First Youth Cheer Practice: Motions, Jumps and Stunt Safety (60 Minutes)

Circle up at center with bags pushed against the wall. Keep them close so you’re not shouting across a gym on day one.

Quick roll call: each athlete says name + favorite color (fast, but it helps you learn names). Then you set three rules you will enforce today: freeze to clean when you count down, no jewelry and shoes tied, and “down” means stop immediately.

• Cues: “When I say freeze, you hit clean.” “Show me clean in 3-2-1.” “If you feel wobbly, you say ‘down.’”
• Watch for: Who can get quiet and still quickly—those kids become your line leaders later.
• Common issue: Side conversations start right away. Fix: Reset: “Freeze to clean,” wait for silence, then restart your sentence from the beginning.

Use a straight line down the floor with 4–6 flat discs as “stop points.” They move down and back together so nobody is sprinting into others.

Go: jog, high knees, butt kicks, side shuffle, skipping, then 10 arm circles each way. Finish with tight body practice: stand tall, squeeze core, squeeze legs, hold for 5 seconds, relax.

• Cues: “Tall like a pencil.” “Belly button in.” “Land soft—quiet feet.”
• Watch for: Quiet feet and controlled stops at each disc.
• Adjustment: If they’re wild, shorten the travel distance and do everything in place on your count.

Set 2–3 lines facing you, each athlete on a floor tape mark or disc so arms don’t collide. You demo once, then they copy together on your counts.

Teach clean (feet together, arms tight), clasp (hands together, elbows up), then high V, low V, and T. Run it as “hit and freeze” for 2 counts each motion.

• Cues: “Hit, freeze, don’t wiggle.” “Straight arms—lock it.” “Shoulders down, smiles up.”
• Watch for: Everyone hitting on the same count and holding still.
• Common issue: Bent elbows and drifting hands. Fix: Stop the group, have everyone “punch” to high V and hold while you count 1-2-3, then rep again full speed.
• Adjustment: If they’re struggling, drop to just clean + high V + clean and get 10 clean reps before adding more.

Water on the wall; they sit in one line facing you when they’re done. This is not free play time—use it to reset expectations.

• Coach script: “When you come back, you’ll go straight to your spot. If you don’t know your spot, you stand by me.”
• Quick check: Retie shoes, hair up, remove any forgotten jewelry.

Use a line of tape for takeoff and a line of tape for landing, about one big step apart. Work in two lines so you can watch landings.

Teach jump prep: feet together, bend, swing arms, jump, land in clean and freeze. Then introduce toe touch shape on the floor first: sit, knees up, toes pointed, chest up, then stand and try small jumps with the same shape.

• Cues: “Bend—swing—jump—stick.” “Land like a statue.” “Knees up first, then snap.”
• Watch for: Quiet landings with knees bent and feet under hips.
• Common issue: They land with feet apart and keep stepping. Fix: Make them hold the landing for a 2-count; if they move, they redo the rep immediately.
• Adjustment: If they’re ready, add a clap on count 1 in the air to help timing; if not, keep it to prep + stick only.

Bring them in close, kneeling or sitting, so they can see your hands. Use tape on the floor to show where bases stand and where a spotter stands.

Teach roles in plain language: bases support, flyer stays tight, spotter watches the flyer and helps guide down. Demo safe grips with your hands (no yanking). Practice the word “down” and how everyone responds.

• Cues: “Close and strong.” “Use legs, not just arms.” “If you hear ‘down,’ we go down.”
• Watch for: Kids repeating the safety words back and pointing to where they stand.
• Common issue: Kids want to rush to “try a stunt.” Fix: Tell them: “We earn going up by showing we can go down safely.” Then move straight into floor-level partner work.

Set up groups of 3 (two bases and a spotter). Use tape X’s for base feet so spacing stays consistent. Day-one rule: nobody is lifted and nobody leaves the floor. The “flyer” stands on the floor between the bases the entire time—no step-ups, no preps, no cradles, no tosses.

Run rotations every 60–90 seconds so everyone tries each job. Start with base stance (knees bent, chest up), then spotter hands ready at the flyer’s waist, then a controlled “load and unload” motion where bases dip and stand while holding the flyer’s wrists—teaching timing and listening, not height.

• Coach position: Stand where you can see every group’s spotter. If you are the only coach, keep all groups in one line in front of you.
• Cues: “Eyes on the flyer.” “Hands ready, not grabbing.” “On my count: 1 load, 2 hold, 3 down.”
• Watch for: Bases staying close and using legs; spotter staying engaged (not watching friends).
• Common issue: Bases drift apart and pull with arms. Fix: Reset feet to the tape marks and have them do 3 slow reps with a coach counting.
• Non-negotiable for this block: Any group that tries to lift sits for one rotation, then rejoins. Say it once, enforce it every time.

Bring them back to their lines on the tape marks. Put together a tiny 8-count: clean, high V, T, low V, clean, clap, jump prep, small jump + stick.

Walk it once slowly with you demonstrating, then run it three times full speed on your count. On the fourth rep, pick one athlete who was quiet and quick during rules to lead the count with you standing right next to them. Finish with one clean-up rep where you fix the single most common error you saw (usually early hits or loud landings).

• Word to rotate: “Reset” means everyone back to clean on their mark, no talking.
• Watch for: Matching timing more than power. If two kids are early, the whole line redoes the rep.
• Adjustment: If the jump falls apart, replace it with jump prep + stick landing for the rest of the reps.

Quick stretch in a circle: reach up, touch toes, butterfly, 15 seconds each. Then a recap standing in clean.

• Ask: “What does ‘down’ mean?” “Show me clean.” “What’s our landing rule?” Make them answer together, then have one athlete answer alone.
• Close: Tell them what to bring next time (water, hair tie) and that you’ll review motions first thing again.
• Dismissal: Athletes sit on the wall by their bags and leave only when their adult is at the door. A coach stays until the last pickup.