WAG 5 year old level 3?

[Amyahthegymnast]

Does anyone have any advice on how to get my 5 year old daughter in a level 3 gymnastic class? she def knows most of the skills required.

 

[cadybearsmommy]

A 5 year old cannot compete Level 3, but they can train for level 3. What you need is a good pre team program, have you inquired with your gym about this?

 

[gymbeam]

So fun to get to start so young! I guess if she's not already in a gym you should start by seeing what your options are. Call around to some gyms and find out their process to team. When doing so, keep in mind that not all gyms even compete level 3 so don't let that be an immediate turn-off. For example, our track to JO is first to go through preteam, then xcel bronze, then xcel silver then Level 4 and so on. We live in an area where this process is pretty common- other areas don't use xcel in that way and do actually compete all the "not required" JO levels.

If she has the L3 skills then even if a gym requires preteam (or even rec.) initially, she will likely move to team quicker than others who do not. She's young enough that she could spend time now working her way through the ranks and still reach her fullest potential- whatever that may be.

 

[Amyahthegymnast]

I've mentioned it in so many words but it seems hard

 

[gymbeam]

So it sounds like she's in a gym already then? If so, then expressing your interest in team and continuing to bring her to practice is all you can do. A gym isn't going to miss a girl with team potential so trust the process. On the other hand, if you're getting the impression already that they don't plan to give her the opportunity for team, then you may want to check out other gyms.

 

[suebee]

I know at dd's gym, they use level 1, level 2, etc. for rec classes, but these do not correspond to JO levels 1, 2, etc.

Is your child already on a team/pre-team track, or in rec? Are you asking how to get your 5 yo moved up to JO level 3 team/preteam (depending on where the gym starts competing), and if so, is the child coming from rec or a lower level in the competitive or pre-competitive program?

 

[ayyyrial]

Wanted to say this when I saw this user post in the Parent forum as well:
What your gym calls "Level 3" or "Level (whatever number)" may or may not be the same thing as the competition Level 3 that is relatively standard in the most common gymnastics program (USAG) in the US.
It could mean USAG Level 3. It could be a Level 3 for a different gymnastics competition program. It could just be the name they use for their classes.
Furthermore, every gym has a different selection process for putting kids on their team program and into different levels. So ask at the gym! If the coach doesn't know, ask who you should reach out to for more information.

So ChalkBucket and other websites aren't going to be that helpful. Not sure what you mean by "it seems hard" - the process of getting to Level 3 is hard? Since it seems like your daughter already has a lot of the skills it shouldn't be too difficult. Based on the back handspring video you shared a while ago I wouldn't put her in Level 3 right away but she should get there soon.

 

[Amyahthegymnast]

I don't think she's ready to compete level 3, I think she's ready to be in a level 3 class.

 

[gymdog]

Does your gym not have preteam or something? Based on your previous post I assumed she was in some kind of specialized team training. But every gym is a little different. The first thing to do would be to find out how things work at your gym - it could be there are "paths" separated by age, which is true in most gyms (i.e. a 5 year old with a back handspring goes to a different class/track than a 12 year old with the back handspring). Try asking the office or a parent of an older girl on team how it works to get from the classes to team, or from the class she is in now to the next class.

If you're pretty sure the class she is in now feeds into the level 3 class, then the best thing to do would be to ask the teacher what skills she needs to work on to pass to the next class, or if there is an age requirement (there may be an age requirement).

If your gym doesn't have a team track, or just has Xcel, then I would recommend you get her evaluated at the next closest gyms to your house.

 

[sce]

I don't think she's ready to compete level 3, I think she's ready to be in a level 3 class.

It's not just about skills, but about ability to pay attention, listen to correction, awareness of form when doing the skills. Most gyms have a protocol for when and why kids move from class to class. You might want to just ask the teacher what she needs to accomplish to get moved to the level 3 class.

 

[duyetanh]

I am confused as to why it is hard?

 

[Deleted member 18037]

I don't think she's ready to compete level 3, I think she's ready to be in a level 3 class.

Age aside. Most gyms if you are in a level you compete that level. So if she is not ready to compete, she really isn't ready for the level.

Our gym the kids uptrain. So L2 would be competeing L2 and uptraining l3/4 skills.

 

[Faith]

I don't think she's ready to compete level 3, I think she's ready to be in a level 3 class.

Are you a gymnastics coach?

Not being funny but unless you are, your idea of being ready for a level 3 class may be different from the gyms.

She may have the skills, but she's 5, and at this point good basic form and technique, conditioning and good body shapes are far more important than the skills, especially in the long term. If you and she want to do high level gymmastics, the work on basic rolls and handstands etc needs to be done now, as it will be far harder to correct when she's older and it's ingrained.

Have you spoken to your gym? What have they said?

If you are in a good gym they will place her in the correct group.

 

[gymmutti]

If L3 is the intro competition level (or even if it is pre-team), your gym may move children into the group at specific times of the year (ex: after competition season ends or at the beginning of a term). If so, you may have to wait until January or May to move in.

 

[notthatmom]

Some gyms will put younger girls on a L3 training team even if they're not eligible to compete due to age, some only have a true L3 team for girls who are eligible to compete. Talk to your gym to find out how they do it.

What level is she in now? And when does she turn 6?

 

[SurpriseGymMom]

It was mentioned earlier in this thread, butI don't know that it was answered.... Actual USAG L3 could be way different from "L3 class" at any gym. Gyms can call classes anything they want. Some have cutesy names (hot shots, rising stars, whatever) some have bronze/silver/gold, some have numbers or letters.

I will repeat what someone else said: if your kid has team potential, most likely the powers that be at your gym are already looking at her. You have let someone know that you may be interested in the team track since you have asked about it. Now, sit back and give it some time. If you appear to a an obnoxious crazy gym mom, you're not helping your DD.

 

[2gymkids]

The question would be: Are you asking about a specific recreational class labeled as a Level 3 class? Or are you asking about moving to team (which can also mean competing at Level 3)? These can be two vastly different things. Is your daughter enrolled in a rec class? Have you spoken with the coaches? Every gym is different! Ours goes from rec,to advanced rec (this step is sometimes skipped), to developmental (pre-team), to JO team (numbered levels)....or rec to advanced rec to Excel team. How to get to level 3 is different everywhere and a recreational class is different than JO Level 3. Also, our gym typically only does move ups in the summer- so nobody moves to developmental/pre-team until the end of June/beginning of July.

 

[Deleted member 14190]

Is this for real?

 

[Deleted member 18037]

She has another post of her little one doing BHS

 

[flipnastic]

One thing I realized with my 5 y/o competing level 2 this year is that motor motor development is a HUGE factor in readiness for a level. My daughter can do all of the skills very well but had difficulty with the coordination that the beam and floor routines require, resulting in lower scores. She was definitely the youngest at the level 2 meets, as most girls were 7+, and many were scoring >9.5 on every level..simply because of motor development (I'm a pediatric physical therapist so to me, the difference is obviously developmental...of course, I am sure there are exceptions here and there) She is moving to level 3, but I would not be the least bit surprised if she stayed at level three 2 years for this exact reason.

All that to say...even if she is ready skill wise for level three, many other factors play a part in readiness that is simply age/development related.