All-Star Grand Unified Theory Of Cheerology

[Num1Stunta]

2. We have 60 kids and 3 strong teams, our only permanent crossover is due to one girl quitting after choreography she is crossing up from our Youth 1 to our Jr 2.
Our Youth 1 has 17 ranging from 6 to 11, Jr 2 has 24 ranging from 9 to 14 and Sr 3 ranging from 12 to 17 has 20. So we keep them relatively age appropriate. Our 6 year old has a standing and running back hand spring, but she's 6 and acts like a 6 year old so we keep her on the youth 1. One of the 9 year olds definitely has the skills to fit in with the seniors but she's a foot shorter than the smallest senior, so we choose to keep her on Jrs.
I guess my point is that every situation is unique and no one knows their particular situation better than the coaches, and if you put bottom ages, you take away the coaches ability to fill their teams with the particular kids in their program, you instead leave them with no option. In your friends program, imagine an 8 yr old with round off 3 bhs, that poor kid would be stuck with the 5 and 6 year olds who've never cheered a day in their lives instead of being on the youth 2 team.

3. I put that only in Sr 1 because at the Sr age they are about as likely to learn a walkover as they are a handspring. All of last year I only saw 1 Sr 1 team and I think it was 1 or 2 kids on it that made them Sr. If the prep level lib and single standing bhs were in there I think the division would grow. And honestly I don't think I've ever had a new 16 year old walk into the gym wanting to learn how to kick over.

5. 6 is the only level where the tumbling doesn't go up in difficulty. Less than 10 years ago a standing full was amazing, there was maybe 1 or 2 on the top level teams, now all the top level teams have like 5 plus standing fulls, now people are starting to compete standing doubles, its just the progression of the sport. in another 6 or 7 years standing doubles will be common place and squad standing full not unusual. Running tumbling might be a front double, punch one and half, punch double, double, double, double. There should be the room for athletes to grow beyond what they are currently doing.

 

[Num1Stunta]

sorry idk why this didn't post...
I see what you're saying about the age minimum, but this whole re-structuring of the levels was to allow for a more safe progression on all ages. So, I would say that your 8yr old with the tumbling should stay with mini 1 until they age out. They are still able to work on tumbling in classes, and lest we forget, that is only one area of the scoresheet. My 2 experienced 8yr olds on minis have their bhs, and serve as leaders (yes, at that age, you can have leaders!)for the rest of the team, in the sense that they know the counts, timing, etc. The newer girls looked up to them at first, and by this point in the season, some of them have bhs and the 8yr olds are working tucks. No complaints from parents about mini 1, as we explained that the level we compete is determined by the highest level majority skill in all areas, and those kids who have the higher tumbling skills are still tumbling in L2 or L3 tumbling classes. We can't make them level 2 right now, because of their stunting.

In terms of senior 1, I don't see why age should suddenly throw tumbling progressions out the window. I simply do not allow a 16 year old with a forward roll to come in and work bhs before they can show me a proper roundoff and front and back walkover. Those skills are the building blocks for bhs, which is why level 1 exists in the first place. I don't really care if a kid doesn't want to learn a back walkover, they are going to learn it if they want to cheer for me, period.

I understand your goals with level 6, I posted a similar thread a while back about this too. My suggestion was to eliminate doubles altogether in level 5 and then senior open 5 wouldn't be needed. Then doubles would be added for level 6. I think if that were the case, we would need to drop level 6 to age 14+