Chandler-Newberger Community Center 1028 Central Street Evanston, Illinois Dear Parents or Guardians,

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1 Chandler-Newberger Community Center 1028 Central Street Evanston, Illinois Dear Parents or Guardians, Thank you for enrolling your child in the Evanston Recreation Division intermediate gymnastic program. We are excited about this session and the opportunity to work with you and your family! My name is Michelle Tompkins and I am the Program Manager for the Evanston Recreation Division Gymnastic program. I supervise both the Chandler-Newberger and Robert Crown classes; however my office is at the Chandler-Newberger Center. If you have any questions or comments throughout the session, please contact me directly at or mtompkins@cityofevanston.org. The following information is designed to help you assist your child during this session of intermediate gymnastics. You are, after all, as much a part of their learning process as their coaches. Please note that intermediate level classes are ONLY offered at Chandler-Newberger. Again, thank you for your participation in the Evanston Recreation Division gymnastic program. We welcome you and hope you have a wonderful experience. Sincerely, Michelle Tompkins Michelle Tompkins Youth Program Manager

2 Welcome to gymnastics for the Evanston Recreation Division! Intermediate level classes take place at the Chandler-Newberger Community Center. This guide is meant to be used as an introduction to the sport of gymnastics, specifically as it applies to our intermediate level program. ~Philosophy~ Our focus as coaches is not to develop your child into a competitive athlete. Rather, we aim for each child to enhance their gross and fine motor skills by learning various gymnastic skills, interact with other children through group warmup and class activities, and to have fun. However, more than your child s movement education, safety is our number one priority. ~Preparing Your Child for Class~ The way a child is dressed for class can be a legitimate safety issue. Please note the following guidelines for your child s attire: Leotards, shorts and t-shirts, or other athletic apparel may be worn. Please no jeans, pants with snaps or buttons, skirts, tutus, or oversized t-shirts. These items restrict movement and create a safety hazard. Long hair must be tied back. No socks or shoes may be worn. Children wearing socks are more likely to slip. Please make sure your child removes all jewelry before coming to class. ~Our Rules ~ Our rules are meant to facilitate a safe and healthy environment for the children. Each week the gymnastic coaches will review the four gymnastic rules below with the children. We ask that you help by reviewing them with your child before class each week: 1. Always listen to your coach. 2. Do not go on the equipment without your coach. 3. Always be on time for warm-up! 4. Have fun!

3 ~Repetition, Skill Progression and Advancing~ At any age, repetition is the key to mastering a gymnastics skill. This is especially true for children working to master more difficult gymnastic skills. It often takes weeks of repetition and drills for a child to show improvements that eventually lead to skill mastery. Our intermediate classes are designed to take the gymnast s knowledge of the basic gymnastic skills and use that to execute more difficult and advanced skills. The goals of our intermediate level program are to challenge each gymnast to push their abilities, while also introducing gymnasts to higher level skills that will prepare them for the pre-team level. Gymnasts in the intermediate level program will receive more one-on-one instruction as each child will be working to progress their own skills. Because of this one-on-one attention, participants are expected to be able to self-regulate and self-direct themselves as they may spend time practicing a specific skill while the coach works with other students. However, we will never allow a child to execute a skill without proper supervision or spotting. Our program is designed to help children advance naturally. Children are never pressured to execute a trick or skill they are not ready to perform. In addition, coaches will respect the child s feelings and allow them to progress at a rate that is comfortable for them. There are four levels of gymnastics in the Evanston Recreation Division gymnastic program. 1. Beginning this class is for children who have never taken gymnastics or have taken less than one year of classes. 2. Advanced Beginning this class is for children who have mastered all beginning level skills or have taken several years of gymnastics at another gym. Children coming from an outside program must be evaluated by our coaches to get approval for this class. 3. Intermediate this class is for children who have mastered all advanced beginning level skills or have over 3 years experience of gymnastics at another gym. Children coming from an outside program must be evaluated by our coaches to get approval for this class. In addition to skill level, maturity is also taken into consideration before promoting a child to the intermediate level. 4. Pre-Team this is our highest level of gymnastics and is for those who have mastered the intermediate level skills. Anyone registering for this class must be evaluated for permission At the end of each class session, our coaches will make recommendations for registration for the next session. Children will receive a progress report that identifies the skills they have mastered, includes notes from their coach, and shares the recommendation for the next session. Please note that coaches take into consideration maturity and social readiness as well as skill level when assessing the children for advancement. Again, our decisions are made based on the philosophy described in this packet. Please feel free to talk to your child s coach or Michelle if you have questions about your child s progress.

4 ~Attendance, Drop Off and Pick Up~ For your child to get the most from this experience it is important they attend all of the classes. In addition, it is extremely important that children arrive ON TIME for their class. All classes begin with a short warm-up which is designed to prepare their body for gymnastics. Coming in cold and missing this warm-up session can result in injury to your child. If you do come late to the program, a coach will warm-up your child on the sidelines of the class, but your child will miss important instruction time. We ask that parents do not allow their child into the gym until welcomed in by their coaches. Parents are also asked to wait outside the gym until class is over. At this level children must be able to focus on the skills they are executing for their safety. Additional people in the gym could cause distractions and thus create a safety issue for our gymnasts. We will allow parents to observe the first and the last class. During the last class the children will perform a short routine that allows them to showcase their newly acquired skills. The best part of gymnastic, after all, is sharing what you ve learned! Finally, we ask that you please pick your child up on time. The Evanston Recreation Division has a $10.00 late fee for every 15 minutes you are late picking up your child. ~Skills, Events and Class Structure~ Children thrive on consistency. Developing a routine that the children can follow helps them learn skills faster and helps them learn them correctly. The children will know what to expect and when to expect it. Children will also feel more comfortable in an environment that is familiar. After the first class of the session, children will be assigned their own coach. They will work with this coach for the duration of the program. Working with the same coach helps establish trust, creates the consistent environment we feel is necessary for success, and gives the parent one contact that can help answer questions about their child s progress. We will focus on four events in intermediate gymnastics: balance beam, vault, uneven bars, and floor. Children will learn advanced skills on each event, however because of limited class time they may not work on all four events each class. We will not pressure the children into doing any skills or techniques they are not comfortable doing. We will encourage them to try, and when possible modify the activity to fit within their comfort level. We again stress the importance of repetition as it provides a base for the children to learn more difficult skills. Each of the skills identified as part of our intermediate gymnastics program are building blocks which will eventually, with consistent participation and effort, allow your child to advance through our program.

5 During each class children are reminded of the 3 basic body positions that will help them throughout their gymnastic career. The positions are: PIKE TUCK STRADDLE You will notice that we will incorporate these basic positions throughout class. ~Warm Up~ The warm up is one of the most important parts of the class, especially at the intermediate level. The stretching helps to prevent injury and prepares the children s bodies to learn new things. The intermediate level gymnastic warm-up will consist of the following: Running laps Children will run 3-4 times around the gymnastic floor. This warm up encourages children to warm up their heart, while helping them to develop their gross motor development. Jumps Children will practice straight, tuck and straddle jumps as a way to warm up their bodies. This helps them build endurance, and also work on their skills taught by instructors in class. Conditioning One of the most important parts of gymnastics is building strength. To further warm up the children, instructors will lead them in strength building exercises, such as sit ups, push ups and frog jumps. In doing so, the instructors will teach proper body positions and technique for these exercises. Stretching Once the children are warmed up, instructors will lead them in stretches. Stretching is an important part of gymnastics, as it prevents muscles from being pulled and also helps gymnasts complete certain skills that require flexibility. During stretching they will learn straddle and pike positions, as well as bridges. Bridges

6 ~Events~ Beam Gymnasts at the intermediate level should feel confident and comfortable on the beam. They will begin to work on skills such as cartwheels and handstands executed on the balance beam. In addition, they will be challenged to perform more difficult jumps and dismounts. Handstand on balance beam Bars Before the intermediate level, strength is our main emphasis on bars. At this level, gymnasts should be strong enough on the bars to elevate their previous skills to a more competitive level. For example, they will take their pullover, which they should be able to do on the low bar, to the high bar and execute it from hanging position. They will also begin to work on skills that allow them to perform a fluid routine without touching the floor! Transitions from the low to high bar are taught in Intermediate Gymnastics! Vault At this level, instructors spot gymnasts in drills and exercises that simulate the experience of a handspring until they are strong enough and comfortable enough to safely complete the skill themselves. Front Handspring Floor Competitive skills are the main emphasis on floor at the intermediate level. Gymnasts will begin to work on back walkovers and handsprings, as well as front handsprings. Once these skills are learned, they will be connected to past skills, like cartwheels and rolls, to teach the continuity seen in routines. Jumps are taken to the next level of difficulty by incorporating full turns. This requires balance and spatial awareness which they began learning in Advanced Beginning gymnastics. Progression of a Back Walkover

7 ~Rules for Mom and Dad~ We realize that you as a parent or guardian are just as excited about gymnastics as your child. However, we do have a few rules that we ask you follow. 1. If brothers or sisters will accompany your child to class we ask that you do not allow them onto the blue mat. All too often siblings want to participate in the same activity as their brother or sister. This creates and unsafe situation for both the coaches and the children. 2. Parents are asked to wait outside the gym until class is over. We will allow parents to observe the first and the last class. As mentioned in the manual, this level of gymnastics requires concentration and additional people in the gym can be distracting for the gymnasts. 3. Please make sure your child arrives to class on time. Children who miss the stretching warm up are prone to injury and entering a class after it has begun can be stressful for your child as well as the coaches and other children in the program. 4. Please pick your child up on time. A $10.00 late fee for every 15 minutes you are late will be assessed if you do not pick your child up on time. 5. Please DO NOT allow your child to work on their gymnastic skills at home. Without the proper supervision and spotting children can injure themselves. 6. Have fun and ask Michelle or your child s coach if you have any questions about their progress! We hope this manual is helpful in communicating the philosophy and goals of the intermediate gymnastic program. If you have any questions please contact Michelle at We hope this class is the beginning of a lifelong love of movement, fitness and fun for you and your child!