Youtube Channel

I just thought I should make sure everyone knows I have a youtube channel now,

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCO8zUC2EwNB6OS-bnCXQO-A

I have some videos of me cheering (2-4 years ago), my squad trying new stunts (from like 3 years ago), and what my old squad has become (and it's not pretty). Once I start coaching (hopefully this summer) I will post videos of my girls and how they are improving =)

Letter to the YMCA to coach

This is the letter I am sending to my local YMCA (omitting personal information). 

Dear Mr. Lemon:

I am interested in volunteering to start and coach a cheerleading program this summer at the YMCA.

Benefits of cheerleading: A cheerleading program is greatly needed. Cheerleading fosters leadership and teamwork, improves strength and cardiovascular health, and builds a strong foundation for high self-esteem during a child’s formative years. It also allows children to form new friendships, emphasizes accountability, develops a healthy competitive spirit, and teaches children to become involved in their community.

My qualifications: I was a High School cheerleader for four years. I helped with the Bitty Cheerleading program  for three years teaching girls in K-5. I was captain my senior year. After graduation, I started a cheerleading blog that helped me organize my thoughts on how I wanted to coach, what I saw other squads doing, what I thought looked good, and what I though could be improved. If you accept my proposal, I plan to complete the required cheerleading coach certification program through the National Federation of State High School Associations. This certification includes courses in the fundamentals of coaching, first aid, health, and safety, concussion safety, AACCA spirit safety certification, fundamentals of coaching cheer and dance.

My proposal: I am proposing five initial classes, a stunt class, a flexibility class, and three age-based classes. I would like to start the classes at the beginning of May and run them until the beginning of August.

·         Youth: This class is for ages 5-9. It will teach basic skills. It will meet once a week for an hour and a half.

·         Junior: This class is for ages 10-14. It will work on enhancing and developing basic skills. It will meet twice a week for two hours.

·         Senior: This class is for ages 14-18. It will focus on preparing students to make a school, all-star, or college team. It will meet 3-4 times a week for three hours.

·         Stunt: This class is for ages 10-18. It will focus on teaching proper stunt technique and progression. It will meet once a week for two hours.

·         Flexibility and Balance class: This class is for all ages. It focuses on increasing a flyer’s flexibility. It will meet once a week for an hour.

If you would like to further discuss my proposition you may call me or email me. I look forward to collaborating with you to start a much-needed cheerleading program.

Thank you.

Sincerely,

Dance/ cheer Inspiration

This link is for a dance to a song we did in high school. I can't remember our whole dance so I went looking for it and found this instead. I think it looks great and looks super fun.
http://youtu.be/agwzUvdMxLY


This link is band dances and sidelines. You can never have too many.

http://www.schooltube.com/video/53e40a33b12a36ec963d/Allen-Cheer-Band-Dances-and-Cheers

http://www.schooltube.com/video/6a36a03ce7d8f30b12e2/Allen%20Cheer%20Band%20Dances%20and%20Cheers%20Part%201


 This is the Allen High School (the school Jamie Andries cheers for) cheer constitution 

http://www.allenisd.org/cms/lib/TX01001197/Centricity/Domain/24/Constitution%20-
%20AISD%20Final%202-13-13.docx


More dances and sidelines that have potential:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwgWjtgfy_g

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8XzhZWulJc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7dDtZBG3is

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mP2Baew5aTw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PgQ8n-AtYWg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=An1494Z2Vik   --- I like the transitions and cheers at the beginning rather than the dance. 


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3NGTwPs0jc


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZh54TPBxl4


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAeANmlmjVk


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBlgZ-jYn6M


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTSqYIxa5rE   --- This has a great dance starting at 2:42  *** favorite for the Y

Stretching Help

To get a HUGE list of stretches go follow inspiration__buddies on instagram. They are PERF! Seriously, they have stretches that I have never heard of or thought of. If you follow any of the big name cheer anons this instagram is what they use to learn new, harder stretches. There are beginner to advanced stretches that really challenge you to get to the level that you want to be on. There are stretches on how to get rid of cramps, tumbling help, and balance techniques that I will DEFINITELY use when I start coaching. I will give you a link so you can check out the pics and videos yourself because there are so many that it is really hard to choose the best ones (and I can't figure out how to copy and paste them on here yet. If I figure it out I will make another post of the pics.)

instagram.com/inspiration__buddies

I'm also a HUGE fan of the Nike Training app. It gives you the option to do workouts that Gabby Douglas and Shawn Johnson endorse. If Olympic winning gymnasts say you should do these I'm pretty confident they will help. There are also a lot of other really great exercise options with this app to work on any other aspect of your body like leg and core strength, which will help with jumps.

My squad was pretty lax when it came to stretching (prob why I was more flexible than my flyer). We did standing and sitting straddles to middle, left and right. We did sitting straddles to left and the right with the opposite leg bent in. We got into a hurdler position on the ground and reached for our toes. We did butterflies. The people that could, did splits. We crossed arms across our body. We put one arm over our shoulder and used the other hand to reach up from the bottom and touch it. We stretched out wrists forward and back. We did pike stretches. We did hollywood's (some people call them pretzels I think). We got into a sumo squat position and sat as far as we could. Occasionally we would do V-ups and leg lifts. We pulled heel stretches.

I would use these to warm up before actually stretching. But these don't work to improve flexibility if they're all you do.  My coach tried telling us for four years that these would make us flexible. I think she was on drugs because that isn't true at all. They are like warm ups for gym class, not stretches to make cheerleaders flexible. It's a miracle that I know anything when I had a coach like this.

YMCA Cheer Classes Plan

YMCA Cheerleading:
Ages: 6-18

• Must have multiples of 4 for each team

• No more than 20 on each team

• Request gymnastics coach (Because I do not have a background in tumbling or gymnastics)

Each member will wear white, non-marking shoes, above the knee athletic shorts (ex: soffe, Nike Pro), tight fitting T-shirt or tank top

• Youth---Ages 5-9

- Basic cheer motions
- Jumps
- Beginner tumbling
- Chants for football and basketball
- Basic cheer dancing
- Beginner stunting
- Beginner conditioning to promote health and increase stamina
- Introduce cheer stretches for flexibility

Practice once a week
1 1/2 hour

At end of course perform all dances, chants, jumps, stunts, and tumbling for parents

• Junior---Ages 10-14

- Emphasize importance of staying tight
- Perfect jumps
- Increase tumbling abilities
- Learn chants and sidelines for basketball and football
- Learn multiple cheer dances and band dances
- Continue to further stunting ability
- Increased conditioning to promote health and increase stamina
- Continue stretching techniques for flexibility

Practice twice a week
2 hours each practice

At end of course perform an competition-like routine that showcases the material learned

• Senior---Ages 14-18

(for students wishing to make a high school or college team)
- Help learn tryout material
- Learn school song
- Emphasize importance of staying tight
- Perfect jumps
- Increase tumbling abilities
- Increase ability to learn material quickly and correctly
- Continue to further stunting ability
- Intense conditioning to promote health and increase stamina
- Continue stretching techniques for flexibility
- Participate in mock tryout situations

Practice 3-4 times a week
3 hours each practice

At end of course know all material necessary for tryouts

• Stunt Class---Ages 10-18

- Learn proper stunt technique
- Improve upon current stunting abilities
- Learn stunt progression
- Use strength staining to build muscles necessary for stunting

Practice once a week
2 hours

At end of course perform all known stunts in sequence from easiest to hardest to show progression

• Flexibility and Balance Class---All ages

(for flyers)
- Learn proper stretch technique to avoid pulling muscles while stretching
- Learn new stretches to pull body positions and to gain flexibility in other muscles that help with other aspects in cheer, such as hip flexors and shoulders
- Learn proper technique to pull body positions
- Learn tricks to keeping balance in a stunt
- Practice pulling body positions on ground, in a simulated flying situation, and in the air

Practice once a week

1 hour

At end of course, with significant outside work, be significantly more flexible and have better balance in stunts






In a few weeks I'm going to post exactly what we will be doing each class, but I've been hyping this up for so long that I decided that I would just make it a separate post.