Bit concerned why I need to back off, I haven't done anything and will support her in whatever her choice is.
She is
or was passionate about this sport, more than anything else but I'm told via school she is a bright girl and therefore she is aware of things and sees people move up.
Is there a reason for no practice at home?
Thank you Annikins, I'll see what happens the next few weeks, maybe it could all be different and she wants to try again
Cheerleading sounds a possibility if not.
Hi Taxi, was about to log on to say we have had a chat on the way to school after posting on here yesterday and noticed your reply so will attempt to address it based on this mornings chat.
Regarding back off, I think I mentioned earlier on, I would much prefer her to be a competive swimmer or dancer, not as expensive and not as many hours needed to be able to compete but it was/is DD who wants/wanted gymnastics.
All the things she practices at home are what she's been taught in the dance school gymnastics lessons, or rather the majority are so hopefully she will have beeen taught correctly, although again with my inexperience I wouldnt have a clue whats right and whats wrong.
I've never heard her use the word baby class until recently but based on our chat this morning I think its possibly a few reasons:
In the dance school gymnastics she's been lead to believe she was fairly good (one of three under 8's in the junior class) so isn't finding walking on the beam and forward and backwards rolls challenging.
In the first few weeks of the new class she said a couple of coaches said well done, lovely xxxx, excellent xxxx but now they don't.
She apparently asked when they will do xxx and xxxx and was told they don't do xxxx and xxxx in this class.
Finally the two girls moving up is confusing to a seven a year old. Athough after chatting this morning and explaining what I was told on here hopefully she understands. I will pass your 5 skills correctly or 10 skills poorly on.
Sadly she is a confused 7 year old and replying to you now makes me realise that although she is an hardworker, listens, practices, conditions etc that actually she maybe is quite mature enough for more at the moment.
Thank you all and maybe I will be back with an update in 6 -12 months.
I'll just address the bolded for you:
1. "was passionate" - If every gymnast quit when they said "I hate gymnastics I want to quit" there would be no athletes left in this sport. It is a very involved activity and like anything in life, there are really good days, and really bad days. If the "I want to quit" attitude persists, absolutely let her quit & find a new activity. Like someone said above Cheerleading is a great alternative, I myself competed for almost 10 years in cheerleading after gymnastics. But with that said, just because a 7 year old said she doesn't like gymnastics and wants to quit - I would use this as a teaching opportunity to say "you've made a commitment, lets finish our obligation and we can re evaluate at the end of the term". Chances are, when they start doing something 'new' or she has a good practice, she will forget all about wanting to quit. The exception to that would be if your daughter is in imminent danger or an abusive coaching situation, I of course would say to pull her from the program immediately (but that doesn't sound like the case).
2. Having a 'chat' with a 7 year old is good. You should talk and engage with your children and get their side of the story. But as the parent, you have to also understand that even though she is mature in way she can read situations (as per her teachers), she is still only 7 years old, and the way a 7 year old processes information or social cues (i.e. a coach saying good job on xxx or praising another athlete) could be misinterpreted or at least is not at the capacity of a full grown adult. So you have to take what your child said, and then request clarification or a 'second side of the story' from her coaches, & deduct your own logical conclusions based on the information provided from both the coaching party & your child. For example, I didn't make the team I wanted in cheer when i was 13 (!!! 6 years older than your DD) and I took it so personally, and I said "my coach hated me" and "he was playing favorites with other athletes"... when in actuality, he was looking for different skills to fill the position on the team. Kids & even teenagers misinterpret stuff all the time.
3. Of course she is taught the skill correctly when she is in class. But the problem is, when kids go home & practice new skills or skills they learned in class, there is not a coach there to give corrections or verbal cues like: "squeeze your legs" or "Stand up tall" and then without those reminders & coaching, children will develop bad muscle memory and this becomes very difficult to correct. Gymnastics is best left in the gym.
4. Gymnastics will ALWAYS be about the basics. For her to move up in the levels, she will always come back to just "walking on beam" or "doing rolls". Seriously. Watch upper level optional gymnasts (lv. 8/9/10), they routinely drill shapes, and "basics" like walking, kicks, hollow holds, handstands, rolls, cartwheels etc. Gymnasts cannot be bored with these basics because they are necessary, and will be required to be drilled for as long as she is involved in the sport. It only helps her, and makes her better & stronger. Again, something a 7 year old could have a hard time understanding unless explained to her.
5. Learning XXXX skill or YYYY skill might not be taught in those classes because she does not have 'perfect' basics like I said in point #4. Gymnastics is about perfection before progression. And progressions will come easier if her basics are perfect. The sport is a marathon not a sprint. Again, like I said in point #2, there could be reasons that your daughter is not privy to as to why coaches are not working certain skills with her yet. Ultimately, having a discussion with them will clarify this for you, and you can relay the message age-appropriately to your daughter.
