Golden Bears Gymnastics

Berkeley
Operated By:
Ages:
Toddlers,
Preschoolers,
Kinder,
School-Aged,
Preteens
Email:
gbgym [at] berkeley.edu
Phone:
510-643-8023
Affiliation:
College/University-run

Welcome to Golden Bears Gymnastics! Whether your child is 18 months or 18 years, we have a program for you. Gymnastics is a great way to build physical strength and confidence.

Classes and activities offered include:

Parent Reviews

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We do gymnastics through Golden Bear Youth at Cal and it’s great. It doesn’t tire out my 3.5 year old but it’s fun. We have a Sat AM morning class and after we go to a free art class at the West Berkeley Library branch on University, which is drop in 11-12:30pm. It takes care of the morning!

I'm the parent of two Golden Bear competitive team gymnasts who have been nurtured over the years by supportive coaches.  My older daughter started out 9 years ago in the recreational classes, and has been on the Development Program (formerly called JO) team the past 6 years.  My younger one started shortly after, and is also with her big sister on the DP team.  We have so appreciated the encouraging and caring coaches, and tailoring of practice sessions for the gymnasts’ particular needs and skill sets.  During the pandemic, the gym was a lifesaver and gave them a sense of normalcy (there was an immediate switch to online conditioning before the gym carefully transitioned to reopening in-person) when everything in the world was turned upside down.  Our girls have learned to persevere, work hard, and have fun with their teammates.  Come check it out and go Bears!

UC Berkeley has a really fun gymnastics class that our 3 year old does. They offer multiple classes a week. https://recsports.berkeley.edu/youth-programs/year-round-programs/gymna…

I love UC Berkeley gymnastics classes which are for 14 months and up. They tend to fill up quickly, but you can get on a waitlist and spots do open up.

https://recsports.berkeley.edu/youth-programs/year-round-programs/gymna…

We've been really happy with the UC Berkeley gymnastics classes. Everyone over 2 masks and class size is small. My 3 yr old daughter loves her coach and has a lot of fun.  It took us a few months on the waitlist to get a spot but it's worth it. 

RE:

Hello,

Golden Bears gymnastics in Berkeley is a good option. They are part of UC Berkeley. They currently have Zoom classes available for all and summer camps will be open to everyone. All of the gymnastics camps are 100% full but you can get on the waitlist by going through the registration process. They also have in-person offerings currently available for dependents of UC Berkeley faculty, staff and students. You can email gbgym [at] berkeley.edu for more info. Other local options are Head Over Heels in Emeryville.

My 2yo is loving gymnastics at Head Over Heels in Emeryville. There is also a drop-in open gymnastics play at Cal Bears in Berkeley that we have done once that was fun.

My 4 yo son loves the Golden Bear gymnastics classes through CalRec.   

My daughter was on a compulsory team at Golden Bears, and it ended up being too demanding timewise for her and she chose to switch to the Xcel program. If you are not familiar with it, Xcel is a competitive program, but much less demanding and more relaxed than the Junior Olympic compulsory levels. They still compete, but the system is more flexible in terms of what skills you learn when, and the practice time every week is a third of her former team. She is loving it and having a great time- it's a perfect medium for kids who are serious about gymnastics but don't want it to take over their whole lives. Both Head Over Heels and Golden Bears offer Xcel teams. We've been very happy with the program at Golden Bears.

I was in the same boat as you. Music Together on Saturday mornings is great, excellent for a 7 month old. The downtown Berkeley public library often has Saturday a.m. readings and other activities. As your child becomes a toddler, gymnastics at Golden Bear Re on the Cal campus. Have fun!

Our daughter attends UC Berkeley's Gymnastic program Saturday morning. Perhaps you should swing by and take a look. To attend the program, I think you are required to be 18 months. Our daughter absolutely loves it. Outside of gymnastics, we do a lot of family events and look for places where she can explore stepping up and down and exploring spaces/places.  I think most of the things that are available start at 3 years of age. We go to the Discovery Museum in Sausalito and Lawrence Hall of Science on a frequent basis -- but they are both remodeling this month. Hope this helps. 

Archived Q&A and Reviews


April 2009

Re: Gymnastics for 4-year-old
I am not sure where you live, but Kids In Motion in Oakland on Piedmont is terrific. What is nice about that facility for beginners is that there is a seating area right in the gym for parents to watch the classes. And Golden Bear Gymnastics has good classes as well. A bigger facility and ultimately, a competetive program for older children. I would encourage you to try one of these over a community center program, as there is more equiptment available to the children in the classes. Trampoline, bars, ropes that may not be offered in a communtiy center room where mats, etc. are brought in by the gym teacher. Mom of a gymnast


March 2007

Re: Gymnastics camp for 6 year old novice
Also Golden Bears Gymnastics offers summer camp. Their schedule is already out on their web site. (http://calbears.berkeley.edu/ -- click on Youth Programs). anonymous


Jan 2007

Re: Gymnastics for toddler in Piedmont or Rockridge

My daughter attended Kids in Motion Gymnastics classes and camp programs from age 3 until she grew out of Kids in Motion and joined the Golden Bears Gymnastics team located on UC Berkeley campus. While I loved Kids in Motion for many reasons, if your child really loves gymnastics and wants to compete you will need to move them to Head over Heels in Emeryville or Golden Bears in Berkeley. If they truly want to compete the sooner you move them to a team the better off they will be. Kids in Motion is a non- competitive gym and is a great, safe, place for your toddler to have fun and learn the basic moves for gymnastics. But if they stay there too long they will not get the skills to compete at the higher levels -- at least that is what we found. Mom of a jumping bean


Sept 2004

I'd be interested to hear anyone's experiences (good or bad) with Golden Bear Gymnastics classes, specifically beginning boys for an 8-year old. We're not looking for anything too intense, just good fun. Thanks. joan


My son who is now five has done Golden Bear for over a year now. He loves it. He tends to get tired of things -- particularly physical activity -- but he's consistently enjoyed this class and asked for more. It is definitely ''fun'' and not hardcore. Fran


1999

We started our daughter, who is now 4, at Golden Bear Gymnastics earlier this year when she was 3 1/2 and she loves going. I believe there are classes for 18 month olds with parent participation.

There are six children per class, and during the week classes are not always full. The instructors are very nice, yet can keep the children focused on the activity. Classes are 45 minutes long and are conducted at various times and days. Golden Bear Gymnastics is up at the Dwight Derby complex at the top of Dwight Way and they can be called for schedules and enrollment forms. Sessions are eight weeks long and continuous during the school year. Denise


We did the Cal Golden Bear program for our son for one session and it wasn't a good fit for him... He started late (for them) at almost five, and all the little boys around his age were in a more advanced program, sort of pre-competition. His class was full of very little girls (around 3-4) all of whom were better at the class than he was. I found the space very loud, so a more introverted child might find it somewhat disconcerting.
Alison