WAG What do you do at your "End of Season Banquet"?

[CoachMeg]

In past years ours usually go: HC speech about season, eat dinner, watch 5-6 minute video of year highlights (summer practice, team camp, holiday party lock-in, competition pictures/videos, etc.) with music in the video's background, hand out a small trophy to every team member with their name, level, and highest event score of the season. We have also done "extra" awards that have been given out to 3 kids in each level, "Hardest Worker", "Best Teammate", and "Highest AA". Then more coach's speeches and then just fun with photo booths, pictures, dessert, etc.

Does your gym hand out "awards" at banquets...and if so, what kind? Like I said, we give every girl a trophy with their highest event score, but in years past we have given out 3 special awards to each level group. Does your gym do that or do you think it exclude the other girls?

The reason I'm asking is because our old HC was really into award giving. Every team camp or banquet we would give out small trophies or plaques. This year we have a new HC and while our end of the season banquet is a ways off (usually in May), I'm trying to think of some new ideas to give it a little different spin.

ESPECIALLY since a couple level groups (optional levels) only have 3,4, or 5 kids so if we did it like in the past, one or two kids would be excluded from the "special" awards, unless we just combined all optionals.

Thoughts?

 

[Teezi]

Well we do the hardest worker award, as well we do trophy a for everyone that has stuck beam all year.

 

[duyetanh]

We don't have one.
Don't ask me why...but I am fine with it.

 

[gymgal]

All the girls get a plaque with their name on it and the year. then they get various engraved metal stickers to adhere to the plaques. The girls are called up for each award. Things like 9.0 club, 9.5 club, 1st place, state/regional qualifier, state champion, etc. Then the coaches also do paper certs for silly awards: broken bone club, silliest, most dedicated, team spirit, etc. The regional qualifiers for L7+ get a glass 'trophy' and then there is the gymnast if the year announcement. I like how the gym does the awards because everything fits on one plaque. Getting through all the names and designations is long but the girls have earned it.

 

[CoachMeg]

All the girls get a plaque with their name on it and the year. then they get various engraved metal stickers to adhere to the plaques. The girls are called up for each award. Things like 9.0 club, 9.5 club, 1st place, state/regional qualifier, state champion, etc. Then the coaches also do paper certs for silly awards: broken bone club, silliest, most dedicated, team spirit, etc. The regional qualifiers for L7+ get a glass 'trophy' and then there is the gymnast if the year announcement. I like how the gym does the awards because everything fits on one plaque. Getting through all the names and designations is long but the girls have earned it.

Love the plaque idea with all the "club" metal stickers! So fun and different!

 

[CTMOM]

Each coach pics a gymnasts to give a coaches' award to and talks about why they picked that gymnasts. There are another awards for hardest worker, best meet hair, most improved, etc. All girls get a team tee and it will say if they are in the 9.0 or 9.5 club.

 

[mom2newgymnast]

I've only been to one so far, but the second one will be next weekend. For the one I have been to, they started with a buffet dinner. The kids all sit together with their teammates and the parents sit separately. After dinner, they start with level 2's and do a slideshow and then the awards. It then repeats for levels 3-5. The optionals have a separate banquet because apparently the last time they were combined, the whole thing took FOREVER. Anyway, as far a the awards go, each gymnast gets a trophy. The coaches pretty much make up different awards as they see fit, but the trophies are generic and just say the name of the gym, level and season. Strongest, best attitude, hardest worker, etc. The final 2 trophies are for most improved and mvp. Those trophies are different and actually say what they are for on them. The coaches speak for a few minutes about the season and then they move on.

 

[z2akids]

DD's banquet is usually a buffet with a slides how playing through the meal. Afterwards, HC says a few words and the. They call the teams up by level. The level HC's say something about the season. The girls are given certificates with their AA and event high scores. There are trophies for highest score of the year, most improved and best teammate. We only have about 22 optionals, so they do their awards as a group, rather than each individual level. After that the girls go home and gather the stuff and have a team sleepover at the gym

 

[Deleted member 18037]

Buffet, all the girls were their fancy party dresses (with gym shorts underneath because tumbling will surely happen). Coach gives speech about the season and upcoming "work hard" stuff. Any State/Regional team banners are acknowledged and photo taken. Coaches gifts are done and any extra parent effort acknowledged. And graduates are recognized.

They girls get their yearbooks. Assembled by coaches and parents, any press clipping from local paper, Team photo, each gymmie has a page, with top scores, any State/Regional awards, what they like, stuff like favorite food, book, movie song, event. Goals for the coming year. Their gym photos and fun photos. Page is done by parent. All bound in a yearbook. They have a blast signing each others books.

DJ for dancing. With all the fun stuff, beads, glow sticks, hats, etc.....

We have an in house exhibition prior to the buffet, they wear their summer leotard. And they do their up-training routines so parents and guests get to see the new skills they have been working on (I love this because when they look at the video after training all summer they really get to see how far they come). No judges, so no pressure and they are encouraged to try new stuff. At the end of the meet they get their updated plaque, with new photo, Level and season bests on plaque.

 

[MILgymFAM]

The gym banquets we have attended have all had awards, but they were given regardless of level. In other words, there was a most improved award, MVP award, sportsmanship award, perseverance award, and an athlete of the year award, and they could be awarded to any girl on any level, but there was only one of each.

 

[cadybearsmommy]

Our banquet last year was a potluck dinner. Everyone ate and each girl got a trophy for her designated level. Each level also gave out some certificates like hardest worker, best leader, etc. Usually around 3 per level. Then girls are called up who made the "9.5" club and the "37" club. They get recognized at the banquet and then at the gym they get their name on a plaque that hangs in the lobby.

At the end there is one "gymnast of the year." Since that was our first banquet, I'm not entirely sure what the award entails. Last year it happened to go to a lower level gymnast who happened to have the highest AA score at state only. I'm not sure if that is the case every year, or it seems it would always be a lower level gymnast, as they usually have the highest AA scores. It could vary, since that's the only time I've ever seen the award presented. Some other criteria besides states scores could be who had the highest score at regionals, the gymnast that is the most consistent throughout the year, the gymnast who puts a lot of hard work and dedication in, the gymnast who has achieved the highest level at the gym, any of these would be good options for a "gymnast of the year" too.

 

[Deleted member 17723]

Every girl got a t-shirt - the front was the same for everyone but the back encorporated "Team Member", "9.0 Club Member" or "9.5 Club Member". In the past we have done small trophies for earning a 37.0 or higher. We do awards: Hardest worker, most improved, perfect 10 (if any girls got a 10), best toe point, triple threat (first place aa at leagues states regionals) etc. We also do "coaches award" where each coach picks one girl to say a small speech about. I think we've also done sportsmanship awards as well.

 

[mandkmom]

I'm surprised that so many of you recognize high scores - that's what meets are for ;-)

We don't mention scores, awards, placements, etc. Our slide show is supposed to avoid podium pics.

Every girls receives a award certificate with generally funny awards- best photobomber, most likely to trip while walking, etc. the coaches come up with them. The week before the banquet the girls can earn raffle tickets and at the banquet they put in the tickets for a chance at various baskets.

Honestly I know my DD loves it but I think they are waaaay too long and wish they did it more economically. We do it at a local hotel and it just seems crazy to pay $20 for DD to eat chicken nuggets. And my ticket is even more. It is what it is.

 

[veganmami]

Our team has gymnastics superlatives sorta like senior superlatives. The girls all get to vote. There's enough for each girl. HC hands them out at banquet with a little trophy that has what their superlative is. My dd was voted most flexible last year. Funny thing is HC daughter was voted most attitude

They're funny and the girls love it and HC always finds a way to say a few words about each girl and her thoughts.

 

[chalkbowl]

I'm surprised that so many of you recognize high scores - that's what meets are for ;-)

As a gym who does awards based on score...I just wanted to share why In the past we used to make up awards for ever team member. So someone would get most improved floor, best presentation, best attendance etc. Each athlete got their own individual award based on their personality or something the coaches thought they improved on throughout the season. The optionals would get silly awards like biggest chatterbox, most likely to be injured etc. Then we started having parents complaining. "Why did suzie get most improved on floor, her floor was good at the beginning of season." "Why did Sally get biggest chatterbox? She's the highest level in the gym."

By celebrating awards based on score, there is no arguing. It is what it is. Suzie got a 9.0 certificate because that's the score she earned. Period.

 

[CameraShy]

Our gym does the special awards but just for compulsory as a whole and then optionals as a whole. It makes them that much more special because it's out of a larger group and then there is no worry about someone feeling left out. This was for gymnast of the year, most improved, and something else but I can't remember the last one. They do a ton of the paper type awards for things like - fearless, most consistent, hard worker, etc, etc. and give duplicates of those out to all kids so that everyone gets something along with a trophy saying their name and level for the year.

 

[kayjaybe]

I don't remember the exact order, but our banquet includes:

• Buffet dinner
• Cash bar for the adults
• A brief introduction by HC of each graduating senior, including their college plans
• A speech by each senior about their gymnastics journey (usually with a lot of inside jokes and memories about their closest teammates)
• A slide show of pics from throughout the year with a section at the end dedicated to each graduating senior
• Certificates of achievement for each gymnast, announced by gym owner, with a mention of a couple of highlights of that gymnast (qualified for states, placement at an invitational meet - usually a couple of things that highlight the best of that year), but the certificate is the same for all, except for the level

Personally, I wouldn't be a fan of yet another trophy for placement at meets. Maybe it is just sour grapes as my kid is pretty much never on the podium, but those girls got their trophies, they were celebrated at that time for that achievement. I feel like the banquet should be there to celebrate everyone, whether they were last AA at every meet, the top of the podium, or got stuck just doing conditioning and spent the year cheering on their teammates from the sidelines due to an injury.

 

[Mrs. Puma]

I hope we have one!!! Our old gym did not.

 

[momof2gymmies]

OUrs do a few individual awards - hardest worker, most improved, best team player (best attitude), and one other that I can not remember. The 4 girls that get them get a small gift - DD got a bracelet last year. But they do 4 girls out of the 100+ on team, so no one is left out.

The kids are all called up one at a time by level to get their score cards, girls are recognized that qualified to regionals, and then we have dinner and a slide show, and then dancing with a DJ. All the girls get a gift as well - a water bottle, beach towel, something with the gyms name and team written on it.