Kids Climbing Classes in Uptown

Our 8-week session classes utilize 5 simultaneous tracks of development to keep your child engaged and moving forward, all while having a great time:

• Technical safety skills
• Movement skills
• Strength and fitness
• Strategic thinking
• Goal setting and completion

If a child completes the basic curriculum in his/her age group class, we have advanced versions of each class to build upon those initial skills, as well as a competitive team prep program for especially talented climbers.

SPIDER MONKEYS (Ages 4-5)

Our Spider Monkeys curriculum is centered around the concept of “learning without knowing you’re learning.” Through a multitude of climbing and movement related games we try to build basic kinesthetic learning skills, body awareness and balance. Movement skills, confidence and empowerment are emphasized over technical skill mastery or route completion.

SCRAMBLERS (Ages 5-6)

In our Scramblers classes, students will engage in many forms of climbing with the goal of learning basic safety skills, basic footwork, core movement skills, and the ability to “summit” our rock walls. We strive to instill a fundamental understanding of how to utilize strength and balance to move “with” the rock. We incorporate many student-centered, simple movement games to open up terrain kids might not otherwise attempt, and to make their time on the wall fun, satisfying and instructive.

ROCK HOPPERS (Ages 6-8)

Our Rock Hoppers students are usually ready to begin moving away from of our vertical walls and on to steeper, more interesting terrain. We emphasize the importance of footwork skills over pure strength as the terrain becomes steeper, and an understanding of the basic mechanics of climbing and body positions–or what we call “climbing moves.” At this age, students are also introduced the concept of “sequencing,” which is the skill of planning their path up the climb before they begin.

ROCK WARRIORS (Ages 9-10)

Our Rock Warriors students are at a fantastic age to readily learn the interaction of strength, technical movement, and thoughtful planning that is the essence of rock climbing. These students will engage in all styles of climbing to refine core movement skills, master intermediate footwork and begin to develop a fundamental understanding of the interaction between body position, gravity, and rock. We incorporate unique movement specific exercises to develop motor memory and an intuitive feeling for how to attack any combination of rock holds and positions.

STONE MASTERS (Ages 11-13)

In our Stone Masters classes, students begin to truly refine their footwork, movement, and body positioning skills. We add in more complex “specialty” moves and sequencing skills. At this age, we also introduce challenging strength training exercises more specific to climbing. Some Stone Masters may work toward our Team Prep series (or even a direct try-out for the competitive team), while others will work on perfecting their technical skills, building out their repertoire of climbing moves and exploring new and more challenging terrain as their strength continues to increase.

 

 Questions? Email us at youth@firstascentclimbing.com.