Parents Finally invited to pre-team - now frustrated it is too easy

[momstrong]

Because she is 9 and doesn't get that this is a marathon not a sprint.

Compulsories are about the little things and the "big" skills.

The difference between Xcel and JO, the details. And the details aren't "exciting" .

Thanks, totally makes sense to me. Should I explain it that way to her?

 

[Deleted member 18037]

Thanks, totally makes sense to me. Should I explain it that way to her?

Don't know your kid.

I find gymnastics for my kid explains a lot of frustration elsewhere. This is work, drills, which are not all that exciting. And when she complains of something being too hard I remind her of a skill like her kip that seemed to take forever..................

And then she does a skill and not only do it but does it well.

Time and results, that is what made a impact for my peanut. Sure you can flip a BHS. And to flip it well is whole other thing.

Time and results. When you see someone who scores better because they have the details.

The process kinda takes care of itself. So sure chat with her so she knows what is coming.

 

[GymDad9.9]

Don't know your kid.

I find gymnastics for my kid explains a lot of frustration elsewhere. This is work, drills, which are not all that exciting. And when she complains of something being too hard I remind her of a skill like her kip that seemed to take forever..................

And then she does a skill and not only do it but does it well.

Time and results, that is what made a impact for my peanut. Sure you can flip a BHS. And to flip it well is whole other thing.

Time and results. When you see someone who scores better because they have the details.

The process kinda takes care of itself. So sure chat with her so she knows what is coming.

I would add there are no shortcuts to success in this sport. It's a lot of work, repetition, focus, and discipline.

 

[txgymfan]

Does your gym offer open gym that is not crazy wild? If so it might be a fun way for her to play with some of her old skills.

Also, at 9 she is old enough to set some conditioning skill goals like holding her hand stand for 30 seconds ( or 10 or 5) or getting her press hand stand or getting her splits square and all the way on both sides and middle. These things can also be safely worked at home if SHE wants to do it. She could check with her new coach for some realistic and stretch goals.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

I would add there are no shortcuts to success in this sport. It's a lot of work, repetition, focus, and discipline.

I don't think this is all that unique to "gymnastics". Doing something well takes work. And the day on day out work isn't easy or a party. Even stunning natural talent gets to a point where it's work.

This said as my girls team cleaned out their lockers and her favorite receiver didn't have the day his talent reflects.

 

[GymDad9.9]

I don't think this is all that unique to "gymnastics". Doing something well takes work. And the day on day out work isn't easy or a party. Even stunning natural talent gets to a point where it's work.

This said as my girls team cleaned out their lockers and her favorite receiver didn't have the day his talent reflects.

A boat trip in Miami will do that to you

 

[Deleted member 18037]

A boat trip in Miami will do that to you

Yep

 

[Aussie_coach]

Competitive gymnastics is a whole new ball game, lots of work on perfecting the more basic skills and lots repetition, if she is patient it will pay off in the end.

Is it possible for her to do the red class as well as the pre team?

 

[AmandaLynn]

Thanks! She is wanting to still do a private now and then with her rec/xcel coach. What are your thoughts on that?

No. No, No, NO!

There is a reason that the coaches have brought the group back to the very basics.

If I am being frank, the frustration that your daughter is feeling right now with not doing the skills that she was doing in rec classes is a large part of the reason that so many gyms have what seems to be an age limit for their JO compulsories. It is a tough adjustment for kids that have been pushed through skills with incorrect technique and improper form to be thrust into a preteam or team group at a gym that focuses on strong basics. Also, it is more difficult to "unlearn" bad habits than to teach the skills from scratch. It is much simpler when you are working from a clean slate.

That said, if the coaches have chosen her for preteam, they obviously see potential in her and feel like they can mold her into the type of athlete that they want her to be. You just need to explain to her that there is a difference in doing a skill and in doing it correctly/well. Maybe have her take a look at the skills that she was doing (I am sure you have video of some of them) and then have her watch the level 3 and 4s in your gym do the same skills.

The toughest part of this transition is going to be getting her on board with the JO philosophy of details and perfect technique and out of the recreational mindset of simply acquiring skills. The bigger skills come from a strong base. You can't build a skyscraper on a shaky foundation.

Long winded way to say... Continuing private lessons with the previous rec instructor will reinforce the poor technique that she has already learned and will slow down her forward progress in her new group.

 

[GymDad9.9]

No. No, No, NO!

There is a reason that the coaches have brought the group back to the very basics.

If I am being frank, the frustration that your daughter is feeling right now with not doing the skills that she was doing in rec classes is a large part of the reason that so many gyms have what seems to be an age limit for their JO compulsories. It is a tough adjustment for kids that have been pushed through skills with incorrect technique and improper form to be thrust into a preteam or team group at a gym that focuses on strong basics. Also, it is more difficult to "unlearn" bad habits than to teach the skills from scratch. It is much simpler when you are working from a clean slate.

That said, if the coaches have chosen her for preteam, they obviously see potential in her and feel like they can mold her into the type of athlete that they want her to be. You just need to explain to her that there is a difference in doing a skill and in doing it correctly/well. Maybe have her take a look at the skills that she was doing (I am sure you have video of some of them) and then have her watch the level 3 and 4s in your gym do the same skills.

The toughest part of this transition is going to be getting her on board with the JO philosophy of details and perfect technique and out of the recreational mindset of simply acquiring skills. The bigger skills come from a strong base. You can't build a skyscraper on a shaky foundation.

Long winded way to say... Continuing private lessons with the previous rec instructor will reinforce the poor technique that she has already learned and will slow down her forward progress in her new group.

This reminds me of my first conference with my daughter's Level 2 coach after being pulled from Pre-Team when the Coach told me my daughter would question the Coach's instructions and corrections as if she (my daughter) knew better. That did not last very long, my daughter transitioned out of that mindset fairly quickly and became, and has remained, a very coachable gymnast.

 

[Sasha]

Thanks! She is wanting to still do a private now and then with her rec/xcel coach. What are your thoughts on that?

Probably, no. Unless the rec/xcel coach is as qualified as the JO coaches and wants to work with her specifically on her form/technique on the building block skills she is doing in preteam. Also if the head JO coach who offered her this preteam invitation approves and approves what she is working on in her privates. In that case, doing privates focused on correct form on basic skills could be beneficial to 'undo' some bad habits likely acquired in rec.

(Some of our xcel and rec coaches have/do also coach JO, so I didn't want to immediately reject the coach based on her current position.)

What your daughter does not need is more skill-based 'rec' time learning sloppy BHS, back tucks, vaulting incorrectly, and the like. That will hurt her progress.

My JO level 6/7 daughter also started in rec/xcel, so speaking from experience here.

Congrats on your daughter reaching an important milestone toward JO!

 

[l.c.o]

Preteam starts at the beginning, and progress can be fairly slow. I remember back when my DD started preteam, she had a good friend who stayed rec (and eventually went on to Xcel). Said girl frequently teased my DD because her skills were "better" than my DD's. The girl was flipping all over the place while my DD was perfecting a cartwheel for what seemed like months. It was slightly frustrating to me as a parent to hear from that mom all about how Susie was progressing while she implied my DD wasn't. My DD took it as well as she could have, and stuck with preteam.

That attention to form helps them catch up and surpass many rec/Xcel kiddos over time. Today, my DD has pretty solid basics and is competing fairly well in optionals, and is now further "ahead" of that friend. That isn't by accident - it's by design. The additional hours and conditioning and focus on shapes will benefit your DD in the long run, if competing on team is what she prefers.

A solid handstand is essential for SO MANY SKILLS.

I would say skip the privates for now. If she was ready to learn those skills correctly at the moment, she (probably) would be. If your DD is really missing playing around with those skills, perhaps attending a few open gyms would be fun in the meantime, as others have suggested. Coaches may not be thrilled that she's continuing to work on skills she "isn't ready for" but it's possible it may help bridge the gap.

Congrats to your DD for being invited to preteam - trust that they'll get her where she needs to go. Otherwise, there's no shame at all in staying with rec if that's what she loves.

 

[e'smum]

congrats to your dd! conditioning and more conditioning. our gym is huge on building up core strength. so much so that i heard a couple of JO girls who came from a gym that had to shut down suddenly and unexpectedly this time last year, moved gyms after just a few months b/c they said they didn't sign up for cross fit, they were there to learn skills. lol our coaches like to torture the JO girls with new and exciting strength building programs from time to time. 2 years ago they went through an intense program that had my dd's thighs burning. it was short but they came out of it with new muscles.

 

[momstrong]

Probably, no. Unless the rec/xcel coach is as qualified as the JO coaches and wants to work with her specifically on her form/technique on the building block skills she is doing in preteam. Also if the head JO coach who offered her this preteam invitation approves and approves what she is working on in her privates. In that case, doing privates focused on correct form on basic skills could be beneficial to 'undo' some bad habits likely acquired in rec.

(Some of our xcel and rec coaches have/do also coach JO, so I didn't want to immediately reject the coach based on her current position.)

What your daughter does not need is more skill-based 'rec' time learning sloppy BHS, back tucks, vaulting incorrectly, and the like. That will hurt her progress.

My JO level 6/7 daughter also started in rec/xcel, so speaking from experience here.

Congrats on your daughter reaching an important milestone toward JO!

Thanks! We are very excited and this all makes sense.

Actually, the gym approached her rec coach to teach this preteam class, but she said no. She used to teach team, but says she likes to be able to have more fun with the girls. She said she used to coach preteam/team and would get in trouble b/c the parents watching didn't want to see the girls laughing and having fun - they were there to work.

I will ask her preteam coach and accelerated director what their thoughts are.