Taken by: Mona Gomez cheer coach
During State week, Horizon Hawks Cheer team does a tradition called State Spirit Week. Where the team picks out themes for each day the week before with fun ideas and different types of themes. Such as the ones we picked rhyme without reason, twin Tuesday, pink out, dress as age (freshman- babies, sophomore- teenagers, juniors- adults, seniors- seniors). The team dresses up for each designated practice to start off our practices to a good time having fun with our coaches and teammates. This tradition started because going into state week is very nerve racking and makes us all anxious and can cause practices to not go so well when we are all very stressed, so spirit week came into the picture to help prevent stressful practices and to keep our mindsets to a high note going into state.
Reasoning why spirit week helps us through the week is also because, some girls on the team doesn’t make it much of a priority to show up to practices due to either outside activities, work, friends, family, etc and with that being said coming up with fun activities to do going into practice interests the girls into wanting to go and show up. It’s almost like a bribe to get them to practice on time and present. Or some girls don’t have a lot of teammates to associate with so making themes to dress up and be partners with others help out a lot in making friends and becoming a part of one team all together.
Why is Spirit Week a thing in schools? Schools do spirit weeks to boost school spirit and foster a sense of community among students and staff. It’s a fun way to break up the routine and get everyone involved in themed activities, dress up days, and events. Plus, it helps build camaraderie and pride in the school, making everyone feel more connected and excited to be a part of the school community. High school cheerleaders have been working hard to provide good energy during state week, encouraging girls to support their sports teams in important competitions. It’s all about rallying everyone together, boosting morale, and showing off their skills. And it’s a great way to build excitement and pride as they head into those big state-level events.
