Update 6/24

Hi there!

First of all, the girls are already impressing me after just 2 practices! I know they will be the most talented team LQ has ever seen! They have been working on their dance to be performed at camp, and are all very quick learners!

I will be out of town tomorrow through the following Saturday. I was asked by our Principal Mrs. Salazar to attend the National Model Schools Conference in Nashville. This is a huge honor and I am very excited! I will be attending as a representative of our school, Mrs. Salazar will be presenting for our school and sharing our successes, and attending amazing presentations for part of the week. Then I get to have a vacation! (I know, it surprises me too!) I will have my computer, but don't intend on doing any cheer business during the day when I am in the conference. I don't think Mrs. Salazar would appreciate this... ;-) So, that being said- e-mail me and I will try and return your e-mail as I can. (I will borrow Wi Fi from the hotel on my lap top.)  Practice will still be going on Tuesday and Wednesday with Meaghan and our NEW Coaches- Staci Stevens and Shantae Rangel. Please bring any athletic clearance forms to PRACTICE not to Coach Armstrong as he has requested I handle the rest. Meaghan will give them to me when I return.

Staci will be assisting the team this year when she can and it is much appreciated! She also runs the Xavier cheer program, and Action cheer, so while she may not be at every practice and game, her help is needed and appreciated! Shantae will be coaching JV and also helping with Varsity when she can and is needed. She is a member of Action's college team and just super awesome! I am so excited to have these two amazing ladies to join the coaching staff this year.

I can't wait to get back to practice and the girls, but thank you in advance for understanding how important and amazing next week's opportunity is  for me as a professional educator!

Please look below for your daughters name. If there is a Y next to her name she is cleared to practice. If there is an N that means she has not turned in paperwork to Coach Armstrong yet. I know I have heard from many of you that you are struggling to get doctors appointments. I am again sorry for this. It is or District policy to not practice until cleared. I MUST follow this or my job will be in jeopardy. Please make sure to turn in any paper work you can tomorrow before practice, or unfortunately your daughter will not be doing any physically dangerous activity. Again, I will not punish anyone because it is my fault I did not know when the date for the physical on campus was. Tomorrow will be a very low key day anyway, as  need to make sure the girls can get to know one another and give them a run down of the summer and year. Thank you! I look forward to starting tomorrow!

Please make sure your daughter brings a water bottle and her cheer binder to each practice.

Our Cheer blog is www.lqhscheer.blogspot.com
 and you can follow cheer updates on our twitter at LQHScheer

Please make sure your daughter knows all information as she will be held responsible for it as well!

JV-

Natalie Bergh N
Courtney Carnavale Y
Brianna Carroll N
Natalie Cerrick N
Bailey DeGroot N
Maryfer Diaz N
Justine DoyleN
Jamie Gorman Y
Mckinley Hinkle Y
Ally Jenkins N
Haley King Y
Christiana Monnin N
Kyra Phillips Y CAPTAIN
Melanie Reiter Y CAPTAIN
Savannah Rutledge Y
Lauren Yeakel N


VARSITY-
Kayla Bentley N
Lexie Barry N
Kyrie Salazar Y
Whitney Carter Y
Solveig Danielson N
Brianna Delariva N
Brianna Gatlin Y
Janalyn Guillory N
Liliana Juarez Y
Ashley Kalman N
Sierra Kalman N
Lindsey Klein Y
Alexandra Lambrose N
Marquee Lee N
 Nicole Leonesio Y
Mariah Mata N
Shelby McNicol N
Brandy Neal Y
Jessica Norman Y
Caitlyn O'Grady N
Mackenzie Pugmire Y
Brooke Reynolds N
Maria Ross N
Desirae Sanchez N
Jessica Smith N
Adrinna Teran CLEARED UNTIL 6/29 from last years physical
Delaney Van Winkle Y
Brianna Tiumalu N

Cheer Twitter

We now also have a cheer Twitter! No excuses this year ladies. You MUST know all information that is given out and be responsible. This will help you in the long run as you gain responsibility for your own actions and activities. You can't blame things on your mom or dad anymore ;-) Please check our Twitter at http://twitter.com/LQHSCheer  


The Blackhawk Brigade even has a Twitter! Please check this blog for more detailed messages and our Twitter for short reminders. Though I shouldn't have to say it, no comments of yours are necessary on the Twitter or blog. I do not want any kind of drama from this technology. It is a professional way for me to get in touch with each of you. 


LOVE YOU! 

Action All Star Tumbling Clinic

Read Below for information about the tumbling clinic being held this weekend at Action Cheer. Sounds awesome! I wish I could tumble!

Action All-Star Cheer www.actionallstarcheer.com Summer Tumbling Camp This Weekend   with guest coaches Yuri Kostovetskiy and Mike Nasikan.  Yuri and Mike are flying in this weekend for our summer tumbling camp.  Yuri and Mike were both members of the U.S. National Tumbling Team and will be in the Coachella Valley to coach at Action Cheer on June 18 and June 19.  They will have a beginning session from 9 am to 11 am, an intermediate session from 11 am to 1 pm and an advance session from 1 pm to 3 pm.  The cost for this clinic is $55 for both days or $30 for one day.  Please call Action Cheer at 760-343-1999 today because space is limited. Please click the link below to learn more about Yuri and Mike. Read More Action All-Star Cheer  (760)343-1999 www.actionallstarcheer.com

Action Cheer Tumbling Clinic

Action is hosting a tumbling clinic this weekend. For m ore information please contact Josh Stevens at actioncheer@msn.com.

This is a special class with very talented instructors flying in to teach. Please consider attending.

Practice updates and important clothing order information

Hello all!

So I just got done typing a very detailed e-mail when it so awesomely got lost before I sent it. I am so glad I wasted those last 40 minutes... here goes try two...

Please continue to tell me when your daughter will miss practice, and thanks to those who already have!

Practice will be 1-3, Tuesdays and Wednesdays at Action Cheer Gym. The address is:
31-330 Reserve Drive Suite B
Thousand Palms, Ca 92276

If you get lost, please call me. I have attached, to the e-mail a release form I must have signed on day 1 or your daughter will not practice. 
Camp is August 1^st-4^th. There will be a 2 week break from the 5^th- the 21^st . Work week will be 3 days before my report date as a teacher. I hope to have the gym back by then! August 22, 23, and 24 will be longer days from 1-4 (location TBD.)

You must be athletically cleared prior to practice. All forms must be turned into Coach Armstrong in his office on campus. He will be there every week day from 8-12. If your last physical was after June 22nd and you were cleared last year you are able to practice. If it is dated past a year you are not. I will be e-mailing him and asking who has been cleared at the end of the week and again Monday. Many did not pick up a clearance packet, so please do so in the front office ASAP.

EVERY practice, the girls need to bring their cheer binder, and a water bottle. NO EXCEPTIONS!

CLOTHING-
We will be ordering less expensive camp clothing. I am getting the shirts designed locally and will let you know when I need to order those. 

Please order the following items- ALL CHEER SHORTS MUST BE SOFFE Brand ONLY! I have listed a website below where they can be found cheapest. You can sometimes find them locally at Kohls or Big 5.

NAVY, MAROON, AND WHITE SOFFE SHORTS- please make sure they are big enough. I prefer baggy. Many of you need to go up a size, I am tired of seeing parts of your rear that I don't need to see :-) I will be letting your parents know who needs bigger shorts if I see they are too small.
http://www.omnicheer.com/Cheer-Shorts/Women-s-Cheer-Shorts/Soffe-Cheerleading-Shorts.axd

NAVY SKORT (MUST be ordered here ONLY! )
http://www.omnicheer.com/Cheer-Skirts/Lycra-Skirts/Lycra-Cheerleading-Skirt-With-Built-In-Short.axd

EVERYONE will also need-
1. White short socks. No color socks will ever be worn with cheer clothing, unless they are our tube socks.
2. AN ALL WHITE SPORTS BRA. No colored, tagged, painted, bedazzled, bright, tacky, sports bras will be tolerated. if one is worn it can be seen through clothing and you will sit out, yes, even from camp!

TOTALLY OPTIONAL: the only shoes I allow to be worn to school with the uniform are cheer shoes. This year it will be optional to order silver glitter Toms. They can be found here:
http://www.toms.com/womens/glitters/silver-glitters-shoes

Do not let your daughter say it is mandatory. It is optional and up to you. But, these and cheer shoes are the only options to wear with the uniform to school.

Last but not least- a note about Smith's Summer. I love cheer, and I love coaching. I also love having a Summer break as all other teachers do. I get one stipend for 12 months of cheer, and it is split in half so that I get paid in the Fall and Spring. I do not get paid for any Summer practice, work, or anything like that. I don't do this for the money, but I will be trying to enjoy my break this year. My house, my family, and my dog are kind of neglected. :-) That being said I will check my e-mail a few times a week. Please do not call me late at night, I often have calls at 11 or later, and please understand that I need a break too, or I might not make it through football season!  Any cheer emergency going on I will respond to as timely as possible.

Thank you for your time and I will see you all soon!

Update 6/7/11

Hello all!

Sorry for the delay in this message, I have been out of commission since Friday with some sort of ridiculous stomach virus that had me absolutely wiped out for 4 days. Yesterday I missed school because I actually had to get an IV of a liter of fluid! The Dr. told me its going around… so I pray you all aren’t subjected to it!

Camp Money-

$ 450 is due by Friday. If I do not have the money due, your daughter will not attend camp and will be removed from the team. I will be here all day Friday. Please let me know what time you plan to drop it off if you are planning to so I can be ready. Between 8-10 AM please do not contact me as I will be in a meeting.

Coaches-

I have 2 Coaches who I hope to be able to say are officially approved very soon. In order to be cleared they must be District Board Approved and Live scanned, as well as certified in First Aid and CPR, and TB cleared… so it is quite a process. I would like to hold off on naming them until they are officially cleared. BUT I AM SO EXCITED!!!!! I appreciate your patience and understanding in this matter.

Practice-

We cannot use our gym all summer. This has caused problems in finding a place to practice, not only for cheer, but for every sport that uses the gym in the summer. Our location is TBD at the moment but practice will be Tuesday and Wednesday from 1-3 PM. Please let me know if this conflicts with anyone for Summer School, which is for remediation only again, and I don’t think it will impact much of the team. Both teams will practice both days. Practice will start on June 21^st and 22^nd and be every Tuesday and Wednesday until camp. Camp is August 1^st-4^th. There will be a 2 week break from the 5^th- the 21^st . Work week will be 3 days before my report date as a teacher. I hope to have the gym back by then! August 22, 23, and 24 will be longer days from 1-4 (location TBD.)

That looks nice and confusing…sorry! J  I have attached a calendar to aid you (there are 3 pages you can turn the page in the bottom left corner.) PLEASE PRINT A COPY FOR YOURSELF AND FOR THE GIRLS’ CHEER BINDER. I will have extras when the girls come to get their clearance forms…

A note on practice- I know you will take vacations, and please do! I have scheduled practice Tuesday and Wednesday so we can all have Thurs-Monday to take long weekends. Please try and do this, though I realize it isn’t possible all the time, and some have arrangements with parents and family. ALWAYS tell me when you will be missing practice. A missed practice in the summer will only be 1 demerit. Any missed practice without notifying me will be 10 demerits, just like in season. Tardies will also count in the summer. If you are not early you are late! J I plan on taking my vacations on days we don’t have practice as well… Remember as long as there is practice I am here on my school vacation as well. It is a sacrifice I make for the girls and I would appreciate them being at practice. It is hard for me to conduct practice with people missing. As soon as one person is gone one entire stunt group will lose out on practice before camp and the school year. This goes for the whole year! Please have your girls read this as well!

Athletic Clearance-

Your daughter will need to obtain athletic clearance forms in my room tomorrow. I will have packets made by the end of 3^rd period. Unfortunately I missed the on campus date for physicals which was at the end of May and I didn’t know it was happening. I am SO SORRY! This means you will need to schedule an appointment to see your own doctor and have them fill out the form for clearance. It should take no more than 10 minutes. Each girl will need to then turn in the ENTIRE COMPLETED PACKET OF FORMS to Coach Armstrong by June 21^st or they cannot practice. Coach Armstrong will be in his office on campus (by the weight room) every week day from 8-12. All he will do is collect the forms and issue a clearance sheet, if not he will check you off and I will then know you are clear. Again I am sorry for any inconvenience I have caused you in this matter.

Cheers-

I will be making a copy of the Cheer DVD of all of our sideline cheers. It is the girls responsibility to learn these cheers throughout the summer. On day one of work week I will test them on all cheers as a team. Anyone who doesn’t know them will have until day 3 of work week to again be tested. If the cheers are still not known they will sit out the first football game. This is a non negotiable policy and applies to ALL members of cheer, returning or not, Varsity or JV. This way we can focus on our dance for camp and stunts for the year at practices in the summer.

Last words- A big thanks to Debbie McNicol, Revae Reynolds, and Tonya Carnevale for all of their help at the uniform fittings last week! I have never had a fitting run as smoothly as it did! Our uniform exchange turned out fabulously thanks to Tonya and our bill was paid in FULL at the time of order with the help of Revae and Debbie! And THANKS to all of you for being prompt in your arrival and for making this an easy fitting for the team!

Thanks so much! I will be busy winding down in my classroom the next few days and checking out of school so I may be slow in a response but I promise I will as soon as I can!