What is Competitive Cheerleading?
Competition cheer, also known as All Star cheerleading is made up of squads of girls and/or boys ranging from ages 3-18 (as a side note there is a division called ‘open’ in which there is no upper age limit) who perform a choreographed routine. This routine is 2 minutes and 30 seconds of advanced stunting, tumbling, jumping and dancing. In addition, this type of cheerleading’s main purpose is to perform and compete this routine. The difficulty of the routine depends upon what level that team is competing at ranging from 1-6. There is no chanting or cheering for any said athletic team. Competitive cheerleading is a sport that is quite progressive and takes a broad skill set when trying out for a team. For more information on how to nail cheerleading tryouts check out our ebook Secrets to Making the Cheer Squad.
What is School or Sideline Cheerleading?
Like competitive cheer, school cheer can also consist of stunting, jumping and tumbling. Although for the most part it is done along the sidelines of that schools sporting event. Sideline cheerleaders primary purpose is to involve the crowd involved in cheering on the team by chanting and cheering. School cheerleaders might also attend competitions secondary to sidelining in which they compete against other school cheerleading squads. In most scenarios sideline cheerleading is considered a club rather than a sport although most squads do hold tryouts.
School and Competitive: Differences
As discussed earlier the essential differences between school cheerleading and competitive cheerleading is that school cheerleading’s main purpose is to cheer on the sidelines of games and sporting events, while competitive cheerleading’s main purpose is to compete and perform their practiced routine. Another key difference between the two groups is the fact that competitive cheerleading starts with cheerleaders as young as 3 years old, while on average school cheerleading does not begin until junior high or middle school. Likewise competitive cheerleading is considered a sport and school/sideline cheer is more so considered a club. However, both of these types of cheerleading take considerable talent and dedication. Wither you are trying out for school or competitive cheer you will benefit greatly from checking out Secrets to Making the Cheer Squad eBook.