Gymnastics Education
JumpStart Program-Trampoline & Tumbling
The JumpStart Program is something that was put in place within the Trampoline & Tumbling division of USA Gymnastics to identify elite athletes at a young age. The objective is to discover athletes within the ages of 7-12 years old and put them on the right path to become successful in the elite category.
Once someone is chosen; the athlete, parents and coaches are notified. At this time, the training requirements to pursue the elite avenue are discussed, as well as the opportunities that follow the specific training regimen. The coaches will receive guidance and assistance from authorities within the program on how to train these talented athletes. With everyone involved, the JumpStart members will be put on a definite “fast track”. By driving down this track, international competition will soon follow. Because an elite/international level is the ultimate goal, skill preparation is one of the key ingredients. The development of skills will be focused on so that every athlete reaches their full potential. The program will also provide a full fitness program for each athlete.
Acceptance into the JumpStart Program is by invitation only. Testing begins at the State Level, then progresses to the National Level. Once at the National Level, being chosen to attend the National Training Camp is a possibility. From that, a National Team (picked annually) will be selected. In 2009, the Women’s National Team consisted of 21 athletes, chosen by the JumpStart Committee.
The Benefits of Involving a Child in Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a fabulous sport! Because of all the benefits that go hand-in-hand with the sport, I would recommend enrolling a child into a program to any parent. I’ve taken a few moments to list various reasons why.
Overall Physical Fitness
One of the most important benefits associated with gymnastics is the physical fitness aspect. The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention reported that 16% of children from the ages 6-19, are overweight or obese…that’s over 9 million kids! By introducing your child to a sport filled with various physical activities at such a young age will stress the importance of a healthy fitness program. Gymnastics will also increase one’s flexibility and strength. Having good flexibility is necessity for both young and old. “It increases blood supply and nutrients to joint structures, which in turn increases circulation, leading to greater elasticity of surrounding tissues.” (Salzmann, 2005) Strength development automatically occurs when participating in gymnastics. The nature of the skills, events and conditioning naturally builds up muscle mass. Due to this consistent strength enhancement, it’s proven to slow bone loss, decrease your risk for injury, burn calories, improve brain function and increase bone density. With the balanced workout that gymnastics provides, your child will be physically fit.
The Hard Road with Benefits
Another beneficial quality of the sport is the discipline it instills in its athletes. Every facility has a certain set of rules that they enforce and the gymnasts must follow those rules to ensure a safe, controlled environment. The combination of the structure and the lesson plans also results in determination, great work ethic and learning the importance of setting goals. Gymnastics is an incredibly tough sport and this is learned by all in the very beginning. Each new skill will not be attained without all of the above mentioned characteristics. Not only is this a fantastic lesson to learn in the gym, but it’s a great lesson for life in general. Set goals, work with undying discipline and determination and the end result will satisfy you.
Team Work and Social Skills
By entering your child into gymnastics classes, you are automatically assisting them in their social skills development. With younger children, it will teach them to listen to authority figures, follow directions, share with others, wait their turn and many other advantageous skills. For competitive athletes, working together and bonding with a team proves to be an invaluable experience.
Coordination and its Impact on Growth
Gymnastics also improves coordination. Body awareness comes naturally to some gymnasts; others have to work at it. However, even if the child leaves the sport of gymnastics, the coordination and body awareness skills will apply nicely to all sports. It has been reported that these two benefits have also been applied to areas outside of sports. “Studies show that children learn cognitive skills more effectively in an environment that includes the body as well as the mind. (Barrett, 1998) Gymnastics and early childhood movement education is directly attributed to developing neurological pathways in students and promoting reading readiness. While the preschool gymnastics teacher runs about and plays with the little kids in her class, she is preparing her students for successful experiences in school; children who have participated in movement education activities have longer attention spans, increased communication skills, general problem solving skills and improved self-esteem.” (Taylor, 2003)
Instilling Confidence
Finally, this wonderful sport teaches the athlete to be self-confident and responsible. The fact that these children have to overcome big-time fears every day, makes them nothing but confident when it is finally overcome. The accomplishment of a new skill, a new routine, a high score, all because they worked their hardest makes an athlete confident in themselves and they know they were responsible for the outcome.
I know there are many additional benefits to the sport of gymnastics, but in my opinion, these are the basics. Doesn’t it make you want to sign your child up today?
Children Learn Best Through Play
By LINDA THORBERG and BRANT LUTSKA – FLIPPING EDUCATION
Have you heard the question, at preschool gymnastics “Are they just playing in there?” It’s our job to help parents understand the importance of teaching children the way they learn best, through play.
In order to teach gymnastics skills to young children they must first be able to do fundamental movement skills and be comfortable with their body in space. When they know how to put their bodies into shapes and can move in different positions, we can teach basic gymnastics skills. The plus side of gymnastics programs is that when children are allowed to physically move to learn concepts they are also learning skills that help them read, write, and understand the meaning of words and sequences. Here are just a few examples of things we can do in class and reasons to share with parents.
Movement concepts when acted out physically such as; over under, around, through, beside, and near, help children understand the words through active involvement.
When children create shapes with their bodies to make letters, they are reinforcing letter identification for reading.
Clapping or making a movement rhythm (stomp, jump, slide, etc.) to a word or song helps children with the rhythm of reading.
Using action words in class, (jump, quick, slow) helps them understand the meaning of words with their bodies and their minds.
When children combine two or three skills together, they have to remember what comes next. This is like linking words together to make a sentence.
When children are learning by doing, they are more likely to retain what they have done.
Help parents realize that coming to gymnastics class helps children learn with their bodies and their minds for “Life Skills” beyond the gym!
Men's National Team Policies
Once the members of the USA Gymnastics National Team have been picked, what happens next? Do you ever wonder what the athletes’ responsibilities are? What rules they must follow? Below are the answers to those questions as outlined by USA Gymnastics.
A list of responsibilities are provided to the selected gymnasts to: 1) Promote gymnastics and the performance of the team members. 2) Guarantee that the members of the National Team are all held to the same expectations. 3) Administer the rules related to their participation on the team in advance.
The team members are expected to:
- Participate in mandatory training camps for the entire length of the camp. Obey schedules and other aspects related to training. Any exceptions require approval in advance from USA Gymnastics.
- Comply with all fixed guidelines of appearance for USA Gymnastics sponsored trips and/or competitions. This includes competitive apparel, travel apparel, personal appearance (hair/clothing), wearing emblems and carrying gymnasium bags. No variations are allowed and any violation will result in immediate dismissal.
- Each athlete must have a valid and current passport.
- Team members must adhere to all travel schedules. They may make their own arrangements with the USA Gymnastics National Office’s approval. Also, if the athlete has an approved alternative travel plan, additional costs will be the athlete’s responsibility.
- They must behave in a manner that reflects the high caliber position of being a representative of the U.S. and USA Gymnastics. They are demanded to make every attempt to cooperate with their teammates, team officials, international officials, foreigners, hosts, etc. Any grievance must be made initially to the Head Coach and/or Team Manager.
Because of these policies, our teams are always respectable, polite and put together. Creating a wonderfully cohesive group. GO USA!
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