How to Teach Gym Classes for Mom and Me
Mommy and Me Gymnastics classes are designed for children ages 18 months to 3 years. At this age it is very difficult to keep their attention. As a trainer, it’s your responsibility to keep it fun and enjoyable, don’t overwhelm them!
Every Mommy and Me class should start with a short warm-up. I like to start the class with something fun and active like the duck dance. This is followed by stretching. When you stretch you need to use your imagination. You can use small stuffed animals, bean bags, or balls to add to the fun. If you make a pike, call it an alligator and ask the children what they want to feed it. After you’re done stretching, it’s time to start your rotations.
Every rotation in Mommy and Me classes should be fun, creative, and short. It is very important not to add too many stations. Too many seasons make it very difficult, stressful and overwhelming for little gymnasts, moms and trainers. Make sure you don’t add too many new skills at once. Repetition is a good thing at this age. You can have two forward pivot points, one on the wedge and one on the ground.
You need to get the child’s attention and keep it by making it fun! Instead of saying jump from one place to another, you could say jump like a frog on the lily pads. You could pretend the wedge rug is a big hill. The beam can become a board with sharks swimming below. I can guarantee that if you tell the mommy and me classes, “in this spot you do a forward turn, on the beam you walk forward, on the wedge you turn sideways…”. You will lose their interest in a matter of seconds. . So make it fun, be creative, use your imagination and you will keep their attention and they will learn!
