Age Verses Skill

[Supermom]

Our gym may not have a Jr/youth team advanced enough for my daughters skills. Do you think its more important to keep her with others her age (will she get bored) or is it more important to keep her with athletes of her skill level?

 

[aggie1983]

Talk to the coaches. I presume you mean that she conceivably could be on a senior team? How old is your cp, from your mentioning youth/Jr, I'm guessing quite young - 9? If you are talking about a senior team, what would be the age spread - would she be the only younger girl or would it be a senior team made up of a range of different ages? I ask because if, for example, your cp is 9 and the other girls would all be, for example, 12 and older , or 14 and older - personal opinion -don't do it. This last season my daughter was on a senior team with ages from 9-16 (small gym, harder to level out ages and skills.) It was no problem because the ages were fairly evenly spread out, no one was at one end of the spectrum by themselves and being from a smaller gym, most of the cps knew each other anyway . But I would say that is probably the exception to the rule. Worst case, she would be the only younger girl, she might get lonely, some of the older girls might resent her, she might hear some conversations not appropriate for her age. (I did say worst case, remember.) In other instances, the older girls take care of the younger cps and are very protective of them. If your cp is as young as I have presumed, she has plenty of time to move up. Most that age would enjoy being with their peers more than moving up a level. The make-up of the rest of the team is probably the most important consideration, which again takes you back to the coaches. Don't know if that helped, but good luck. (Did I mention talk to the coaches?;))

Just as an additional note: there have been many discussions on various threads about little cps on senior teams - most people don't like seeing it.

 

[cljacks99]

I feel like this is the story of our life .:) I am so fortunate that we were able to travel and find a team that suited my cp's needs both with level and age. We did the senior team thing once. No lie, at age seven she came home asking for a cartilage piercing! That was all I needed to hear. It also has made all the difference in the world in her flying skills for her to stunt with kids her own size. My opinion is, if there is not an ideal team that is level appropriate, then keep her with kids her own age/size.

I know this is a frustrating situation. Believe me.:) Maybe you could sign her up for a more advanced tumbling class to keep her motivated..

 

[missamanda]

i don't have a kid, and i wont in the near future. but if i were put in this situation, i would keep her on the younger team. not only because most of these girls will be physically more mature, but emotionally. they will talk about things she shouldnt hear, and such. also, once you move her up to that senior level, theres no where to go up from there, you know? also, think about her body, and how much more wear and tear it will go through actually competing with those harder stunts and passes, you want her to enjoy cheerleading for as long as she can, but putting her on a more advanced team is like signing her knees/back/wrists away.
i say, wait for your daughter to say something to you, showing she wants to be put on a better team. i am sure she loves cheerleading as much as the rest of us, and if she does... she'll love it no matter which team she is on (: