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Tumbling tots: gymnastics is a great sport your developing preschooler

American Fitness, May-June, 2004 by Myrna Beth Haskell

Most experts agree that motor skills, listening, following directions and increased attention span are important faculties your child should develop in order to be successful in kindergarten. If you want your child to develop a variety of physical and social skills without having to enroll him or her in several activities, gymnastics is an excellent choice.

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Many sports teach commitment, dedication and time management. However, gymnastics, because of the complex skill progression and vast number of physical techniques required to master elements on different events, teaches more perseverance, patience and discipline than most other physical activities. When a child participates in a gymnastics class, he or she develops a variety of motor skills (e.g., speed, strength and agility) while learning balance and grace. A student must also develop acute listening skills in order to transform verbal instructions into complex, physical movements. The balance beam event, in particular, teaches students to focus and concentrate for extended periods of time. Gymnasts tend to do well in school because they utilize this ability while studying.

Safety Concerns

If you are only familiar with the level of gymnastics seen on television, you may ask yourself, "Is this sport safe?" After all, the moves elite gymnasts perform at international competitions seem a bit daunting. However, children's recreational classes are not taught at this level. Nonetheless, it would be irresponsible to say your child couldn't be injured doing gymnastics, but I cannot tell you that your child couldn't be injured on the playground either. Relatively speaking, the playground is a more dangerous place than your local gymnasium. In the March 1999 issue of Technique magazine (a USA Gymnastics publication), Dr. W.A. Sands discusses a study by the Consumer Product Safety Commission on the number of people visiting emergency rooms and subsequent percent of admissions with sport-related injuries. Gymnastics ranked lower than 23 common sports and activities, including bicycling, climbing on playground equipment and swimming in pools--activities most children participate in. Sands mentions that the information represents "all of gymnastics, including injuries that occur from striking the furniture while performing in the living room." Obviously, in a controlled and supervised environment, injury is less likely.

Furthermore, many changes have occurred over the years. For example, equipment is continually improved with safety in mind. When I began competing in the 1970s, we used wooden balance beams and folded mats held together with Velcro! With the advent of foam pits, padded balance beams and softer crash mats, learning gymnastics has never been safer. In addition, educational programs, such as the USA Gymnastics Athlete Wellness Program (which distributes information on everything from how to get a good night's sleep to recognizing eating disorders) and National Safety Certification Course (mandatory for all USAG coaches and judges), now play important roles in the gymnastics community.

The focus has changed from learning skills as quickly as possible to stressing proper conditioning and skill progression. It is also comforting to know that one of the first things a gymnast learns is how to fall safely. Learning to curl and roll during a fall is not only an important gymnastics skill, but an important life skill as well. When I was 12 years old, I was hit by a car while riding my bicycle to a friend's house. As the impact projected me into the air, I immediately curled my body into a ball and rolled to the pavement. Thankfully, I walked away with only a few bruises. To this day, I attribute my escape of serious injury to the skills I learned in gymnastics.

Gymnastics Curriculum

Many gyms set tip "obstacle" courses where children go through six to eight stations of skill-building activities. Children will acquire shoulder, leg and back flexibility along with basic tumbling skills. They will also be introduced to the equipment (e.g., vault, balance beam and uneven bars). For vaulting, they will learn hurdling and landing skills on matting blocks. On the bars, they will learn basic swing techniques. On the beam, they will learn to exchange balance from one foot to the other and proper focus while traveling sideways, backwards and forward. Sometimes coaches incorporate games or music into movement activities. Children will not do complete routines at this level. Instead, they will acquire the proper progression of basic skills and discover that gymnastics is fun as well as challenging.

Choosing the Right Gym

Try to keep travel time to 30 minutes or less. This might limit your choices, but for the preschool child, spending more time in the car than in class is not pleasant. Visiting all the gyms within this perimeter will allow you to get a good feel for the atmosphere of each gym. Make an appointment so you can speak with the gym's owner and instructors who will teach your child. Be prepared with specific questions, such as:

Tumbling tots: gymnastics is a great sport your developing preschooler

American Fitness, May-June, 2004 by Myrna Beth Haskell

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