Engaging children in sports is beneficial for their physical and mental well-being. Gymnastics is a unique form, encompassing flexibility, strength, power, balance, coordination, and air awareness.
Yet how do you know your child is working with the right person, the right coach, particularly if you as a parent are new to gymnastics?
Attend the gym that employs the coach. Watch the instructors and coaches teaching. Are they enthusiastic and teaching the safety aspects of a certain skill? A great coach makes all the difference in your child’s gymnastics experience. There are certain qualities to seek out in a gymnastics coach.
- Exhibit energy and vitality
That said, instructors at Excalibur have a high level of energy and smile at children from the moment they first make eye contact with your child until your child is they are out the door.
If you are visiting a gym, look to see if children are excited to see their instructor. Are they smiling and laughing with the instructor? Or are they simply going about the motions? This speaks volumes about their relationship.
- Supervision and controlling the class:
Let’s face it — the happiest coach in the world will be ineffective if they don’t have any control over the students in their class. This is critical because if they don’t have control of their class, they run the risk of one of the student’s injuring themselves. Our coaches do not let children run amok. The children are taught discipline and structure while having fun and learning valuable life skills. The children also need to be taught to wait in line and take turns.
- Be involved & engaged.
Involvement and engagement are key. Because gymnastics requires so much body awareness, it may be difficult to verbally explain how to do a bridge to a 5-year-old. If you can physically help them by gently leaning them backward over a mat or mailbox (as we call it) while spotting them, you can teach them how to do a bridge by being “hands-on”.
Our job is to teach gymnastics. In order to do that, we have to get down on our hands and knees, pull, push, run, jump, and sometimes catch – it’s exhausting but it’s worth it.
- Communicate effectively and use positive reinforcement.
Positive reinforcement is key. Does the coach communicate feedback in a way the child understands it? If the child doesn’t understand, does the coach reframe the instructions in another way? Most quality coaches know a simple way to success is to break skills down to their smallest pieces and teach them as parts.
If your child is interested in exploring gymnastics you’ve come to the right place!
Excalibur Gymnastics prides itself on being the best gymnastics school in Virginia Beach with the largest and best equipped National Training Center. Call us: (757) 499-8258!
Sources:
https://work.chron.com/characteristics-effective-gymnastic-coach-11216.html
https://howtheyplay.com/individual-sports/10-Best-Qualities-of-a-Great-Gymnastics-Teacher
http://allgymnasts.com/find-right-gymnastics-gymclub
