Parents Evaluation for usag level 3 or TAAF program

[Girlmom]

we are new to Texas. Where we lived previously my daughter was on the excel bronze team and was moved up to excel silver prior to us moving (had about two months training on the silver level). The gym we started at here in Texas didn’t have the excel program so after her evaluation they put her in the level 5 rec program and we are taking private lessons. They are now going to evaluate her. They are leaning towards putting her in level 3 usag or the TAAF program. I’ve never heard of the TAAF program. will she now be behind because for 4 months now she has been in a level 5 rec class? I’m nervous and a bit frustrated. She really desires to be placed on the level 3 usag team (she is 10 years old). Advice/ help please!

 

[curlygirls]

This thread has some information about TAAF.

https://www.chalkbucket.com/forums/threads/usag-vs-taaf.54936/

I would recommend having your daughter evaluated at all gyms within a reasonable driving distance to see what your options are. There are so many gyms in Texas, and they vary widely in terms of selection criteria for their USAG JO teams.

 

[sce]

Each gym sets their won rec classes. Level 5 rec could mean anything and may very well equal the level 3 skills. TAAF is Texas league, I belive similar to Xcel.

 

[raenndrops]

Each gym sets their won rec classes. Level 5 rec could mean anything and may very well equal the level 3 skills. TAAF is Texas league, I belive similar to Xcel.

TAAF uses the JO routines for the compulsory levels, but they group by scores rather than by age. They also do, I think, L6-L8. You just can't use TAAF scores for JO mobility.

 

[MUTigerMom]

TAAF season is about to start in January. Most of what has been said above is correct to the best of my knowledge. TAAF groups girls by scores, so you will be competing against girls who score in a similar range regardless of age. Awards are typically given out to Top 50% for each event and AA. Throughout the season, you can move up divisions (but not down.) States is in May. To qualify for states you must have 1 AA score from the first half of the year and 1 AA score from the second half of the year. You can get more information about TAAF here: TAAF using the compulsory routines that are used for USAG. It is generally thought of as a "less competitive" and lower hours option to USAG (but it is not always used that way.) http://www.taaf.com/gymnastics

 

[Girlmom]

This thread has some information about TAAF.

https://www.chalkbucket.com/forums/threads/usag-vs-taaf.54936/

I would recommend having your daughter evaluated at all gyms within a reasonable driving distance to see what your options are. There are so many gyms in Texas, and they vary widely in terms of selection criteria for their USAG JO teams.

Thank you for your response. We are working on doing just that. We had an evaluation at another gym last night and I am in the process of scheduling more. I don’t think the gym we went to last night will be a good fit due to my daughters age (10). They said they think she would feel uncomfortable on their level 3 team because she would be the oldest (most are 7 and 8). I’m frustrated with myself for not starting her earlier in this sport. She loves it so much!

 

[Aussie_coach]

Interesting thatbthey would think your 10 year old daughter would be uncomfortable in their level 3 team as the rest are 7-8. A 2 year age gap between athletes is not exactly that unusual in gymnastics teams, or even school classrooms for that matter.

It sounds more like they don't want a 10 year old in level 3 and are trying to make yiu think it was your desicions not theirs.

 

[RTT2]

Thank you for your response. We are working on doing just that. We had an evaluation at another gym last night and I am in the process of scheduling more. I don’t think the gym we went to last night will be a good fit due to my daughters age (10). They said they think she would feel uncomfortable on their level 3 team because she would be the oldest (most are 7 and 8). I’m frustrated with myself for not starting her earlier in this sport. She loves it so much!

My daughter also started late and is older for her level, so I sometimes feel the same way, but I remind myself that she might not have loved it the same way- or felt that it was the sport she chose on her own, if she'd started off early and had been pulled into the high hours and competition at a younger age. Every kid has a different journey, and I hope you are able to find a great fit for your daughter.

 

[Girlmom]

Interesting thatbthey would think your 10 year old daughter would be uncomfortable in their level 3 team as the rest are 7-8. A 2 year age gap between athletes is not exactly that unusual in gymnastics teams, or even school classrooms for that matter.

It sounds more like they don't want a 10 year old in level 3 and are trying to make yiu think it was your desicions not theirs.

 

[Girlmom]

I would love to get more advice from you. I noticed your profile says you are a verified coach? My daughter was on the excel bronze team before we moved to Texas. Just prior to us moving she was moved up to silver. The gym we are at now said they didn’t have an excel team when we first started there and that they were grooming her for the level 3 team but she needs to perfect her back handspring. So they put her in a level 5 rec class and asked us to schedule private lessons. We have been taking private’s twice a week for a 1/2 hour each time along with her hour and a half rec class. I feel like it’s not enough because she was training 9 hours a week prior to moving to Texas, so we now have her in the advanced tumbling class twice a week for 1 hour each time. So she is now in the gym 4 1/2 hours per week. They also now informed me they
Are starting an excel program, but they didn’t invite her to be part of it. Maybe that’s because she strives to be on the level 3 team? I have no idea and I’m frustrated! She loves the gym and the coaches so I’m also hesitant to change gyms. Should I talk to the coaches again and tell them my frustrations and ask them to put her on the silver excel team until she
Meets the requirements for level 3? I’m hesitant to rock the boat!

 

[raenndrops]

I would love to get more advice from you. I noticed your profile says you are a verified coach? My daughter was on the Xcel bronze team before we moved to Texas. Just prior to us moving she was moved up to silver. The gym we are at now said they didn’t have an Xcel team when we first started there and that they were grooming her for the level 3 team but she needs to perfect her back handspring. So they put her in a level 5 rec class and asked us to schedule private lessons. We have been taking private’s twice a week for a 1/2 hour each time along with her hour and a half rec class. I feel like it’s not enough because she was training 9 hours a week prior to moving to Texas, so we now have her in the advanced tumbling class twice a week for 1 hour each time. So she is now in the gym 4 1/2 hours per week. They also now informed me they
Are starting an Xcel program, but they didn’t invite her to be part of it. Maybe that’s because she strives to be on the level 3 team? I have no idea and I’m frustrated! She loves the gym and the coaches so I’m also hesitant to change gyms. Should I talk to the coaches again and tell them my frustrations and ask them to put her on the silver Xcel team until she
Meets the requirements for level 3? I’m hesitant to rock the boat!

1. Some gyms do not allow back and forth form Xcel to JO, so you would want to determine your gym's thoughts on that before making a decision.
2. You could ask about getting your daughter onto the Xcel team, but be aware that some gyms have different requirements ... and since they are new to having an Xcel program, their "Xcel Philosophy" is currently unknown. Some gyms want girls to be competing maxed out routines and others want them to meet USAG requirements.
3. I would not "tell them my frustrations," but you could ask more about their Xcel program. Ask about hours (as some are very low hours), would the Xcel team go to the same meets as the JO team, and all of the other questions I mentioned before.
4. If they told you PERSONALLY that they were starting one, maybe they are waiting for you to ask about it for your daughter. But if they told everyone generally that they were starting an Xcel program, then maybe they think she definitely wants to go the JO route.

Good luck.

 

[Aussie_coach]

I would love to get more advice from you. I noticed your profile says you are a verified coach? My daughter was on the excel bronze team before we moved to Texas. Just prior to us moving she was moved up to silver. The gym we are at now said they didn’t have an excel team when we first started there and that they were grooming her for the level 3 team but she needs to perfect her back handspring. So they put her in a level 5 rec class and asked us to schedule private lessons. We have been taking private’s twice a week for a 1/2 hour each time along with her hour and a half rec class. I feel like it’s not enough because she was training 9 hours a week prior to moving to Texas, so we now have her in the advanced tumbling class twice a week for 1 hour each time. So she is now in the gym 4 1/2 hours per week. They also now informed me they
Are starting an excel program, but they didn’t invite her to be part of it. Maybe that’s because she strives to be on the level 3 team? I have no idea and I’m frustrated! She loves the gym and the coaches so I’m also hesitant to change gyms. Should I talk to the coaches again and tell them my frustrations and ask them to put her on the silver excel team until she
Meets the requirements for level 3? I’m hesitant to rock the boat!

Every gym is different when it comes to deciding who goes on team, who goes excel, who moves up etc. Really the only way to know is to open the lives of communication with your gym again. Ask how she is progressing towards her goal of being in JO, ask them to honestly tell you if it's a realistic goal or if they reccomend she try a different route, ask if excel should be considered or if the track she is on is better.

Lots of gyms won't take a 10 year old onto their level 3 team, lots will.

In my own gym, it is very unusual to take a gymnast at that age, it it does happen if there is clearly a lot of natural talent and potential to accelerate faster than the traditional 1 year per level.

 

[GymDadTexas]

TAAF is a great forum if you do not want to spend the hours in gym that JO requires. My daughter started gymnastics and TAAF was her first team exposure. She started level 3 and practiced 2 times a week for 3 hours. It gave her the competition experience, and opportunity to see if gymnastics was what she wanted to stick with. If the child shows potential, and is willing to practice more (at this gym) they get invited to the JO program. Some girls go, most don't due to not wanting to spend more time practicing at the gym.

It was a great confidence builder for the girls too. They are grouped by score, so if your child scores in the 32.00 AA range/division she will compete with others who score 32.00 AA range/division, age does not matter. A 12 year old level 3 could compete against a 7 year old level 3 as long as their scores were in the same range/division. They have many opportunities to place with this system since they are divided up this way. The girl who scores a 38.00 will never compete against the girl who scored a 32.00.

They have a State meet in Dallas, and even a National meet in 2019. We really liked the program, and would have just stayed in TAAF. My daughter decided she wanted to practice more and has a dream to be college gymnast one day. So we moved to JO practice doubled to 4 days 3.5 hours each.