Free cheerleading template, no account
Free Cheerleading Player Evaluation Form
A mid-season report you can hand a parent: cheerleading skills rated against the age group, a section for bases, flyers, backspots and tumblers, and the space that matters most, in words, for what went well, what to work on, and one thing to practice at home. It describes skills an athlete has been cleared to perform, never size or appearance.
What a cheerleading athlete evaluation should include
Nine rows in the main table, one table for the role skills, and three open-ended sections at the end.
- The main table. Jumps, tumbling, stunting, motions, dance, projection, flexibility, showmanship and coachability, rated against the age group, with a column for what you saw.
- Role skills. Grip, timing and stability for bases; body control, balance and trust for flyers; load-in, awareness of the group and calling the counts for backspots; form, landing control and readiness for tumblers. Fill in the rows that match the athlete's role and leave the rest blank.
- The writing. What went well (the strengths), what to work on (the areas for improvement), and one thing to practice at home.
- The last line. The date you went through it with the athlete. Worth filling in for the same reason a receipt is.
Effort and coachability are the exception to rating against the age group. They are marked against what you saw from this athlete, because nobody is below average for a ten-year-old at trying hard.
Cheerleading athlete evaluation versus tryout evaluation
The two sheets rate similar skills and do different jobs.
- A tryout evaluation compares athletes. Several evaluators score the same group in one session, and the average sheets help a program place athletes and assign roles. The cheerleading tryout evaluation form is built for that, and the cheerleading tryouts guide covers running the session.
- An athlete evaluation describes one athlete. One coach, about halfway through the season, rating an athlete against the age group rather than teammates, with the writing a family keeps. That is this page. Its scale reads as strengths and focus areas for that reason.
| Tryout evaluation | Athlete evaluation | |
|---|---|---|
| When | Before the season | About halfway through it |
| Who scores | Several evaluators, independently | Usually one coach |
| Compared with | The rest of the group | What is typical for the age group |
| Used for | Placing athletes and assigning roles | Development and a talk with the family |
| What you hand over | An averaged scorecard | A written report a parent keeps |
A program that holds tryouts can use both: the tryout sheet to place athletes before the season, and this one halfway through it to say how each of them is doing.
Cheerleading comments a parent can act on
The numbers give the page its shape and the sentences are what a family remembers. Vague praise and vague criticism are equally useless, and cheer has a specific thing to say about almost everything. Compare:
- Jumps. Not "needs better jumps". Try "the preparation is quick but the arms drop before the top of the jump. Holding the arms through the position is the next thing."
- Motions. Not "needs sharper motions". Try "hits the motions on the count but softens the transitions. Finishing each position before the next is the next thing."
- Voice. Not "needs to be louder". Try "the words are clear but the voice stays in the chest. Projecting to the back of the gym is the next thing."
- Attitude. Not "great attitude". Try "stayed with the routine after a mistake in the second set and was the first to encourage the group."
The last section, one thing to practice at home, is the most useful line on the page and the one most often left blank. In cheer it is usually something safe and simple: a motion drill, a stretch the coach has taught, or a cheer to say out loud. It is never a stunt or a tumbling skill to try at home.
Rate the role, not the athlete's body
The role section can do real good, and a careless one does harm. A few rules for the rows the form gives it:
- Rate what the role needs. A base is rated on grip, timing and stability. A flyer is rated on body control, balance and trust. A backspot is rated on load-in and awareness of the group. A tumbler is rated on form and landing.
- Never comment on size, weight or appearance. A role is decided on skill, trust and what the group needs. A comment about a body is not a skill note, and an athlete remembers it.
- Rate cleared skills only. A row is scored on what the athlete has been cleared to do, and left blank otherwise. The evaluation is a report, not a way to ask for more.
- Say what an athlete can do in another role. A base with good body control, or a flyer who communicates well with the group, is worth a sentence, because that is what a coach looks for at the next tryout.
Other sports, and the general version
This is the cheerleading version. The general player evaluation form works for any sport, and the cheerleading forms and templates page lists the other 5 cheerleading documents.
Playbook Logix provides customizable templates for informational and administrative use. They are not legal advice and will not meet the requirements of every organization, sport or jurisdiction. Review anything you intend to rely on with your own attorney or your insurance carrier, and check your league and state requirements.
Common questions
What should a cheerleading athlete evaluation form include?
Ratings for jumps, tumbling, stunting, motions, dance, projection, flexibility, showmanship and coachability, a short section for the skills of the role the athlete plays, and three pieces of writing: what went well, what to work on, and one thing to practice at home. The writing is the part a family keeps.
When should we give out cheerleading evaluations?
About halfway through the season, and before the squad's first major performance if you can. Cheer seasons are often short, so halfway comes quickly, and a report handed out at the end is a report card, accurate and too late. The same page at the midpoint is a plan with performances left to act on it.
Should bases, flyers, backspots and tumblers be rated differently?
In a section of their own, yes. A base is judged on grip and timing, a flyer on body control and trust, a backspot on load-in and awareness of the group, a tumbler on form and landing. Rate the rows that match the role the athlete plays most, and leave the others blank.
Can the evaluation rate stunting and tumbling skills?
It rates what an athlete has been cleared to perform, at the level your program and its governing body allow, and leaves a cell blank for anything else. It is a report on skills already cleared, never a way to suggest a new one, and the coach decides what an athlete attempts next.
Should I mention size or body type in the comments?
No. A role and a stunt group are decided on skills, trust and what the group needs, and a comment about body size does harm that no skill note can undo. Describe what the athlete does and what to work on.
Should I rate athletes against their teammates?
No. Rate against what is typical for the age group. A ranking inside the squad gives a family a list of your own roster, which tells them nothing and does harm if it circulates. The form says on its face which comparison you used.
Do I have to give one to every athlete?
Yes. Evaluating the flyers and skipping the bases and backspots tells them where they stand in the coaching staff's attention. Short and honest for everyone beats thorough for the athletes at the top of the stunt.
More cheerleading tools
The rest of the cheerleading toolkit
Cheerleading Registration Form
Tumbling and stunting background, last season's level, uniform and shoe sizes, and injury questions, on a form for sign-up day.
Open the generatorCheerleading Code of Conduct
Cleared-skills, spotting, surface and injury rules for athletes, and distraction, filming and placement rules for parents, on one page with one signature.
Open the generatorCheerleading Tryout Evaluation Form
A scoring grid for jumps, tumbling, stunting, motions, dance and projection, with a table for the jumps and counts you record.
Open the generatorCheerleading Tryouts & Evaluation Guide
A 90-minute run of show, seven stations from jumps to voice, a staffing plan, how to assign roles, and a safety plan.
Read the guideCheerleading Uniform & Equipment Checkout
Uniform set, warm-ups, bow and poms, with set number, size, condition and replacement cost, and a return date.
Open the generatorPlaybook Logix
What Playbook Logix tracks behind a cheerleading evaluation
Playbook Logix is registration, rosters, payments, schedules and team messaging for youth and adult sports, in one place. A report is only as good as the season behind it. This is what Playbook Logix keeps so the report is quicker to write.
Attendance behind the report
Mark each player present or absent from your phone at the field, and on the web see every player against every event with an attendance percentage. It is the number a parent is really asking about when they ask about playing time. Free on every plan.
How it worksThe player and the family together
Jersey number, position and the parent's contact details sit on the roster, so the player you are writing about is one click from the adult you are handing the report to.
How it worksReach families without a group text
A team message board for things that need a record, live chat for the quick stuff, and reminders that respect quiet hours, so parents see a schedule change and do not mute the app.
How it worksThe Starter plan is free, and the iPhone and Android app is free on every plan. Anything described above as Coach plan and above needs a paid plan. See the plans or the mobile app. Nothing you type into the template above is sent to us, whether or not you ever sign up.
Keep the whole season in one place
Schedules, attendance, messages to the team and a roster that is the same in everyone's pocket. There is a free plan.