Women Help coaching rec gymnasts

[gymnast_claire16]

Hi everyone. I'm fairly new here and I was hoping to get some good advice from you all
I have been asked by my coach to coach the level 1-2 rec class at my gym. I was wondering if anyone might have any drills or tips or games that I could use for my class to make sure the kids learn a lot and have a fun time. I am new to coaching and want to make my coach proud and make sure that the kids have good basics.
Thanks for the help

 

[Jard.the.gymnast]

Great for you! Coaching is a very fun thing to do. You coach level 1 and 2, do they already have the level 1 and 2 skills? First you have to make a list (on paper or in your head) on the skills you want them to work on. Then you can look for progressions (there aren't too many on this level). Be ready to do a lot of spotting. Make sure you have a stretching and warmup routine for the start and end of class. Warmup can also be a game or a relay race etc. Also think of conditioning if you are supposed to do that with them. And always remember that it is rec, it should be mostly fun!

 

[gymnast_claire16]

Thanks for your help [emoji3] the level 2 girls have very basic skills ( forward/backward rolls, cartwheels, round offs, and handstands) the level 1 girls don't have any skills yet

 

[FlippinLilysMom]

I coach preschool rec classes and am always looking for new ways to make practice fun for the kiddos. I watch a lot of youtube videos to get ideas, there are also some great links on pinterest. Gymnasticsprogressions.com also has some great tips and videos, though you have to buy a subscription to this site.

 

[gymisforeveryone]

I'll give you some links for the videos/channels that I think would be helpful for a rec coach:

This channel called Kleuren Turnen:




I linked two example videos but the channel has tons more!

Meinerkm channel is also awesome! They have ready lesson plans filmed especially for levels 1 and 2. The drills, circuits and warm ups are fun, creative and keep the kids very busy on a relatively small area close to you on each event.

Here's one example, and again the channel has tons more:



The gymnastics experience channel has of different complexes and variations of simple skills. They are a great guide for you. You'll remember the not-so-usual steps between different progressions better if you watch through these videos. Here's one example, and there are many more:

 

[ayyyrial]

You can learn a lot from watching other coaches who have more experience. I don't know if your gym has a program where you shadow a more experienced coach, but if not, try to just sit in the gym for a while and watch someone else coach. I think that's the best way to learn stuff about class management as well (e.g. how to handle students who are more rowdy while still giving attention to everyone in the class).

In terms of skill development, I think the biggest thing at this level is that they just aren't working on very many different skills so it's good to try to get variety in with different drills. Also sometimes one drill will really work for some kids while another drill works for others. The kids usually also love getting to use different mats/blocks/pieces of equipment. E.g. for cartwheels one week you could do cartwheels down a wedge mat; then cartwheels over a sideways panel mat; cartwheels off a panel mat sideways; cartwheels up onto a panel mat (start standing on the ground, first foot and hands go onto the panel). For the more advanced ones, you can set up some small blocks about 2 or 3 feet apart and see if they can do a cartwheel in-between them without kicking the sides. In general you can try to use different blocks and mats to create visual cues that help beginners implement a correction. E.g. to get them to do long forward rolls, we have two carpet squares placed a foot or two apart and have them try to do a roll without touching the ground (like ninjas or spies).

 

[gymnast_claire16]

Thank You guys so much for your help! I really appreciate it [emoji3][emoji3]