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Several girls dressed in pink leotards rolled around the Marco Island YMCA’s dance room Friday afternoon.

Lyndsi Koszo, a gymnastics instructor, stood in front of the room, asking the 10 girls to calm down and start stretching. There was a lot to do in the short time before the end of the class recital.

Friday marked the end of the first session of the YMCA’s summer gymnastics camp. While the next two camps focus on more advanced techniques, the first camp gave island children a chance to learn tumbling basics.

The mini tumbling class was open to Island children between the ages of 3- and 6-years old, said Gina Blassneck, senior programming director at the YMCA.

“What’s so great about this first session is that it is for the little kids,” Blassneck said. “The parents were clamoring to get into this class.”

About 12 students were enrolled in the class, Koszo said. Students spent the week learning the proper way to tumble, do cartwheels and other basic gymnastic moves.

“Some of these kids are a little more advanced than others,” she said.

Koszo said she was surprised to see how many children were interested in the first session.

“I was really surprised,” she said. “They don’t really target this age group. It is working so well that we may have to do another one.”

Blassneck said she would welcome a Saturday morning tumbling class, if Koszo was interested in teaching.

The next sessions, however, won’t be geared toward younger children. Beginning July 16, the YMCA will host an advanced gymnastics camp dealing with floor exercise. The camp is meant to teach students the elements behind floor exercise includes tumbling and dance elements, Koszo said.

The final session, which begins August 6, is meant to teach children the basics of apparatus gymnastics. Students will train on balance beams, the vault and on bars, Koszo said.

The remaining sessions are open to children between 6- and 13-years old, and costs $85, Blassneck said.

Koszo said it is important for children, who may go on to compete in other sports, to take tumbling lessons first.

“I believe this is one of the most important sports that children should learn first,” she said. “It’s a thinking sport.”