Parents Back Handspring Clinics

[krstew29]

7yo dd (level 2) really wants to get her back handspring (some of her friends who do acro have theirs). Her gym does not offer the clinics (she is currently level 2), but they do uptraining. They work on them at the gym at most 15 minutes a week from what I can see. She is close-- she did one (more like a headspring) in a df's bounce house by herself. The local Y is offering a 6 week clinic (for an hour each time) or another gym (not a competitor of ours) is offering a 1 time 1.5 hour class. Would either of these be beneficial to her?

 

[krisnkids]

Do not let her do them in bounce house, home trampolines or mattresses at home. Ask her coach what she suggests, privates or going 2 days a week are good possibilities.

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[gymmomtoo]

I'd ask her coach--many (most?) gyms won't want her learning things at another gym as they might teach it a totally different way.

 

[UnoMas]

I say wait for your gym to teach it. When they learn it the wrong way....it can take years to un-do (spoken from experience with oldest DD). There is no hurry to get it if your DD is level 2. She will get it when she is ready.

 

[iwannacoach]

Part of the process of learning a back handspring includes a realization that it doesn't work the way you originally believed it would work. I use the word believe because most kids resist discarding their mental form of the bhs and have to be convinced at least once, but usually more, that the coach's model is right.


The bhs clinic isn't going to convince her any faster and may confuse her by pairing her with a coach who knows *how* to do a bhs, thinks they understand how to teach it, but really has a ways to go before they know how wrong they are.

 

[emorymom]

You can enroll her in a power tumbling practice group with a reputable power tumbling gym. Most artistic gymnastics coaches do not seem to have a problem with a little TnT on the side.

 

[nameless]

i took mine to a sports conditioning place and another gym with coaches that are trained in gymnastics.. used the excuse that it was for cheerleading (really it was).. i told her coaches about it after she had it.. they weren't mad.. but, maybe you should ask them first just in case. she's is your kid.. being that our kids are still in lower levels i feel that asking coaches about every move they make is ridiculous and gives them too much power over dd's rate of progression.. now as lil one gets up into like say levels 5 and up i probably will let her coaches decide more/all of what's best for dd.. i feel like these are my last couple of years of knowing what is best for her gym wise..

 

[iwannacoach]

she's is your kid.. being that our kids are still in lower levels i feel that asking coaches about every move they make is ridiculous and gives them too much power over dd's rate of progression.. now as lil one gets up into like say levels 5 and up i probably will let her coaches decide more/all of what's best for dd.. i feel like these are my last couple of years of knowing what is best for her gym wise..

I completely respect "she is your kid" when it comes to any province of parenting, including and especially knowing what your child's genuine needs are. I feel, however, that the same respect should be accorded a coach who's competent, communicative, and caring. My advice is to leave them with reasonable control over your child's gymnastics experience, as long as that experience takes place in a positive and constructive environment with a capable coach you can trust. If you don't trust the coach's ability to oversee your child's growth in the sport, find another coach, because somebody guiding her has to know what they're doing.

I admire and respect the parent community in our sport, and care deeply about the kids, as I'm a parent just like you. Please get the message that while you know what your child wants, you're not qualified to know what they need in the gym and aren't able to understand the process that takes place to get kids from point A to point B, just as a coach who's never raised a child is unable to understand the complexities of parenting.

Leave the gym decisions to the coach, no matter the level, as every level builds on properly understanding and progressing through the previous.

 

[JBS]

Would either of these be beneficial to her?

No...........

 

[JBS]

gives them too much power over dd's rate of progression

Interesting...you seem to have very little trust in your current coaches.

 

[gymmom1974]

Our coach has explained to the parents that if your child cannot maintain a good handstand, then they are not ready to do back handsprings. There is a progression if skills for a reason: to make sure your child has the base skill to build on. Like our coach says " why would I throw her backwards into a handstand if she can't support herself in a static handstand?"

I know in cheer leading they like for the girls to be tumbling quickly, but sometimes it just isn't safe. If your child is hitting her head during her back handspring, she doesn't have that strength built up yet. Trust the Coach's program. It's better in the long run.

 

[EmmasMommy]

I wouldn't say DON'T go to a BHS clinic, but I would say that
1) talk to her coaches about it first. they might have a better alternative.
and
2) if she does go, as SOON as she learns the skill, have her start working on them in HER gym with HER coaches so they can teach the form, otherwise she will be practicing it with bad form and that will be a bad habit to break and in the long run she will end up learning the back handspring CORRECTLY *later* than her teammates (even if she can do the skill itself sooner).

As for me, I was an assistant coach but not great with the form end of things. I just had a knack for teaching the mechanics of a skill and helping kids get it faster. Soooo... *ducks from the coaches here* I taught her a back handspring on our trampoline at home when she was ready. As SOON as she could do one (within a week), I told her coaches and told them that she would like to work on them but that I didn't want her to do them at home because I didn't want her to develop bad form habits. They started doing privates with her once a week. She's now doing them on a mat and working toward doing them on the floor. She's also level 2.

(I agree with other posters though that you need to have other skills going into a back handspring or your child can get hurt. They also have to have the strength and coordination to do the skill)

 

[iwannacoach]

If I knew how, I'd set up a separate survey for 4 separate groups........

Group 1 would be gymnasts who've not yet learned a bhs

Group 2 would be gymnasts who've had a bhs for one year or less

Group 3 would be parents of a child at any level, who have not been "schooled" by their gymnast child.

Group 4 would be coaches who've not yet coached beyond level 7

The questions would be about the mental/teaching model of each group, and the responses may shed a bit of light on the entire issue...... or maybe just provide us with a little entertainment.

 

[nameless]

Interesting...you seem to have very little trust in your current coaches.

unfortunately, dd is at the best gym in our area, and at that gym there are coaches i trust and coaches that i don't.. dd has 5 or more coaches (crazy, you never know who or when).. some coaches seem to have their own agenda and some place great weight on age.. others seem totally subjective.. a few play favorites.. i am still navigating through all this and learn every day (thanks to CB).. it is very hard to let go of making all major decisions for a near 6 year old, but i'm sure i will learn!

 

[raenndrops]

If the local Y that is offering it has a gymnastics team... one that participates in YMCA Nationals, then I think that would be a good clinic to go to. 6 Weeks at an hour a week allows them to go through the proper progressions based on each girl's starting abilities. They have the knowledge to teach the skills and drills needed to teach the back handspring. Both of my gymmies learned their BHS at the Y. The older one has been to Nationals as a JO Level 5 and will be going back this year as an Xcel Gold. Her little sister MAY get to go, providing she gets the qualifying score at the next meet. She has a BEAUTIFUL back handspring