Level 4 Invite & Focus

[ejgymmom]

My daughter got her official invite to Level 4 tonight at gymnastics. Up until a week ago I was about 99% sure she wasn't going to be moved up. Her coach told me last week that she put her on the list but that she was going to have to prove to her that she could focus and pay attention enough to be a part of team. That was the main thing holding her back.

So, she got the invite tonight and is SO excited. (Yay!) Her coach told me that she's got some tough work ahead of her. She's definitely got focus issues and has trouble paying attention a lot. She's 6 1/2 so I know a lot of that is age. There's only one other little girl in her group who is younger than she is and she does great paying attention. The rest are at least a year older, a couple are 9 and 10 years old, so it's hard to compare.

My question for you guys is... Have any of you had a similar aged daughter going from pre-team (4 hours a week) to team (9 hours a week) and have seen a change in their focus and attention? Did the increase in hours help at all?

Though I love seeing her get new skills, I could care less about that right now. I just want her to come out of class and for her coach to tell me that she did awesome paying attention and listening. That would make my day. My week. That's happened once that I can recall. It's frustrating.

Anyway, I'm hoping some of you had daughters like this and can say something to make me feel hopeful that things might change for the better soon.

(Ooh, sorry, this was long. I tend to babble...)

 

[gymdog]

Yes. The focus and attention can improve a lot around 7. There is a reason there is a difference between kindergarten and first grade. I am not saying it is going to magical. But I think you will find she could improve a lot even by the end of the summer. It takes time and patience Perhaps give her some tricks to improve and remind her on the ride there each class. Such as "make sure to stand so you are facing the station you are waiting for. Don't turn around in line" and "face the coach when she is giving you an instruction. Wait to hear what the coach says after you finish." If she follows these two "tricks" her listening will improve a lot, but it takes a lot of reminders at this age, so if the parents are giving such reminders in the car (not from the parent area while class is going ) it helps. I am sure you already give her reminders, but it really helps to make it a specific simple thing she can repeat (such as "stand facing the bars in line").

 

[Quadqueen]

I bet you will see a big change in your DD's focus after she starts with the L4 group. My DD was also 6 entering L4 (7 by the time she competed it), and although she didn't have a problem with focus, I could definitely see the benefits of her being around girls 2-3 years older than her. I bet your DD will quickly see that those older kids are paying attention and there's little goofing around, and she'll realize it's not acceptable.

 

[Danica76]

My DD is 8 1/2 and she was just like your gymmie until about 7 1/2. She used to drive me nuts while I'd watch her practice (her coaches, too!). She just couldn't pay attention for anything! But, they were patient with her and now I'm able to look back and see how much she's grown in that area.

It didn't happen all at once and may take some time to see improvement. Your question has made me take a look back and see the growth in focus and attention, but it wasn't like an "a-ha!" moment. My DD has just gradually gotten better with it over time. I am sure that age had a lot to do with it for her.

I work with kids with "behavior problems" in the school setting. One thing I always make sure to remind them of is to "look at my face" when we're talking. Just by saying this, the kiddos process and grasp the expectation or discussion so much more than if they were looking elsewhere or walking away while I'm giving instructions, etc. I use this with my DD all the time - "Remember to look at your coach's face while she's giving you a correction." or "Look at me while we're talking, so you remember what you need to do." This has helped her in the gym SO much. She was always walking away or cartwheeling or bouncing up and down while the coach was giving her a correction. Now she is able (most of the time) to stop and listen, while making eye contact and try to apply what the coach said.

Anyway, it is definitely a maturity thing and I am of the opinion that when coaches chose kiddos like your DD (and mine) to be on team it's because they see that the attention and focus issues will resolve themselves with age. She will get there! Just give her some time and enjoy the journey, frustrating as it may be sometimes

And a BIG congrats to her on joining the L4 team! That's awesome and she should be very proud of herself. Best of luck to you both and keep us updated on how she's doing

 

[ejgymmom]

Thanks so much for the responses!

Gymdog, we have little chats like that in the car before every practice but I haven't used the "make sure you face the station you're waiting on" one. I usually use the less specific "stay in line". I'll try to be a bit more specific with her and maybe that'll help. I was "banned" from watching because Anna would always look over at me through the window when she was supposed to be doing something and it would drive her coach nuts. So I just watch the first 5 min then the last 5-10 minutes now. I hate that I can't watch but I know it's better for her if I'm not there.

Maryn's Mom, we use the "look at my eyes" line ALL the time because Anna will look everywhere but at me a lot of the times when I'm talking to her. I told her coach to do that as well if she needs to get her attention. I have definitely seem some progress in the last year, so hopefully she'll continue to get better over the next year. I'm thinking too, that a new coach and group might help things. There will be some older girls in the new group so maybe she won't be as "comfortable" as she has been in her group of girls that she's been with for the last year. Crossing my fingers!

 

[Azgymmiemom]

YES!!! It will get better!! Congrats to your gymmie, by the way. How awesome is that?

My dd didn't even start gym till she was 6 (and she was tiny) The hardest move up for her was going from dev team (4 hrs) to pre team (6 hrs). She was on pre team all of two months before moving to L4 team (9 hrs) and that didn't phase her much. So- expect the jump from 4 to 9 to be a huge adjustment for her! Make sure she's eating enough, getting enough fluids and sleeping well. She will adjust, but she may be VERY tired for a couple weeks.

Team kids are extremely disciplined (or they wouldn't be on team!!) She will learn how to work harder and focus-but she will be very pleased with the results!!
Again, congrats!!

 

[CreateMagic]

I see a huge difference between my 5-year-old and 6+ prep rookies--they're out of that toddler/early childhood age, their brains develop, they become more aware of what other kids are doing and how this affects reactions of peers and adults, and they begin to have a better understanding that effort = results. Believe me, within a week of beginning to coach these kids in Jan, I could tell who was a preschooler and who was in grade school. A will be fine, I'm sure she will rise to the challenge! Good luck!

 

[Canadian_gym_mom]

My daughter got her official invite to Level 4 tonight at gymnastics. Up until a week ago I was about 99% sure she wasn't going to be moved up. Her coach told me last week that she put her on the list but that she was going to have to prove to her that she could focus and pay attention enough to be a part of team. That was the main thing holding her back.

So, she got the invite tonight and is SO excited. (Yay!) Her coach told me that she's got some tough work ahead of her. She's definitely got focus issues and has trouble paying attention a lot. She's 6 1/2 so I know a lot of that is age. There's only one other little girl in her group who is younger than she is and she does great paying attention. The rest are at least a year older, a couple are 9 and 10 years old, so it's hard to compare.

My question for you guys is... Have any of you had a similar aged daughter going from pre-team (4 hours a week) to team (9 hours a week) and have seen a change in their focus and attention? Did the increase in hours help at all?

Though I love seeing her get new skills, I could care less about that right now. I just want her to come out of class and for her coach to tell me that she did awesome paying attention and listening. That would make my day. My week. That's happened once that I can recall. It's frustrating.

Anyway, I'm hoping some of you had daughters like this and can say something to make me feel hopeful that things might change for the better soon.

(Ooh, sorry, this was long. I tend to babble...)

When my dd was asked to move into a higher level, I actually saw a big improvement with her listening/attention. I think a lot had to do with training with older girls. She saw that they were taking the class more "seriously" and so she strove to be more like them. When she was in the pre-comp class with all the girls around her age and younger, they would all be silly and goof around more and she wasn't able to not go along with them.

Just remember she's little and it will come in time. Congrats to your dd and good luck!

 

[ejgymmom]

When my dd was asked to move into a higher level, I actually saw a big improvement with her listening/attention. I think a lot had to do with training with older girls. She saw that they were taking the class more "seriously" and so she strove to be more like them. When she was in the pre-comp class with all the girls around her age and younger, they would all be silly and goof around more and she wasn't able to not go along with them.

Just remember she's little and it will come in time. Congrats to your dd and good luck!

I'm hoping this will be the case. I think she has gotten very "comfortable" in her group. Most of the kids are somewhat close in age, though there are some older ones in her group. I hope that when she is put in a group with kids she doesn't know, many who are older, along with a new coach that she'll want to try harder. I guess time will tell..

Thanks again for all of your responses. I'm feeling a lot better!

 

[cbone]

I can say that training with older girls has been great for my daughter. She's the youngest one on her competition team, but being around older kids has a great impact on her maturity. She's six and she and the other youngling (7) on the team have kind of been adopted like little sisters. The older girls help keep them focused, but also use them as sort of comic relief at appropriate times. My little one is very excited to be moving up to Level 4, too. Level 4 is where she will actually get to participate in the Big Sister-Little Sister program at our gym.