- Mar 12, 2017
- 12
- 11
My 8 yr old dd has been at one gym for about 4 years. This is her third year on team. She has generally loved going to the gym and lamented not going on days off. Her coach has been very tough and often grouchy (meaning a lot of yelling, sarcasm, and negative talk), but she enjoyed what she was learning and got enough out of it that she was generally happy. I had qualms about it before, but other parents would often say, "Kids need to learn how to deal with difficult people. If she can handle this, she can handle anything." Recently, however, name calling has been added to the mix, and she no longer wanted to go to practice. I decided to pull her out because I believe it would be damaging for her to continue in that environment. She did not want to quit gymnastics, however, and so I had her try out at a couple of other gyms. I've had her in a new program for a few weeks. She is relieved that the atmosphere is more positive, but she's understandably missing her friends and the comfort of the familiar. She says she want to go back to the old gym, or quit. I can't take her back to the same situation, and wish now that I hadn't kept her there so long. I think if she pushes through for a month or so, she'll start to make friends and enjoy it more, and if she quits she'll regret it. She's a child who feels happy with a high level of physical activity, and gets very restless if she doesn't get it. She's one who is jumping and flipping whenever she gets a chance. I will soon need to make a decision about committing to the next season so I'll have to decide, one way or the other. Would you let your child quit, or have them stick it out for another season?