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Not to sound dramatic, but cheerleaders put their lives in each others’ hands. The work they do requires trust, collaboration, and good, old-fashioned team spirit. That does not happen overnight! It takes time to build that trust, and team bondings are crucial to a successful cheer team.
Here are some fun and creative ways to get the team together for a little fun.
TAKE A SELFIE TOUR
Many towns have murals or interesting, “Instagram walls,” and some even have a guide to find all of them. There are severalselfie museumsaround the country, too! Take the kids to a fun place where they can take pictures with each other.
DO A PHOTOSHOOT
Take the selfie idea to the next level: Have the kids dress up (maybe even have them color coordinate!) and let a photographer take pictures of them. A good photographer can be hired for just a few dollars per kid, depending on the size of the team. You’ll all treasure those photos for the whole season.
GO ON A SCAVENGER HUNT (WITH STYLE!)
The days of going door-to-door, looking for a penny or a clothespin might be behind us, but you can still do fun scavenger hunts at the mall, in a park, etc. Maybe even do one involving local restaurants. Get the other parents involved with the clues, and have parent volunteers set up at the locations to give them their next one.
PLAY BINGO, WITH A TWIST
I created BINGO with a twist that was both fun and helped the athletes get to know one another. It involved doing TikTok dances, impressions of coaches, and “would you rather…” Enter your name and email below to download my detailed instructions!
HAVE A FOAM PARTY
HAVE YOU SEEN THESE?I think it may be the new bounce house! Rent a foam machine and let the kids go wild.
HAVE A “FIELD DAY”
Play good, old-fashioned games in the park: relay races, water balloon fights, hula hoop contests…all without technology!
LASER TAG
Don’t let the kids knock it ’til they’ve tried it. I set up a private room at a laser tag/bowling alley once, and the kids fell in love with laser tag…especially the older ones! It was a blast.
MAKE S’MORES AROUND A CAMPFIRE
Set up the ole’ fire pit and have fun making s’mores!
GO KAYAKING
Few things will teach teammates how to work together faster than kayaking or paddle boarding!
KARAOKE
Karaoke machines are cheap to rent and are fun for all ages. You can find Disney-themed songs and more! Another great one for the moms to be involved…although I’m gonna need a co*cktail first if anyone expects me to participate.
DO BRUNCH
Is there anything more fun than drinking orange juice from a fancy glass and having a good brunch with your girlfriends?
PLAY A GAME OF “FIND YOUR PERFECT MATCH”
This is great for larger teams; especially those with athletes who don’t know one another as well. It’s a quick way to get to know each other and ‘find your match.’ Great for the moms, too!
Each person fills out a survey of ‘this or that’ type of things (pancakes or waffles, beach or mountains, etc.) and compares notes with every person on the team. You get a point for every match, and the duo with the highest score is the “perfect match!”
Get a free download of a survey for kids, AND a separate one for the mamas!
CREATE YOUR OWN PHOTO BOOTH
This is one of my favorite things to do when I host a party. You can set up your own photo booth relatively easily, with the help ofthese products and props from Amazon, and an iPad or laptop that takes photos. I created this whole photo booth for around $100 and we use it at every party we throw.
HERE IS THE LIST OF PRODUCTS I USE, WITH LINKS TO EACH:
Assembly is super easy! Just add fun props: boas, top hats, sunglasses, signs; most of which are available at your local craft store. The sky’s the limit!
GO TO AN ESCAPE ROOM
I recommend this for smaller teams, stunt groups, or splitting a larger team up into smaller groups. Team members have to find clues and solve them to get out of the room they’re in!
HAVE A CUPCAKE OR COOKIE DECORATING PARTY
Set up small cups of frosting, candy, and sprinkles, and let the kids have at it!
SET UP AN ICE CREAM BAR
This is fun for a quick bonding or encouragement; especially right after practice. Have each parent bring an ice cream topping and set it up for a fun treat.
HIRE A LIMO
Treat the kids to a bouge night on the town with a limo ride!
GO TO A TRAMPOLINE PARK
Is there anything cheerleaders love more than bouncing around and showing off their tumbling skills on a trampoline? I can’t think of a thing…
DO GOAT YOGA (OR PUPPY YOGA!)
I haven’t personally done this, but it’s all the rage. You do yoga poses while goats (or puppies) stand on or near you. It sounds like a ton of fun.
“BLACK TIE PANCAKES”
This is one of my favorite things to do: Get dressed up in your nicest clothes (hence the “black tie”) and have breakfast for dinner. We did it as a holiday party one year and it was so much fun.
PIN PAINTING
Many cheer teams like to “pin” other athletes. This is where they take a clothespin and secretly clip it to someone’s backpack to wish them luck at a competition. It’s sort of like a secret admirer thing, and there’s usually an encouraging message of luck from one athlete to another. Get your athletes together and have everyone paint and write special messages on pins to hand out at their next competition.
HAVE A TYE DYE PARTY
Tye dye is BACK! Use this handy tye dye kit from Amazonto dye shirts, scrunchies, anything the kids want!
PLAY KICKBALL
Cheerleaders are the most physically active people I know (do they EVER stop moving?) Get them moving in a way that’s out of the norm: Play a good old-fashioned game of kickball! Maybe even play parents against kids.
PAINTING OR POTTERY PARTY
The painting and pottery places are always fun to get those creative juices flowing.
HAVE A CREATIVE “FOOD BAR”
I saw this blog post with a bunch of creative ideas to build a food bar: Milk & Cookies, Biscuits, Hamburgers…so fun!
