Women Camp for solo child. Ok?

[putri]

Hi! We'll be visiting families next summer (Memphis area) and thinking about sending dd, 10 next year), to gym camp. FlipFest is the closest that I know of and so that will probably be where she'll go if she goes.

Issue: We're stationed in the UK. So dd will be the only one going from her gym and we don't know any other US gym kid. Should she still go or would she feel left out since most go with friends?

If she doesn't go, she'll just be training at one of the gyms near us but I thought it'd be something fun and summer camp in general is something a kid should experience at least once.

Then I need to know what level she is... Dd is for sure pass (old) level 5. Besides 5 stuff, on beam she can twirl 360, summersault off, flip flop, bwo and fwo. The later two still not consistent, 75% sticks them. She just started learning to bhs on floor beam. Floor she can summersault and do round off and 3 bhs. Knowing her coach, she'll probably learn to back tuck soon. She said she does fly springs but I have no idea what that is. She can do hand springs but not like what I saw on youtube the old level 6 girls do, single foot and then two feet. Dd may be able to do them but she doesn't do them here so don't know. Vault is the normal handspring (will have to go over 120cm next year due to age although dd is only 130cm tall) and bars she said she can do clear hips and just did her first giants last practice. I have not seen either and not sure her definition of clear hips are the same as the US ones.

Should I sign her up for new level 5?

Last, the registration forms are up. Do they fill up fast or will I be safe registering later after we have dates and our flight details to the US sometimes early next year?

Thanks!

 

[Fliptwisttumble]

I can't help you with levels, or the specifics of this camp. DD did go to IGC last year by herself..... So different country, without teammates or friends. She did envy it, but returned later in the summer with a friend, and said it was "easier". Everyone else "had" someone right from the get to. While others were lovely to her, they all ultimately had a friend. She would do it again though in a heart beat if it meant going or not.

One thing to find out is if that particular camp is more TEAM oriented..... Here are quite a few camps where they travel primarily as teams.

Good luck!

 

[2G1B]

My kids went to flip fest this past summer. My girls did not have any friends going with them (my DS did have his BFF and another team mate). My girls do NOT like to "hang out" (they are almost 2 years apart) together, so they both pretty much had to make all of their own friends. They both seemed to have no problem doing it.

 

[lhmom]

My daughter also went to Flip Fest this past summer. She went with her teammates but told me that several of the girls that they met and did things with were at the camp alone. As for what to put, you could put the new level 5. When she registers, they will also be asking her what skills she has done before then will have a workout on the 1st day to determine what groups to put the girls in. As for signing up, it depends on what week you are looking at. On the website, late June is already closed to girls. The most popular weeks (at least last year) seemed to be mid-June to mid-July. Hope that your daughter had as much fun as mine did! Mine still talks about how much fun she had.

 

[putri]

Thank you all!! This is reassuring! She makes friends easily and she is quite likeable but I'd be mad at myself if I sent her somewhere where everybody's tight with at least another person already cause they're gym club buddies.

Thanks for the levels tip! I'll just register her for new 5 and she can sort herself out with the admins/coaches when she gets there.

So excited to visit the US next year for a variety of reasons!

 

[MaryA]

DD went to Woodward by herself when she was 9 and had a great time. She made friends with a girl who had a WAY bigger bank account than my DD and who treated her to lots of ice cream and go-cart rides! That said, now that she's been several times with teammates, now she only wants to go when she has friends/teammates going. But now she's 12 so she is in a stage where it's all about hanging with her friends.

 

[bogwoppit]

My youngest went to IGC alone when she was 9 and had a blast. US camps are great with lots of activities and frankly the girls will all want to be your dd's friend as she is "foreign" .

People seem to really like Flip Fest.

 

[Jenny]

my dd went to a gym summer camp alone at 9 and had a great time. I am sure she will love it.

 

[JoyAvenueMom]

Kipper (9) went to a university camp alone this summer and had a blast. She generally makes friends easily, and quickly bonded with the girls in her training group. That being said... when our "new" home gym hosted a week-long camp later this summer, she had MORE fun there. I am sure it was because she was around girls she knew better, and just felt more comfortable. The university camp cost 6x more...hmmmm...I will think twice about paying that again. I am not convinced the "value" was there. I would rather invest in other types of entertainment...perhaps more specific to the area we were visiting.

 

[putri]

IGC and Woodward are both in PA, yes?

Are they all more less the same? May pick up a new skill or really polish up something they're working on, meet new friends and have fun non-gym activities later in the day?

 

[bogwoppit]

Yes the camps are all pretty much the same format. Kids room with girls their age, train with girls their age and level. Work on higher level skills and then indulge in all kinds of other fun activities.

My kids did camps for about 8 years each and totally loved them.

IGC is in PA. Woodward has camps in Cal and PA. Woodward has other sports at their camps too, like bmx, skateboard and cheer. The kids are less supervised than at IGC. I hear Flip Fest is a lot more like IGC.

 

[putri]

Yes the camps are all pretty much the same format. Kids room with girls their age, train with girls their age and level. Work on higher level skills and then indulge in all kinds of other fun activities.

My kids did camps for about 8 years each and totally loved them.

IGC is in PA. Woodward has camps in Cal and PA. Woodward has other sports at their camps too, like bmx, skateboard and cheer. The kids are less supervised than at IGC. I hear Flip Fest is a lot more like IGC.

Thanks, Bog!! I think, due to proximity to our home, we'll stick with FlipFest. Maybe IF she still loves gym and we're back in the States she can try out IGC!

 

[GymBee97]

My DD has been going solo to gym camp since she was 7yo she is now 16 and still loves to go to camp. She makes lots of friends from all around the country and the world. She still has pen pals with a lot of them. she is roomed with girls her own age or close to her age. There are a lot of girls and boys that go solo. She looks forward every year to seeing her camp friends and making new ones every year.

 

[reillysmom2]

My daughter went to FlipFest for the first time completely by herself last summer, and I was really worried, too. (she is 12 years old for reference). They bunked her in a cabin with others who were traveling without a team, and it was a great experience for her. She made friends and has kept in daily contact with 2 girls in particular. I feel like it was a real rite of passage for her, she'd never been away like that on her own. She's already made plans to go back :0)