CHEERDANCE Lesson 5
CHEERDANCE
relatively new in the field of sports and dance as it has
only emerged during the early 1990s as part of the
cheerleading events.
It is one of the categories in International
Cheerleading Competition that focuses on dance
techniques and basic elements of cheerleading,
including stunts and advance gymnastics skills.
The performers are cheerleaders and not just dancers
• Cheerleading is an event that consists of cheers and organized
routines for sports team motivation, audience entertainment, or
competition.
• The routines contain many components of cheers, jumps, dances,
gymnastics, and stunting.
• The purpose of this is to encourage the spectators of events to
cheer for sports teams during games.
• The yellers, dancers, and athletes involved in cheerleading are
called cheerleaders.
• When they are grouped to work as one, they are called a squad.
HISTORY OF CHEERLEADING
Introduced 100 years ago
Only Male cheerleaders!!!
1884 Thomas Peebles. (Crowd yelling)
1890’s – Yell captains- side lines
November 2, 1898- Jack Campbell - interactive with
the crowd- in front of the crowd
HISTORY OF CHEERLEADING
1914- Lindley Bothwell – Flash cards
1919- Shirley Windsor- Pep rally (to raise money)
1920’s-30’s- Female dominates
1948- the Father of Modern Cheer - Lawrence Herkimer (The
New York Times called “a legend in the cheerleading world.”)
Combine gymnastics and motions
Invented the jump Herkie
Founded the National Cheerleader’s Association, also known as the NCA
DANCE TECHNIQUES
Some squads prefer contemporary dance techniques,
while others incorporate several techniques such as
jazz, hip-hop, modern dance, contemporary ballet, and
even ethnic or folk dance.
However, cheerleading-style dances tend to be more
rigid and sharper compared to contemporary or pop-
culture dance styles.
The emphasis is on the placement, sharpness, and
synchronicity of the movements.
DANCE TECHNIQUES
The World School Cheer Dance Championship, for
example, requires hip-hop dance styles.
In the Philippines, the University Athletic Association of
the Philippines (UAAP) Cheerdance and National
Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Cheerleading
competitions do not require a specific dance style in the
routines.
The teams are given freedom to choose their dance styles
for their respective routines for as long as they adhere to
the safety and competition guidelines.
ELEMENTS OF CHEERS
Cheers are a coordination of organized words and
movements relating to an athletic event. These are used
during sports events when play has been stopped on the
field or the court. The purpose of this is to draw a unified
response from the crowd to highlight their support for the
playing team.
Cheer motions are also used to lead the crowd to emphasize
words for a unified crowd response (Carrier and Mckay,
2006). These are made up of hand, arm, and body positions .
Although cheer styles may vary according to the
cheerleaders’ preferences, all motions originate from the
standard basic motions.
HERE ARE THE POSITIONS OF THE
HAND, ARM, AND BODY FOR
CHEER MOTIONS:
Hand Positions
BUCKET
CANDLESTICK
BLADE
JAZZ HANDS
CLAP
CLASP
Arm Positions
FLYING V
LOW V
T - MOTION
HALF T
TOUCHDOWN
LOW TOUCHDOWN
BOW AND ARROW
MUSCLE MAN
OVERHEAD CLASP
DAGGER
BOX
PUNCH
L MOTION
DIAGONAL
K MOTION
CHECKMARK
Body Positions
BEGINNING STANCE
CHEER STANCE
SIDE LUNGE
SQUAT
KNEE
Basic Gymnastics
Skills
JUMPS
a. Jumps –requires stamina, strength, and flexibility. They greatly
improve every area in a cheer dance routine (Carrier & Mckay, 2006).
Every jump has four important elements, namely:
Approach – the first stage of a jump.
Lift – occurs after a cheerleader leaves the ground.
Execution – is hitting a jump at its peak or maximum height
Landing – this involves whipping of the legs and feet together to
end with a small rebound. Knees are slightly bent when touching the
ground to absorb the weight.
TUCK
SPREAD EAGLE
TOE TOUCH
SIDE HURDLER
FRONT HURDLER
PIKE
DOUBLE NINE
Tumbling
FORWARD ROLL
BACKWARD ROLL
CARTWHEEL
ROUND-OFF
Thumblings and stunts
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School Pep Squad
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CHEERDANCE LEVELS
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