Parents Move Ups

[vbdb]

Levels are a surprise to us parents every fall. Our kids get shuffled around at the beginning of the summer but we get an email from the gym with all of us being bcc'ed so we don't know who is in which group. The email comes in the middle of the night in late June and I always know it's come in because my phone starts blowing up with texts first thing in the morning from gym mom friends trying to figure out which kids are together.
They're placed based on level/age group and similar future potential. My DDs group was a mix of 10-13 years old who competed levels 5-7 this year. I expect they'll stick together for one more year before they get shuffled again.

 

[Really]

My daughters pre-team group were given placements in April about what group they would start training with in the summer (JO, XCEL, or pre-team). Parents were notified via email with follow up discussions if necessary.

I appreciate that this went through the parents and not through papers sent with the kids!!!

That may be fine for young kids, but our gym does it the same way (via email) and the moms of girls who got bad news feel differently. I know of at least 2 moms who still haven't been able to "break the news" to their kid that they've been placed in Xcel instead of JO, which is what the girls were hoping for. One mom who got the "Congrats/Welcome to Xcel!" letter was irate that the coaches expect HER to be the bearer of bad tidings to her daughter. She felt that it should come from the coaches because it was their decision, after all, and not hers.

 

[raenndrops]

We don't have a "pre-team" at our gym. Anyone in our highest rec class who will be 6 at least by competition season is invited to try out for team.
We held these individual tryouts in April. A parent must be present during the evaluation and placement is discussed with the gymnast and parent immediately after. Everyone who tried out this year was invited to team.
If the girl will be in at least 7th grade, she is given the option of L3 or Xcel Gold.
They train with team from mid-April thru June. A week of our summer gymnastics camp is "highly recommended" in July. In August, we see who actually comes back. At the end of August, levels are decided. The gymnasts have the option to practice with team but NOT compete, practice AND compete, or go back to rec / quit. If they made it to the end of August, they don't choose the last option.
L3s will either start competing in November or January, depending on readiness.

 

[NY Dad]

Thanks to everyone that responded and for the words of encouragement. I’ll keep this short.

Someone asked why the parents need to know about the level.
- Scheduling (I’m surprised more people didn’t bring this up, how are we supposed to plan summer and other activities without knowing the schedule)
- Bills (do I need to refinance again LOL)
- To be informed what’s going on with our kids (some kids don’t share so much).

You don't know what was on the paper.....
If you want to know what the paper is you should ask.

That’s my plan, several weeks ago I scheduled a private for my dd, it’s for this Sat. I just want my dd to be prepared (mentally) for her class tomorrow. Based on the possibilities love to be able to say (for example)
…This is just a note saying X but they won’t make final decisions until Y. Coach said that you need Z skills and you’ll get there.

all the kids should get a paper, with the level they are. It's information, even if you are staying the same you need to know.

And, I also think they should be told what’s on the paper (not specifically). Why the mystery? They’re all going to find out soon anyway.

if you are receiving an invite to team, you then plan to train with the team over the summer and compete level 3 in the fall,

This is my primary concern. I’m almost certain that pre-team does not train over the summer. How is she going to get the skills if she’s not training?

most know before the gauntlet falls, with the exception of those girls on the bubble

Last year before my dd broke her elbow the coach had mentioned in passing something about being on the team next year. (I’m saying this in retrospect b/c I didn’t realize until recently that it’s not basically the whole pre-team that moves up). Since she’s been back she’s been training with the “weaker” girls (her words not mine). I had originally assumed this would be until she was able to do everything and had her full strength/flexibility back. Apparently that wasn’t the case.

(NOT said snarky at all!) if she is experiencing fear at such a low level,

No worries, that totally makes sense.

Do you have any idea how notifications happen?

No, I don’t know, but will hopefully get answers on Saturday. We never had any kind of pre-team meeting, emails, or any kind of notification. Occasionally they all come home with flyers (that are also all over the gym) for rec through level 2 for holiday vacation clinics. That’s about the extent of the communication. I don’t know if this changes if they make the official team.

She is back in the gym. She has recovered from a pretty serious injury. Focus on the positive-I think there is a lot of it there. And have your daughter tell you one good thing that happened at gym each night, and then simply praise her for it, without asking questions.

I totally agree. Thanks.
I think I’ve been trained well by CB, that’s exactly how I responded. (Okay, I might ask her a follow-up question since her answers are typically one or two words)

how was she invited to level 2?

Long story short (this is my understanding since it was before I became involved) she was in rec at another gym doing a gymnastics clinic at her current gym at the end of the Summer and the coach invited her to join JO2. I think a few days later we got a form in the mail to commit for the school year. Once she joined I scrambled online to try to figure out what JO meant. I found CB and I instantly became addicted. LOL (sorry I was going to try to keep it short)

just lined them up and told them who was moving and who were repeating.

Wow, I wonder who thought that was a good idea. How about lining the coaches up and giving them a performance evaluation in front of the other coaches/kids/parents?

My kiddo got her kip and was so excited to be moved with the 'big girls' at the next practice, only to be told 'not today' . It was painful as a parent to see and confusing for my kiddo who (is just 7) and didn't really understand why she couldn't join the other group.

Yuck , sorry to hear about that. I think sometimes people forget that kids have feelings too.

Not short?

 

[Deleted member 18037]

Thanks to everyone that responded and for the words of encouragement. I’ll keep this short.

Someone asked why the parents need to know about the level.
- Scheduling (I’m surprised more people didn’t bring this up, how are we supposed to plan summer and other activities without knowing the schedule)
- Bills (do I need to refinance again LOL)
- To be informed what’s going on with our kids (some kids don’t share so much).

Yep. Especially the last one, getting information from my kid nearly impossible

 

[Deleted member 18037]

Wow, I wonder who thought that was a good idea. How about lining the coaches up and giving them a performance evaluation in front of the other coaches/kids/parents?

That would be a hoot.

 

[e'smum]

i think our coaches already know where everything is going to land but we will be told at the end of june/beginning of july. we've already been sent emails with the new expectations and possibilities of what may happen (repeat, move to xcel, or move up).

 

[NY Dad]

OP here. I've got a small update. We ended up getting the mysterious paper (which turned out to be an envelope LOL). She (and only she) got hers on Friday (because she's on the bubble?). It was an invite to try out for the team in about one month.

 

[MomIdidit!]

Congrats!! Please keep us posted.

 

[SMH]

Question for anyone- does your gym give a reason *why* if your gymmie is not moved up? We received my daughter's evaluation and while each coach did a good job of writing a little 'this is what you do well this is what you need to improve' for each event, her estimated level for next year is 3 (so a second year of level 3).

I trust the coaches, and although I'm not super thrilled at another year of 3, we will manage. But there is really no reason given as to why they made that choice, and I'm curious if other gyms are more detailed in their explanation when they keep a kid back in a level.

 

[NY Dad]

We haven't had the tryout yet but my understanding is that there are many more kids than spots. The best of the best get invited to JO3 the next tier get invited to IGC Copper. So it's just a numbers game.

 

[mom2newgymnast]

Question for anyone- does your gym give a reason *why* if your gymmie is not moved up? We received my daughter's evaluation and while each coach did a good job of writing a little 'this is what you do well this is what you need to improve' for each event, her estimated level for next year is 3 (so a second year of level 3).

I trust the coaches, and although I'm not super thrilled at another year of 3, we will manage. But there is really no reason given as to why they made that choice, and I'm curious if other gyms are more detailed in their explanation when they keep a kid back in a level.

Is there an option to talk to the coach and ask in person?

Dd's gym pretty much sucks at communication (in my opinion), but they do handle this situation better than just a written note. They schedule one on one meetings between the parents and main coach and that is where we find out if they made the team and/or what level they will be targeting. They will explain the whys and then allow for questions. I much prefer an in person meeting to just a written note. That being said, dd's team has no idea what level they will be competing next right now and it has been pretty frustrating having to just wait .We don't know when they are going to decide and there has been no real communication from the coaches about it since last December. I'd really like to know one way or the other, but I'm trying to be patient and not complain (at least not to the coaches/gym!).. lol.

 

[triplethreat+1]

I like how out gym does it- in May/June we receive a package that has the recommended training group, summer hours, and projected fall/ winter hours. Plus a team info pkg if it's your first year. Kids are invited from rec as well. The groups are based roughly on speed of learning, age, and projected level range. This past year we found out levels in Oct I think, based on what routines they learned. We also have one-on-one meetings in the spring to discuss progression.
I think it's just the right amount of info, and I've only seen one CGM (her dd is a talented trampolinist but she yells at her during training all the time), so they must be doing something right!

 

[dbean]

Question for anyone- does your gym give a reason *why* if your gymmie is not moved up? We received my daughter's evaluation and while each coach did a good job of writing a little 'this is what you do well this is what you need to improve' for each event, her estimated level for next year is 3 (so a second year of level 3).

I trust the coaches, and although I'm not super thrilled at another year of 3, we will manage. But there is really no reason given as to why they made that choice, and I'm curious if other gyms are more detailed in their explanation when they keep a kid back in a level.

The my DD goes to has a skill, strength, and flexibility checklist. You can only be missing one skill...coaches go over list progress with kids once or twice a month...parents are free to see list but list stays at gym. Makes it Uber easy to understand...love it.

 

[Mish]

Wow I am jealous of all the info you guys get! It must really help with all of the issues that are being discussed on the other board (parents as the enemy)!!

 

[profmom]

Practice groups set for the year at the beginning of summer; levels decided in fall. For the boys, mobility from D2 to D1 or from JD to JO possible during the season if things go well. I don't think it makes sense to decide level definitively when the kids are still many months out from meets, though everyone has a pretty decent idea of what's going to happen going into the summer.

The uncertainty for us this year is on our side -- my daughter may move over to XCel! If she stays JO, it will be another year of L8 because she's finding it hard to progress on bars with her intermittent back problems. My son, by virtue of his age, will do a second year of L9. He will, however, spend some time this summer working on some C dismounts, hopefully to make his transition to L10 easier when it happens.

 

[NY Dad]

Practice groups set for the year at the beginning of summer; levels decided in fall

How would you get the skills required for the higher level group between the beginning of summer and fall if you're training with the lower level group?

 

[wallinbl]

How would you get the skills required for the higher level group between the beginning of summer and fall if you're training with the lower level group?

The training groups are necessary in some part to maintain reasonable ratios of gymnasts to equipment/space and gymnasts to coaches, as well as to keep groups of girls working on similar skills together as much as possible to simplify coaching. The groups aren't a constraint on skills to be worked, as much as the best approximation that works for running an efficient practice. Every gymnast is on their own path (this is especially true as you get to level 9/10, where they're all doing different skills).

 

[profmom]

At my kids' gym, training groups don't correspond perfectly with levels; as Wallinbl explains, it's about skills. A child who's on the bubble between repeating and moving up will be working on the same skills over the summer with the rest of the group and if the skills are there in the fall, the move up happens. My DD did a second year of old L5 (comparable to current L4); she spent a lot of that summer working on skills at a mix of L5 and L6, but for some things, she was working more on refining the L5 stuff while girls who were moving faster did drills to develop L6 and even L7 skills. My son's current (and summer) workout group will have some boys training mostly A and B skills (lower value), but others Ds and even a few Es. Everyone in that group will be either L9 or L10 next year.

It took me a long time to understand this, but skills and how they can be put together in successful, clean routines are more important than level.

 

[Deleted member 18037]

How would you get the skills required for the higher level group between the beginning of summer and fall if you're training with the lower level group?

At our gym, there is constant up training going on. Especially in late spring and early summer.

Now exactly what that up training is will depend on where a child is at currently. There are many things and drills that go into getting skills. It is a progression. And a lot of time to the casual un-gymmie eye you wonder why they are appearing to "waste time" when in fact they are drilling and prepping for a higher level skill.

Some examples, tumbling, lots of drills, followed by tumble track, followed by doing a skill on the floor. The lower kids might not be floor ready, but flipping on the tumble track the kids deemed higher would be flipping the skill on the floor.

Vault, many drills happen, not on the vault. To my untrained eye at first it was like where are they going with all these drills and lo and behold. They are now starting to flip tsuks.
Lower kids perhaps flipping into the pit. Higher kids flipping onto mats.

Again, can only speak to our gym. There are defined groups, by level, at the end of season "training level" for off season, until officially leveled again. But they then end up in different groups at different times/practices depending on what they are working on. It changes even in the same practice, day, or week. For my gymmie, sometimes she will be training "higher" at beam, but "lower" at bar, in the same practice. They might all be doing something on floor together. Sometimes even the gymmie gets to decide if they are ready to start something. So the braver ones will go for it. The more cautious, tentative will go umm not this week.

How do I know this. A very small bit of watching. A bit of finally getting information out of my kid. Hmmm why are with such and such a group.... Because I already do xyz on beam.
Umm mom, my bars s*#k. And a bit of having been at the gym awhile, yearly parents meeting and the occasional chat with the coach. And time, we have been at this gym going on 5 yrs.

Of course our first year at this gym, I was a rudderless ship that had zero clue.