help because they don't just grow up in your gym. Still, the right attitude can really help a bit. At our gym i see boys running around the halls yelling and stuff even at ages like 11, and they barely get told off. I can't imagine the girls getting away with being half that loud in the halls even at younger ages.
Boys at this are less inclined to structure, focus, listening, etc, They aren’t ready for a structured class that focuses excessively on technique. They need to run, jump, climb, swing and develop,op their body awareness.
Okay, sorry. I know I just said we can't completely change boys' attitudes in the gym but I have to speak on this point. How often do we get posts here saying "my 5 year old cant focus in team because its all just drills and stuff". But for the girls we don't say "they need to run, jump, climb". With the girls, we say they'll learn it in time if we stick with it. Not having the same attitude with the boys is exactly why boys can't behave as well.
in older children, say around 6-11 for girls, this is the key developmental time, they need to learn more skills, earlier before they go through puberty. This is the ideal time to teach the big tumbling and flipping skills.
Biys at this age, can’t do most of the “big” skills required for their sport. So they are better to work on a modified program that does teach the things they are ready for like tumbling, building flexibility (as this will be harder later) and the fundamentals on each apparatus, to prepare for when they are ready for the big stuff.
I partially agree here. Girls can learn skills at earlier or later ages, but a lot of boys skills can only be learnt at later ages. In both cases they gain certain benefits from learning what they can at a young age, but with boys it's just more limited what they cán learn at that young age. However, I think for both genders the most important during the developmental years are strong basics, not big skills. Of course big skills can help too, but it's not that you can't learn them a bit later either. However, if you need to start learning the basics at a later age you're at a bigger disadvantage as those have to be second nature.
When it comes to earlier vs. later, there's also a lot to be said for teaching the big skills later. At a young age, our bodies are developing and fragile. If you want to be able to compete and keep learning and improving for years to come, then you may want to take it slower on the body. Sure, it may make it a bit harder to learn skills if you didn't learn it during your early developmental years, but it's still completely possible and can lead to more longevity in the sport.
So this type of development encourages girls to be pushed through your and boys to wait.
MAG predominantly relies on the adult strength that boys do not develop until after puberty.
On these points I agree: MAG has more patientce because it has to. The boys are trained with the idea of an older competition age, because they can't reach a lot of the skills earlier. MAG requires the higher age, where WAG does not.
However, WAG doesn't
require the lower age. We could just as well be aiming for gymnasts to peak at 25. Look at Simone Biles. Look at Jade Carey. There have even been elite gymnasts who only started at age 12. (Also, chusovitina just became national champion at age 48, and though I'd not say she's of the level of biles and such, I think she's still at the same level as when she was younger.)
Anyway, thanks to anybody who took the time to read this, and I hope I haven't offended anybody with my ramblings. I'm a scientist and I like reading up on research about sports development and about biological and societal influences on gender and sex, so this is a topic I'm kind of passionate about. (This and how to fight DOMS (muscle soreness), which I've read a toooon of papers on, haha. For personal use reasons.)