Cheerleaders have a lot to learn: motions, cheers, jumps, chants, tumbling and stunting. Keeping the terminology straight can be confusing at first, but with a little studying and a lot of practice, it will become second nature to you in no time. Keep a cheerleading notebook full of the terms and definitions you need to know. Whenever you learn a new term, add it to your notebook for future reference.
Motions
The first motions you should memorize are touchdown, punch, T, broken T, and low and high V. In a touchdown motion, you hold both arms overhead. Your arms are parallel to each other and slightly forward. A punch motion is when you have one fist on your hip and the other arm extended in a touchdown motion. T and broken T are related motions. For T, hold your arms out to the side, parallel to the ground. Both arms are straight. To do broken T, bend your arms so that your fists are in front of your shoulders and your elbows point out to the side at the same height as your fists. Your bent arms are parallel to the ground. In low and high V, you make a V shape with your straight arms. Your arms point down for low V and up for high V.
Motion Technique
In cheerleading, you cannot just perform a skill: You must aim for perfection. Motions must be properly placed with exact levels. The only acceptable levels in arm motions are parallel, perpendicular, 90 degrees and 45 degrees. Do not allow your motions to sway off these exact levels. When you hit a motion, you must hit it sharply and on the exact word or count for the motion. Getting to a motion a beat late is not acceptable. Finally, motions should be completed as if you were standing with your back against a wall. Never let your arms touch the imaginary wall behind you.
Chants
Chants are shorter than cheers and done on the sidelines during a game. Chants often have claps in them and not as many motions as a cheer. Chants are repeated several times. Start a chant with one or two cheerleaders shouting out the words with claps only, no motions. On the second repetition, add the motions and the rest of the squad. Do the chant three times with motions. At the end of the third repetition, hold the final motion, then explode into jumps, kicks and spontaneous expressions of spirit.
Cheers
Cheers are longer than chants and done in front of the crowd at timeouts, between quarters and at halftime. A cheer will have a set formation on the court or field and might have a stunt, jumps or tumbling included. A cheer might be repeated one time to build the stunt, but not more than once. When your squad takes the floor to do a cheer, do so with excitement, cheering and jumping as you run out to your places. At the end of a cheer, take time to kick and jump, cheering and shouting again as you exit the court. If anyone on your squad plans to tumble for an entrance to or exit from the cheer, plan it out in advance to avoid collisions. Tumblers should be the first to take off, whether entering or exiting the floor.
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