Dear Parents or Guardians,

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1 Chandler-Newberger Community Center Robert Crown Community Center 1028 Central Street 1701 Main Street Evanston, Illinois Evanston, Illinois Dear Parents or Guardians, Thank you for enrolling your child in the Evanston Recreation Division beginning 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 beginning gymnastics. You are, after all, as much a part of their learning process as their coaches. 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! Classes take place at both the Chandler-Newberger and Robert Crown Community Centers. This guide is meant to be used as an introduction to the sport of gymnastics, specifically as it applies to our beginning 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 and Skill Progression~ At any age, repetition is the key to mastering a gymnastics skill. This is especially true for children participating in their first gymnastics experience. It often takes weeks of repetition and drills for a child to show improvements that eventually lead to skill mastery. Our job, as gymnastic coaches, is to find ways to disguise the repetition by incorporating fun and excitement into our classes. Our beginning classes are designed to introduce the basics of gymnastics to children. However, this does not always translate into learning showy tricks or skills. The goals of our beginning level program are to teach children the basic positions used in gymnastics, stretching techniques, fundamental beginning-level skills and give them a feel for the equipment. Coaches also work with gymnasts to help them gain the appropriate strength, flexibility, and cognitive skills necessary to learn more gymnastic skills. All the activities that we do in a 1-hour class will help the child succeed in our higher level programs. ~Advancement~ 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. The children will be excited and curious about the equipment in the gym, but without proper supervision children can injure themselves. Parents are also asked to wait outside the gym until class is over. Children are often very anxious about sharing this experience with their parents, but this often causes disruption to the class as they look to their parents for praise or instruction. This slows down the progress of the class and affects the number of turns all of the children receive on the equipment. In addition, it can create confusion for your child in terms of who they should turn to for support during the class. It is important children learn to trust their coach so they can advance in the program. 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 divided into smaller groups and assigned their own coach. They will work with this coach for the duration of the program. Working with the same coach and group of children 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 beginning gymnastics: balance beam, vault, uneven bars, and floor. Children will learn basic 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 beginning 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 taught 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. Children will learn jumps, stretches, and dismounts using the positions. ~Warm Up~ The warm up is one of the most important parts of the class. It allows the children a chance to become familiar with their coaches before they work on the equipment, meet their new friends, and learn the rules of the program. It also gives the coaches a chance to get to know the students and their personalities, which will help them in preparing a class where all participants will succeed. The warm up is also vitally important to gymnastics. The stretching helps to prevent injury and prepares the children s bodies to learn new things. The beginning 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 Our main goal for beginning gymnasts on the balance beam is to make them comfortable with the equipment and help them gain confidence in their skills. Coaches will teach them basic skills such as walking forward, backward and sideways as well as walking on their toes. As they gain more confidence they will be challenged to perform jumps on the beam. Finally, coaches will teach gymnasts proper mounting and dismounting skills. Gymnasts will be spotted until they are stable enough on their own. Walking on toes is a skill taught in beginning gymnastics. Bars At the beginning level of gymnastics, one of the most important areas coaches can develop is strength. Strength is very important for all events, but maybe even more so for uneven bars; it is the primary reason some gymnasts excel on this event and other gymnasts take a bit longer for skill mastery. Gymnasts will be exposed to basic skills, like supporting themselves on the bar and spin the cats. The main goal of these skills is to allow gymnasts to adjust to carrying their own weight and performing skills oriented around the bar. Gymnasts executing a front support Vault Gymnasts will learn the basics of vault, starting with running and jumping on a spring board. Once they have mastered this skill, gymnasts will begin to work on straight, tuck and straddle jumps off of the springboard. Simultaneously, they will work on the squat body position and learning to jump to the vault with proper form. Proper approach for the vault Floor Floor skills for beginning gymnasts stress the importance of spatial and body awareness. Forward and backward rolls, as well as jumps are taught in a way that the gymnast will be able to focus on their body positions. Coaches will help gymnasts realize how adjusting their body in small ways can help them master each skill. Progression of a forward roll.

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. Our coaches are trained to work with your child. When a parent is present children will often test limits to see who will draw the line for them. This can create an uncomfortable situation for the coaches and cause the child to act out disrupting the group and the class. 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 work on gymnastic skills with your child at home. Without 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 beginning 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!