TUMBLING CLASSES

Welcome to our materials for tumbling classes. It is imperative for all teachers to follow the lesson outlines and teach all skills listed for the class in the order they are presented. Having consistency between teachers is what keeps our program strong and successful.  Please take time to read over this material so you can better implement the curriculum into your classes! 

TEACHER TRAINING:

Below is a suggested timeline for each tumble class. Familiarize yourself with the Acrobatic Arts curriculum within the classroom and these resources. Please refer to reference videos and pictures for all skills. This will create unity from class to class and cohesion if and when a student is moved between classes. Utilize the skills plans within the curriculum to plan your lessons. While you can add conditioning for specific skills groups and add drills for the skills you are working, on it is important to stay on track with the skills cards and the scope and sequence of the skills plans.

Each level has core skills we expect each student in that class to be able to execute by the end of the year. But remember, tumble classes are very unique in that each kid will progress at a very different rate. Be ready to level your class and allow kids to work on skills at their own pace. As a student nears mastery, let them move on to the next progression of that skill! Until they reach mastery, they should still be practicing both the near-mastery progression and challenge progression of that particular skill!

• Tumbling Skill Progressions- Preschool 

• Tumbling Acrobatic Arts Skills by Area & End-Of-Year Skills by Company

• Props & Equipment List

CLASS OUTLINE:

• Use this timeline below and add in skills from all areas of the Acrobatic Arts Syllabus, with the heaviest focus on limbering and tumbling skills

• Classes can easily be leveled by changing up the circuit to the next progression of the skill for kids who are ready

• Class is set on a 45-60 minute timeline

• Do pass-offs once a month, on the last week of the month.  

• Keep them moving! Add in brain breaks/movement games when the class is beginning to get distracted!  

TUMBLING TIMELINE- ACADEMY:

Warm-up (10 min)

• Some sort of aerobic warm-up.  Get heart rate up and build endurance. Examples are: tabata, conditioning cards, freeze conditioning (jumping jacks, burpees, tuck jumps, jumping with two feet over mats, etc.), running laps.

• Stretch ankles, shoulders, wrists and backs

• Do a light stretch in legs

• Use fun, upbeat music.

• Make sure to be watching students and applying corrections/giving high fives

Strength Skills & Stretch (5 min)

• Work on the skill of the month

• They REALLY need core strength! Do V-snaps/plank/etc every week!

• Pick 2 -3 to focus on each month. Talk about correct form and practice holding for 10 seconds longer than required for that level.

• Stretch: cobra, chest stands, bridge, teddy bears, etc

Circuit (20-25 min) 

• Areas: long mat, wall, panel mats, balance beam

• Include: tumbling skills, balancing, limbering, and strength skills

• Skills can be repeated in multiple spots if needed (backward roll on wedge and also on mat, etc)

• Only one skill in the circuit should require a spot, unless you have a capable and qualified assistant.  Choose an area to spot this skill that you can easily watch the entire circuit.  If you don’t have an assistant, switch this skill to a similar skill that doesn’t need a spot for the last 5-10 minutes so you can observe/correct students in all areas of the circuit.

• Keep the same circuit each month, with small adjustments if class needs to progress/digress on a specific skill.

• When setting the circuit, always talk about what correct looks like.  Demonstrate, have an assistant or student demonstrate or use the app to show what you’re looking for.  Ask a lot of questions: how do we start a cartwheel, how do we finish, where does your head go, etc.  Remember, every student learns differently.  Some need to see it, some need to hear it, some need to do it.  The more ways we can teach, the quicker our students will learn!

• For students in class that are more advanced, have them do the next progression of the same step (L handstand becomes pre-handstand, bridge jump and kick becomes bridge kickover with a stack, etc).

Across the Floor (5-10 min)

• Earn a sticker/stamp - Have them each show a skill you really focused on that day

• Work on full panel tumbling (skipping down mat, crab walks down mat, gallops, round offs, etc)

Flexibility (5 min)

• Pick 2 – 3 to focus on each month.  Talk about correct form and practice holding each stretch for at least 30 seconds

Ending Class

• Always thank students and highlight something specific they accomplished or did well today!  If it was a big accomplishment, go out into the lobby at the end of class and have them tell their parent and share in their excitement/celebration. 

TUMBLING TIMELINE- COMPANY:

• Spend 5-10 minutes warming up wrists, ankles, shoulders and backs

  • If this is their first class of the day, add in a 10 minute cardio circuit before the warm up to get them warm

• Jump right into your tumble passes/circuit for the day

  • You only need to stretch wrists, shoulders, back and ankles. Stretching and conditioning is happening in jazz and ballet classes!  We don’t need to take up tumble class time doing this!  A stretch/conditioning skill as part of the circuit is fine, but don’t spend whole group time on this! Most classes only have one tumble class and we need to spend the majority of the time tumbling!

• Tips to keep class flowing:

  • Return to whole group exercise if working drills/focus items on a specific skill

  • Change the circuit mid-class to keep them engaged

  • Spend time just doing tumble passes down the mats when you have two mats similar to “going across the floor” in other classes

  • Switch up where you are standing/spotting so you can dive in and correct multiple skills in a circuit

MORE TEACHER TRAINING:

• Warm up/conditioning ideas:

  • place six cards out

  • Run, stop music, 3 burpees

  • Tabatas 

  • Cardio time

  • Plank games tunnel, jumping over

  • Always doing v-snaps pushups in every class and work up to more 

• Lesson plans: We've provided a template with a few samples built out for the first few levels. You are expected to create your own lesson plans based on your class needs and abilities. Just progress through each area of the acrobatic arts levels and keep your class on track with the skills for their level.

• Maintain age appropriate expectations and mastery of basic progression before moving on.

  • A kindergartener's expectation for doing a handstand is very different than a 3rd grader because of the coordination and development for their age. We don't want to build bad habits, but we also want them to master it to their ability and keep progressing as quickly as possible.

• Acro Levels and Skills Lists

  •  As much as we like Acrobatic Arts, tumbling and limbering skills are the main focus of all classes

• Pass off Skills Cards Time:

• How long and how often do we do pass-off cards?

  • End of the month, in the middle of class

• Do they have to do a skill more than 1x to pass it off?

• Creating circuit to have all three levels of mastery. Introductory, building and mastery

• Where are you keeping the cards for your class?

  • Class folders in the classroom box

• Where can you get more cards at each studio?

• Are we being efficient with our time for this?

• Strength/Stretch of the Month Challenge

  • We want to encourage kids and parents to implement these challenges at home. We don't want to spend lots of class time on these. Do them in class, but don’t take up time doing the “extra mile” club.

• Brain Break Activity Ideas: 

  • Plank tunnel

  • Four corners

  • Ships Captain

  • Specific skill whole group

  • Sharks and Minnos

  • Red light, Green light: hop on one foot, frog jump, baby bouncing, etc

  • Stuck in the mud

  • Other ideas and teacher favorites? Send them to us to share! 

Class Expectations & Management

• Classroom Rules- Make it a habit to review this in class!

• Teachers cannot be sitting in class

• It doesn’t matter how many kids you have. You start on time!

Skills Review- HOW to teach certain skills so we all do it the same way:

• Backward rolls- going up and over their head so they aren’t “crunching”

• Back extensions

• Aerials- lunge, arm circle, 

  • Starting as standing aerials before trying with a run

• Handstands- hand on the hip and other hand on shoulder so that you can support their weight if they need it and they don’t bump their head.

• Cartwheel starts with a square hip- not like they learn at the playground

  • Teach lunge to lunge, we are no longer teaching rainbow arms at the end

  • Use the cartwheel blocks, mats, poly dots, etc.

  • Make sure you’re guiding them, not doing it FOR them.

• Forward roll: “Hands up high, touch the sky. Hands down touch the ground. Tuck, and roll!”

  • As they’re learning, always have them stand up to finish. 

• Finishing skills- teach them when to say TA-DA and make sure we aren’t skipping out on the finish

  • Somersaults- Ending in a tuck? In pike? Standing up? 

  • Donkey Kicks- 

  • Handstands- Arms up

  • Cartwheels- L arms

  • Bridge, how to come out of it

  • Bride recover finish

Spotting Review

• Purpose of a spot: they need to be “learning the trick” not just going through the motions because we are spotting them to do something they aren’t ready to actually learn.

• Spotting is an important part of learning some tricks. Are we spotting light enough to allow students to feel the motion of what they need to be doing on their own?

• If you’re new at spotting something, spot on someone who has mastered the skill so you can get a feel for where and how to spot 

• Don’t pull on arms- spot at the hips, support shoulders, 

• Always protect the head and spine

Safety is the top priority

• It’s okay to tell a kid they have to skip their turn because they aren't being safe.

• It’s never too early to educate the parents on proper attire!

  • We want them to be barefoot- if it’s a footed tights, we want them in their ballet shoe

  • No skirts

  • Hair in ponytail, no bows or barrettes that are jabbings them

• Always face the entire room when working at a station

• If a student is not demonstrating correctly or looks sloppy, move back to the previous progression a few times until they can show proper form. Our goal is to teach proper form, not sloppy tricks.

Expectations for TAP Assistants

• Train them in proper spotting and keep an eye on them. Make sure they are using the correct technique for not only the students but them as well. (spotting with legs not backs, spotting with full arms, not wrists)

Equipment Overview: 

• We have so much equipment and supplies for tumbling that can be used for so many exercises: 

  • Yoga blocks

  • Circuit Training Cards

  • Small pilates balls

  • Station cards

    • Use for warm up, pass off time, attention games

• Putt away the mats the right way.

  • Velcro to the wall for mats

  • Stacked cleanly

  • Lift, DO NOT slide beam

• Make sure kids respect and take care of our materials at all time. Carving names in yoga blocks is NOT acceptable.

Using the Acrobatic Arts App to prep for your classes. 

• Use this in class with students very minimally. Don’t let it take away from student opportunities to demonstrate and be mindful of taking up too much time in class.

What to do when you feel like you have a split-level class. How can you run your classes so every child is progressing?

But remember, tumble classes are very unique in that each kid will progress at a very different rate. Be ready to level your class and allow kids to work on skills at their own pace. As a student nears mastery, let them move on to the next progression of that skill! Until they reach mastery, they should still be practicing both the near-mastery progression and challenge progression of that particular skill!

Using music in tumbling classes

• Music can be a fun brain break tool for following along with the words

• Use music for warm ups and conditioning (quick cardio time) PLAYLIST LINK HERE

• Always turn music down low so it isn’t hyping up the class when working on skills after warm up

• Using music in the background is a privilege for the teacher- it should only be used if your class is managed and under control

Continuing Ed Ideas

• Follow Acrobatic Arts

• Go watch a class at Studio 56 Dance

• What else?

Tumble Exhibition

Instructor Expectations for Special Studio Events & Programs for Tumbling Classes:

• Use Skills Cards: Academy and PC classes need to be using Acrobatic Arts Skills Cards and sending home when they complete a level

• Pin Club: Use the Tumbling pins and splits pin

• Company In-Class demonstration day for parents (April)

• Academy Parent Observation (April)

• Academy Exhibition (May)

• Coordinate with team of tumbling teachers