Cheerleading FUNdamentals

Wondering what cheerleaders do? Here's the fundamentals of cheerleading and what goes on!

-Cheers

Cheers are called out during games or assemblies to get the crowd pumped up. They can also be called out during competitions during the Crowd Leading Portion of the competition. A cheer usually involves your school's name, mascot, colors, or school letters (examples: Grant High School, Lions, Blue and Gold, GHS).

-Dancing

Dances are performed during half-time of a football or basketball game, school assemblies, and competitions. Cheerleading dances are formed by 8-counts. In cheering there's also band dances where the band plays music and the cheerleaders perform a routine for it.

-Stunting

Stunting is when 4-5 cheerleaders come together in what's called a stunt group and do a stunt. These are the stunting positions:

*Flyer: the top girl who is up the air. A flyer can pull many skills in the air such as a lib, heel stretch, scale, scorpion, torch, bow n arrow, hitch, needle, arabesque, chin-chin, basket toss, pretty lady, and cobra. Flyers must stay tight at all times or the stunt can come crashing down, (but of course you'll be caught) Flyers should have good core and leg strength.

*Base: A base is one of the two girls holding the flyers feet. Bases are the support of the stunt and hold it all together. Bases should have go leg and arm strength in order to keep the stunt up.

*Back Spot: A back spot is the cheerleader holding the flyer's waist, ankles, or bum. A back spot should have good upper body strength to help lift and keep all the weight off the bases wrists. A back spot is also the girl who catches the flyers upper body. It's the back spot's job to never let the flyer hit the ground.

*Front: A front is used in many stunts when the stunt group isn't completely stable, and used for most advanced skills in everyone level of cheer including high school. The front sport should have good upper body strength to help keep the stunt up.

-Tumbling

Tumbling is used in lots of high schools and not at all in some. Tumbling is when cheerleaders begin to flip and do tumbling passes. Here are a few skills:

*Back handspring
*Back walkover
*Front handspring
*Front walkover
*Back Tuck
*Full Twist
*Layout
*Round off
*Cartwheel

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