dani4
Proud Parent
My 4 year old daughter has been in rec/preschool gymnastics since the fall and she loves it. She wants to do the developmental/pre-team program, and I'm considering enrolling her in the fall. Her current gym teacher says she is doing well, and says she would recommend her for the program.
My daughter is pretty fearless, very strong for her age, also tall (95th percentile) and lean. She has a lot of energy, as most kids do, she loves to dance around the livingroom and play gymnastics.
However, she has always been awkward and somewhat uncoordinated. Not very good balance. Her preschool teacher is a former OT (licensed outside the US), and shared some concerns with me about her motor development. She thinks I should take her to physical therapy for an evaluation, and possibly to get some exercises that could help her. The teacher says that it seems like one side of her body is stronger than the other, and she walks on the insides of her feet (I do that too). She thinks if we nip this in the bud she can avoid later joint & other problems from developing (I have knee issues, so I get it). One very positive thing her preschool teacher did say is that she is the most tenacious child she has ever known- she works very hard to do what she wants to do, even if it's harder for her than other kids. She is all over everything in the playground, and she likes to run around with the rough boys in the class. She doesn't let anything hold her back.
Anyway, I guess I'm a little concerned about putting her in developmental gymnastics, with that kind of background. I just wonder if I might be setting her up for disappointment later, in a sport that requires perfection. Maybe I should just keep her in rec. But she loves the idea of competing, even though I've explained how it all works to her- the fun & the huge challenges. She loves performing, so I think she is attracted to that aspect of it- I think she may eventually gravitate more towards dance (she's doing that too).
At the same time, I don't want to put my own fears and doubts on her. It's not fair for me to decide for her what she can and cannot do. So what if she does pre-team, competes L3 or L4 for a little while, and then decides to move on to something else? That wouldn't be so bad. I don't want her to remember that she really liked gymnastics and I said she couldn't do it. I have my own stories about that from my childhood (I was forced out of competitive swimming because my parents didn't want to drive me).
You see I've already answered my own question, sort of. But I am wondering if any of you have a child with similar issues, and if they were able to have a happy time doing competitive gymnastics, and for how long. On the flip side, do you think kids with balance issues should not try to be on the team?
My daughter is pretty fearless, very strong for her age, also tall (95th percentile) and lean. She has a lot of energy, as most kids do, she loves to dance around the livingroom and play gymnastics.
However, she has always been awkward and somewhat uncoordinated. Not very good balance. Her preschool teacher is a former OT (licensed outside the US), and shared some concerns with me about her motor development. She thinks I should take her to physical therapy for an evaluation, and possibly to get some exercises that could help her. The teacher says that it seems like one side of her body is stronger than the other, and she walks on the insides of her feet (I do that too). She thinks if we nip this in the bud she can avoid later joint & other problems from developing (I have knee issues, so I get it). One very positive thing her preschool teacher did say is that she is the most tenacious child she has ever known- she works very hard to do what she wants to do, even if it's harder for her than other kids. She is all over everything in the playground, and she likes to run around with the rough boys in the class. She doesn't let anything hold her back.
Anyway, I guess I'm a little concerned about putting her in developmental gymnastics, with that kind of background. I just wonder if I might be setting her up for disappointment later, in a sport that requires perfection. Maybe I should just keep her in rec. But she loves the idea of competing, even though I've explained how it all works to her- the fun & the huge challenges. She loves performing, so I think she is attracted to that aspect of it- I think she may eventually gravitate more towards dance (she's doing that too).
At the same time, I don't want to put my own fears and doubts on her. It's not fair for me to decide for her what she can and cannot do. So what if she does pre-team, competes L3 or L4 for a little while, and then decides to move on to something else? That wouldn't be so bad. I don't want her to remember that she really liked gymnastics and I said she couldn't do it. I have my own stories about that from my childhood (I was forced out of competitive swimming because my parents didn't want to drive me).
You see I've already answered my own question, sort of. But I am wondering if any of you have a child with similar issues, and if they were able to have a happy time doing competitive gymnastics, and for how long. On the flip side, do you think kids with balance issues should not try to be on the team?