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10 Things I Wish I Understood Before My Daughter Made the Competitive Cheerleading Team by Kimberly Archie

A Parent’s Responsibilities

The most important responsibility for a cheer parent is to remember that their athlete is a person first, and a cheerleader second.  And in all probability the “person” in the cheerleader is a young one, still growing, still maturing.  Sometimes cheerleaders seem so grown up, so easily able to handle pressure situations, that we forget they are still kids -- DON’T!!!  The same kids that we see looking so grown-up on the competition mat probably still cuddle their favorite stuffed animals when they go to bed at night.  Let them be kids, and support them as they grow.

10 things for parents to think about as they approach the sport:

1. Balance: Make sure there is balance in your cheerleader’s life.  Allow time for school and personal growth.  Very few cheerleaders make cheering their life career.  Don’t put so much focus on your child’s cheerleading that you forget they’ll have to function in a “normal world” when they grow up.  School is important.  Social development is important.  Being a kid is important and college scholarship quests are just excuses to push kids too hard. The cheerleading industry manufacturers claim 4 million cheerleaders cheered last year (I question this high of a number, but until I can find other reputable data this will have to do). There are maybe 1,000 college cheerleading scholarships available, so be realistic.
2. Insist that your program have a “Rehearsed Emergency Routine for Catastrophic Injuries”: Although proper treatment of all injuries is important, special attention needs to be put on catastrophic injury preparedness. Number one should be prevention, but all activities have opportunity for injuries. What does your program do for a head, neck, spine or internal injury? These injuries if not treated properly with quick emergency care could lead to paralysis or death!
3. Learn about cheerleading: Learn enough about cheerleading to recognize the elements.  Know enough to know when something is done well, and when it is done less well.  Recognize progress.  Be interested, and listen when your cheerleader talks about progress or problems. Research safety equipment available in cheerleading and purchase applicable items. This includes mats for stunting and tumbling. If you can raise money for uniforms, you can raise money for safety equipment. There should be NO stunting or tumbling or repetitive jumps on any surface other than a tumbling mat, air or spring floor. Educate yourself in regards to biomechanics, physics of flight and falling, and acrobatics.
4. Know your athlete’s coach and their credentials/experience: Cheerleading coaches should be certified by the National Federation of High School Sports in CPR, first aid and basic coaching skills if a high school coach; USASF for All Stars and AACCA or NCSSE for the NCAA. Currently specific training for catastrophic injury preparedness is not a requirement at this time. NCSF recommends the safety courses at www.emergencycareeducationcenter.com . Encourage your athlete’s coach to get it. Also, find out how many years they have been a cheerleading coach and if they have previously done the activities they are overseeing your athlete learn/perform.
5. Report your athlete’s injuries to www.cheerinjuryreport.com: Organized athletic activities need to report their injuries for research for future recommendations on safety guidelines and to see if the rules in place are effective in preventing injuries. Become a member of the National Cheer Safety Foundation to help fund safety awareness, injury data collection and research. www.nationalcheersafety.com
6. Watch: Don’t use the gym as a babysitter.  Stay and watch your cheerleader practice, and in privates lessons, at least sometimes.   They need to know you’re interested.  Often cheerleaders whose parents never watch in practice feel very self-conscious or “pressured” when their parents finally do show up to watch.  If competition events are the only time you watch your cheerleader, you may be hurting them more than helping them. Make sure you are following good sport parent etiquette at all times. If your program doesn’t allow parents to watch this is a warning sign. Whether your coaches are uncomfortable allowing parents at practice or your parents are out of control or both. A good program will encourage parents to watch as long as they don’t try to be the coach. If your program will not allow you to watch then you may want to put your athlete in a different program.
7. Be a good sport: Remember that every cheerleader is someone’s child, and that they ALL deserve to be treated fairly and with respect.  Be willing to recognize other cheerleaders graciously.  When another team is competing, don’t walk back and forth in the bleachers, be noisy or disruptive.
8. Check for a first aid kit and if an AED (defibrillator) is available: There should be a first aid kit at every practice, game or performance of any kind. See if your program has an AED. If so, what training they have received and who is responsible for keeping it maintained and properly charged. If you don’t have an AED there are organizations that give grants for AED’s. Competitions should have EMT’s and emergency vehicles on standby. If there is an injury that takes emergency personnel away from the competition additional emergency personnel must arrive before activities can be resuming.
9. Support your cheerleader: Remember your cheerleader is still maturing.  Offer praise when appropriate, but be realistic with that praise; recognize progress towards goals, but be willing to acknowledge when more work is needed without making that a “bad thing”.  Never destructively criticize your athlete, especially in front of others.   Resist the urge to compare your child against another.  Some learn faster, some learn slower.  Remember that proper nutrition, hydration, flexibility, mental preparedness and strength training are vital to proper development of an athlete.
10. Mediocre cheer coaches can be dangerous: Remember that a chess club or dance team advisor can be mediocre with little detrimental effects. If a cheer coach moves an athlete with a neck injury; they my never walk again. Outside of proper guidelines, no other single factor affects a program more than the coach. Get to know your athlete’s coach well.

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