Parents Xcel to JO (DP)

[MolliMahem]

Hello all. Another parent with a question about Xcel to JO. I've been reading through posts and lots of good info, I still have questions. My child is currently in XB (9 years old), she consistently scored in the high 36's and got a couple of 37's this season. She is competing at state later this month and we are very proud of her.
She spent 1.5 years on pre-team and then our gym started an Xcel program for the first time. It has been a good time and she enjoys it. Though she shares frustration at not practicing for skills needed to advance (like she didn't make JO because she didn't have her back hip circle - but they don't practice it) I won't pretend I know better than coaches or how to coach at all. I am capable of advocating and asking for her though.
How do you approach a gym/coaches about making the switch. Our fear is her getting pigeon holed and never getting an honest opportunity to switch over. we love our gym and they are great, the last thing we wanna do is come in too hot and be the "my kid is so great" type of parents. We just want a fact finding mission or maybe make them aware that she wants to be challenged more and we as parents are committed to the time and financial elements attached with that.
Maybe I'm a bad gym-parent for having this mentality, but my (limited) understanding is that is the final goal of all this is a scholarship, isn't making the switch to JO the necessary step? It is a huge financial and time commitment - very happy to make it, but I (maybe wrongly) feel like her being in the track that gives her the opportunity is important. and yes, not everyone's kid makes it all the way - no disappointment there, just want to give her the opportunity, all the skills, confidence, foundation of fitness, life skills and other intangibles are worth every minute and penny.

 

[Coach Kate]

Very very very few athletes receive a gymnastics scholarship, so no, that's not really the final goal for most kids who get involved with gymnastics.

What skills does your child have? Scoring well in bronze or Xcel in general does not necessarily translate to being a good fit for DP. If she isn't close to a round off back handspring, a lot of gyms are going to balk at putting a 9/10 year old in level 2.

It is a little concerning and odd to me that they weren't doing back hip circles even on preteam - that's an extremely basic skill and at the gym I worked at, was required to move out of intermediate recreational classes, after which came an advanced intermediate and an advanced level before funneling to preteam or directly to bronze or silver. If they tend to compete closer to the bare minimum requirements, it might be worth an assessment at another gym. If she had different coaching and was building more skills, there might be an easier to switch from Xcel to level 6 in a couple years.

I do think it's completely fine to ask the coach (es) what they think about her potential, progress, and her goals. They can give you better feedback and they may also be able to reveal how they approach things, as gyms all do things differently.