Cheerleading Chants - Diction and Enunciation

2…4…6…8…How to Give a Chant that’s Great!

The heart and soul of every great cheerleading routine is in its chants. After all, the goal of cheerleading is to get the crowd pumped up and cheering for the team, and chants are the best way to get everyone feeling involved.

While performing cheerleading chants, it’s important to be smiling, even if the team is performing dismally and losing by an insurmountable amount. Many cheerleading hopefuls practice their facial expressions in the mirror before try-outs to ensure an animated face including a glowing smile.

Eee-nun-cee-ate

Another important aspect of cheerleading chants is clear diction. While it may be easy to chant loudly while standing still, try chanting while performing jumps or stunts! Not only does it increase the difficultly of both of these activities, it also requires a great deal of co-ordination to chant and move at the same time. Practice chants in conjunction with moves so that they become inexorably linked. Remember to chant from the diaphragm, deep in the stomach instead of the throat, as that’s how cheerleaders lose their voices.

One of the keys to any good cheerleading chant is sharp, short clapping sounds. A cheerleader’s moves should be tight, concise, and snappy. When clapping, always keep the hands at chin height. Don’t release the arms too much when clapping. The hands should never move past the shoulders on the release.

Sample Chants (including actions)

Finally, the core of every cheer is the words that are being cheered. Have fun with the cheers, and feel free to make up some cheers that suit the team or occasion, like playoff games. Here are some sample cheerleading chants to use as inspiration:

Get up, (starting at waist level, bring hands up)

Stand up, (starting at waist level, bring hands up again)

It’s time to shout! (cup hands around mouth)

C’mon fans, (extend one hand and bring towards the face)

Yell it out! (cup hands around mouth again)

Say it loud, (bring hands above head in V-shape)

Say it proud (beat chest lightly with one fist)

Go (school’s name) (pump fist in the air)

Go! Go! Go! (pump first three more times, end with a toe touch jump)

Salt makes you thirsty, (mime drinking a glass of water)

Pepper makes you sneeze, (mime a sneeze by shaking the head from side to side)

But when it comes to Basketball, (put hands on hips)

We make you buckle at your Knees! (point at other team, buckle at the knees)

Go (team name)! (stand up, roll hands, ending with hands above head in V-shape)

We’ve got the spirit, (shake left pom pom in the air)

We’ve got the right, (shake right pom pom in the air)

We’re going to win the game tonight! (shake both pom poms in the air)

We’ve got the talent, (rolls pom poms together from head to chest level)

We’ve got the heat, (mime wiping sweat off the brow)

(Team name) just can’t be beat! (bring both hands above head in V-shape, end with a toe touch jump or jump of choice)

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Cheerleading Routines, Chants, and Stunts