Caitlyn Cook

UWRT 1101-073
Literacy Narrative Assessment
My literacy topic is cheerleading. It did not take any thought when Mr. Arnold asked the
class what we were literate in. Cheerleading is my passion. I do not think I am as literate in any
other subject than I am in cheerleading. I chose this topic because ever since I was in grade
school I wanted to be a cheerleader. I wanted to move the way they did and shout the way they
did and do that "thing" where they lifted other girls up, threw them and then caught them in their
arms - like a trust exercise. Before I became a cheerleader I was not up on the lingo of
cheerleading, so I would point something out, like stunting, and call it that thing. I wanted that
relationship with a team where I could completely trust my peers and become close friends with
my team members.
I attended Southview Christian School from kindergarten to third grade. I went up to the
cheer coach when I was in kindergarten and asked her if I could be a mascot on the cheer squad,
but apparently at this private school you could not be a cheerleader until you were in eighth
grade. But I did not ask to be a cheerleader, I asked to be a mascot and there were girls my age
and younger that were mascots so I did not understand why I was turned down. This made me
very upset, but very determined to show them that they made a poor choice in making the rule of
being in eighth grade in order to cheer, so when I went to public school, in fourth grade, I started
cheering. And at this point, in fourth grade, at Cool Spring Elementary School, was the
beginning of the story of how I became literate in cheerleading.
I had watched the cheerleaders at Southview Christian School for four years so I saw
exactly how to move my arms and legs, how to smile while shouting words, and get the crowd
involved. So when I got to public school doing cheers came naturally to me - you do not yell,
but use your diaphragm to say cheers so it comes out pleasant and does not seem as though you

Caitlyn Cook
UWRT 1101-073
Literacy Narrative Assessment
are in a screaming fight with someone. Your arms do not move fluidly like a sentence or a song,
they move in sharp movements, like in Karate, because that is how people in the back of the
crowd/stands will be able to see the motions - plus sharp movements look much better than fluid
movements do. Stunting (lifting girls in the air) did not come so naturally to me because at
Southview the most complex stunt they did was a thigh stand. In the beginning of my
cheerleading career I was a flyer (the girl that is tossed in the air). I had to learn, through many
practices, how to lock my knees when I went in the air; this would help my balance and keep my
ankles from rolling. I, also, learned not to jump out of my bases hands when we cradled because
if I did jump out of their hands the cradle would look sloppy and someone might get hurt. When
flying, I learned I had to let them throw me with their arms and catch me and I just simply had to
ride the cradle to the top and, when I felt myself falling, sit in a V position.
The moment in my path to literacy when I decided to become more literate in
cheerleading was when I went to East Iredell Middle School to cheer. At Cool Spring
Elementary I just had to sign up for cheerleading and I was on the team, but at East Iredell and
South Iredell High School I had to try out. When I went to the first day of tryouts and saw how
many girls there was I thought I was toast; there was no way that I was good enough to make the
team over all of these girls. After all the girls got settled the cheer coach, Mrs. Sellers, explained
that this was nothing like cheering at our elementary schools, it was going to be very competitive
and we needed to bring our A game. This was the moment I knew I wanted to become more
literate; I wanted to be the best.
While I was at East Iredell Middle School, as a cheerleader, I got the opportunity to be a
captain my eighth grade year. This title came with a lot of responsibilities and I knew this

Caitlyn Cook
UWRT 1101-073
Literacy Narrative Assessment
because I had seen past captains and all that they had to do, so by this time in my cheerleading
career I was absolutely 100% ready to take on the challenge of being a captain. This stage of
becoming literate was vital because after this year I would be going to high school and would be
at the bottom of the food chain; I would have to prove myself to a new set of girls; varsity and
junior varsity (J.V.). Being the captain of the cheerleading squad I had to make the line-up for
dances and side cheers, come up with a dance for half time, and choose a sweatshirt/t-shirt
design. This added a lot of stress to my plate because I was also in the International
Baccalaureate Programme at Northview IB Middle School my seventh and eighth grade years of
middle school. I learned that I had to take one task at a time, I could not conquer all that I
needed to do in a week; it was going to take time. Mrs. Sellers helped me understand this by
having weekly captain meetings to make sure we knew exactly what was expected of the
captains and what all needed to be done. Being captain of the cheerleading squad, I had to keep
my team in line and do what we were supposed to do because as cheerleaders we are role models
to others at our school - people look to us to see what we are doing. Therefore, my eighth grade
year of cheering was a major part in becoming literate.
When I got to South Iredell High School tryouts were even more terrifying than going to
my very first tryout as a cheerleader in sixth grade. There was around one hundred girls trying
out for a spot on J.V. (14 to 15 spots) and varsity (18 spots), which meant that over half of the
girls trying out would not make any team. These odds scared me half to death; there was no way
I was good enough to beat over half of these girls because I was only half literate at this time in
my cheerleading career. The day came that we had to tryout in front of the judges and I received
my letter of congratulations on making the J.V. team. I had brought my A game to tryouts and

Caitlyn Cook
UWRT 1101-073
Literacy Narrative Assessment
the other girls just let their nerves get the best of them. First day of practice came and Coach
Owen told us to line up shortest to tallest, I was in the middle of all the tallest girls (this is how
she chose stunting positions). Since I was in the middle of all the tall girls I got the position of a
base, which made me really upset and nervous because all I knew how to do in stunting was
front spot and fly. But I did not let my nerves get the best of me. I earned that spot on the J.V.
squad and I wanted to become more literate in cheerleading and this is how I would become
more literate. It took a few practices for me to get the hang of basing someone. Even though I
had an idea of the proper way to lift someone and toss the flyer in the air, I was not literate in this
aspect because I would keep my focus on myself, the one who was flying, and not falling.
Coach Owen motivated me to not give up if a girl knocked me in the face or if I messed the stunt
up. She had so much faith in me in becoming a base, even when I did not, and that really helped
contribute to my literacy. My sophomore year of high school I stayed a base and stayed on the
J.V. squad so I just perfected all the aspects I was already literate in. Coach Owen would tell me
everything I was doing right and/or wrong so that I could perfect my position of being a base.
For example, she told me that I needed to work on the timing of lifting the flyer up in the air so
that me and the other base would go up together and the flyer did not fall.
My junior year of high school is when I became 95% literate. I do not know if I grew, if
other girls shrunk, or if we just had a lot of short girls on the varsity squad that year, but one way
or another I became a back spot; the only position I was not literate in. The story of becoming a
backspot is very similar to that of me becoming a base my freshman year because I was nervous
and scared, but Coach Owen was there by my side through the whole process as she was when I
entered high school cheerleading. She told me step by step what to do and when to do it and if I

Caitlyn Cook
UWRT 1101-073
Literacy Narrative Assessment
messed up she told me to do it again because, in her mind, if you mess up and do it over again
and again till you get it right you will understand the process more. I know I said junior year
was when I became 95% literate and you must be wondering what the other 5% is because I said
becoming a backspot was the only position I was not literate in. The other 5% came my senior
year of high school during football season of cheerleading.
My senior year of high school I was a captain for the varsity squad during football
season. When the captains were announced Coach Owen pulled us aside and gave us a talk that
opened up my eyes. One thing she said was that we were not just role models for the varsity
squad but, also, the J.V. squad. I had not thought about it, but she was right. When I was on the
J.V. squad I looked up to not only the varsity squad, but the captains of the varsity squad because
they were on the very top of the high school cheerleading food chain and now that was me. I had
to make sure that I kept myself in line and did not screw up or goof off, not only during games
and practices, but also during school and outside of school; not only to be a role model to the rest
of the squads, but to show Coach Owen that she made the right decision in making me a captain.
I had to step my game up. I not only had to look after the varsity squad, but the J.V. squad as
well - I had to come up with dances, t-shirt/sweatshirt designs, lead practices, come up with new
stunts, and more. And during this time of the season was when I became 100% literate (at least
to my scale) in cheerleading.