Should I Start My 2 Year Old In Cheer?

[PullandPray23]

yes! she needs to get a head start! its a fierce world out there people!!! I say yes! or even start her in a gymnastics class...helps then get a grasp on taking instruction and such

 

[SophiesMom]

Most cheer gyn offer intro classes to beginning cheer motions , for the little ones forward rolls , cartwells etc. I'd start there is a stress free fun atmospehre. At such a young age fun is the key. I waited til my cp was almost 4 for all star mini. Before that i did the intro cheer class my gym has with all the other little girls. I remember how proud she was of her stickers she got when she did hew first cartwell. Today she is 8 and doing level 4 tumbling .

 

[PowerofThree]

I think you should enroll your 2-year-old in tumbling classes and give her a chance to develop hand-eye coordination as well as figure out if this is the type of sport that she wants to be a part of. I worry that a child of two years will get burned out very early in life if she starts cheer too soon. I am, however, less concerned about injuries if you choose the right training facility. A child of two years will get the same type of wear and tear on the body doing any type of physical activity.

 

[gofriars610]

I wish i had started earlier. If you put her in a good program with good people training her you'll be okay.

 

[moosecheer7]

Hey guys,
I'm new here, and I've never been on this site before, so I'm sorry if this isn't where I should put this? Haha. My daughter just turned 2 and I want to put her in cheerleading, but I'm not sure how to go about it. I just want her to have an early start at it, so if 2 is too young then when is the right age? What teams do kids first start out on? Should she start on a youth league in our area, or go to an all star gym, or both?
Thanks

P.S. How dangerous is cheerleading? I’m one of those people who freaks out if someone bumps their head on the wall. :/

my question for you is... does your daughter want to start cheerleading now? if she does i think it would be great for her to start early, but if YOU want her to start cheering i think you should wait until she is old enough to decide that for herself.
BTW cheerleading is a pretty dangerous sport.

 

[cheermommy0729]

Alot of places won't take two year olds in anything but a parent/child tumbling class. I would start there. I don't think I would let a 3 year old on a mini team either, there are some kids on mini that just turned 8 or 9 depending on their birthday. I would stick with tumbling and wait until she is 4 and find a tiny team

 

[INeverStopCheering]

From a Tiny Coach:
At our gym, we have a Tiny Exhibition team where kids can be as young as two years old. This team learns a short, slow routine and they compete in-town a couple times a season. Coaches kneel in the front and we have two or three helpers who go on floor with them to direct traffic and help with stunts. However, I know a lot of programs don't offer this, and she is too young to be on a competing team. If you do find and exhibition team there are some things you need to ask yourself about your child's readiness. Is my child potty trained? Is my child able to spend time without me? Would my child be upset or afraid by loud music or crowds? Most importantly: Can my child follow basic directions? This is very important. Cheerleading gyms are big places with lots of people tumbling, stunting and jumping. So when a coach tells a little one "You need to stay here" or " Don't go over there" they MUST listen and follow or else risk injury by getting tumbled or fallen on. (As a coach it is absolutely terrifying when a little one bolts into the path of a tumbler.)

In terms of an early start, cheerleading will help her with a lot of fine motor skills such as hand-eye, balance, jumping with two feet, not to mention social skills such as making friends, listening and following directions, teamwork, and taking turns. In terms of actual cheer skills, there are a limited number of things you can teach a two-year-old because of their limited muscle mass. A child her age can definitely learn a forward roll and a cartwheel. But there are things you can;t teach a child so little such as a backward roll, handstand, and back walkover simply because their little arms aren't strong enough to hold themselves up yet. The advantage comes in motions and stunts which she will definitely have a head start on.

I'm going to be blunt, yes cheerleading is dangerous. Any sport that requires acrobatics, tumbling, or lifting other people is inherently dangerous, and yes people do get hurt, sometimes die. But, the number that never have a serious injury greatly outweigh the number who do, and finding coaches who are committed to a safe facility and proper skill progression is key. Allstar cheerleading is typically more safe than rec because they are practicing on a spring floor (better than grass or a dead mat) and the coaches are more often accredited and first aid certified. At her age shes not going to be doing tucks or extensions, so other than a skinned knee or a bumped elbow, you're pretty safe. In terms of issues later in life, As far as I know there has never been a study that has tracked competitive cheerleaders to see how it effected them later in life. This sport is still very young and there is very little research. Is it possible? Definitely. But any more than any other sport? I don't know. Tumbling does beat your body up and fliers who stretch a lot are bending their backs in ways that are not normal. Like I said it is a possibility. I've never known it to mess with anyone's period (except for girls who were thin to begin with), though I suppose it might. These girls aren't training 7 days a week like elite gymnasts though.

In conclusion (sorry this post is so long winded) Look for a Tumble Tot class or an exhibition team at an Allstar gym. If you can find that, turn to a gymnastics facility for a year. I don't recommend a Rec league. Even if all she gets out of it is a good time and a chance to burn off some energy, there's nothing wrong with that. Any other skills are an added bonus. Best of luck on beginning your career as a cheer mom

 

[mom24girls]

They have to be 3 for tinies and even most 3yos aren't ready yet. I would take her to a gymnastics gym for the next year or two where she can get a good foundation for tumbling and then switch her over at 4yo to all star cheer. My youngest will be 3 in time for the new season but I know emotionally she isn't there yet.

 

[MomOf2ThatsMe]

My daughter was not ready for cheer at even at 3, let alone 2. Many children that young do not deal well with being put on a mat in front of a few hundred up to a few thousand people, a very loud crowd, and blasting music. My (now) four year old lost it just sitting in the stands at CANAM in Myrtle Beach this past March. As a parent, I get that kids can be unpredictable, but as a paying customer (so to speak) it isn't cute when kids melt down and the routine your kid and the team worked on for months is jacked because of it. Another thing you have to think of is in allstar cheer, when your child hits the mat, they aren't just one- they are part of a team. The team depends on you to be at virtually all practices. Having a cold, ear infection, just being under the weather or whatever reasons that most parents would keep their kid home are not valid reasons to miss practice in the cheer world- even on tiny teams. Most gyms expect all kids at all practices unless they have a doctor's note stating that performing any kind of activity would be detrimental. Insofar as competitions- short of your child being hospitalized or needing to attend a funeral of a close family member, they must be there. As the coach above noted, little ones dart around in the gym and don't listen. My little one didn't feel like listening and ran onto the tumble track while an 8 year old was doing back handsprings and it was not pretty. So those things do definately happen. Do you think your child would be entertained by 1-3 hours a week of repeating the same routine over and over? Is she potty trained and can go to the bathroom by herself including getting herself undressed, on the potty, wiping, and re-dressed? It's a lot to think about as a parent.

 

[YourNewObsession]

If you want her to have a double by the age of 5 you're starting at the right time hahaha

 

[onecheermom]

my youngest pretty much grew up at the cheer gym from the time she was 1, since her sister who was 6 at the time had started cheering. . The coaches and I didn't even consider putting my youngest on a team until she was 4. From watching her sister for 3 years she know what she was suppose to do when at practice. I have noticed most 4 year olds (or younger) who have never been in a gym setting have no idea what is expected of them at practice. I think it would be best to place your 2 year old in a mommy and me tumbling (or something similar) before trying cheer so she has nothing but postive experiences.

 

[StarsMom]

I would say it depends on the child. An outgoing 2 year old is going to do well, but a shy, retiring one isn't. We had a 3 year old on my sons' tiny team last year, and she was the star of the show, but her personality is larger than life off the floor as well.

If you are concerned about safety, learning tumbling skills safely first, in a mom and tot class would be the better way to go, particularly if she's not even out of diapers yet. Then later, at 3 or 4, she can come into the tiny team prepared, with some basic skills (forward roll, cartwheel) and not feel so out of place.

 

[mybabywantstotumble]

start her off in a tumbling class, 2 might be too early and save the money for when she is older. all star is quite the committment and to put that much money into it so young might end up being a waste. when she gets older if she still wants to cheer she will have all of those years experience in tumbling and will be awesome! good luck!

 

[Aw.Work.]

2 might be young but it really depends on the child. if she can pay attention and follow directions then i say do it! all my tinys are at least 3 but we take anyone who is potty trained lol

 

[peytonnmariee]

no offense: a 2 or 3 year old cheering, is no where near intense or crazy as a 15 or 16 year olds team...pretty much level 1 to level 4,5 or higher levels!