How to Shake Pompoms

Learn how to shake pom-poms properly.

Pom-poms (sometimes called pom-pons) are usually made of vinyl and may come in a variety of lengths and handle styles. Some pom-poms even attach to your hand with elastic straps so that there is no chance of them getting away from you during an energetic dance routine. Just grabbing a pom-pom and shaking it is easy, but if you want to make your pom-pom techniques their best, following a few standard pointers will help.

Instructions

1. Grasp the pom-poms, one in each hand, by their handle. If they have a baton-style handle, you should hold the baton like a tennis racket, with your thumb wrapped around the baton on the outside of your fingers. The strands of the pom should be on the thumb side of your hand. For a bar grip pom-pom, just grasp the bar.

2. Keep your wrists straight as if they were an extension of your arm that cannot bend. The poms should stay slightly in front of your body, within your peripheral vision, at all times throughout the pom routine.

3. Maintain good posture with your head up--unless its movement is a choreographed part of your routine--and shoulders down and back as you shake the poms.

4. Make large, clean motions. Remember that the purpose of the pom-pom is to demand attention; large, clean motions make sure your poms can be seen.

5. Accentuate the motion of your pom-poms with your voice. Use crisp, clean tones. If dancing or stepping, emphasize crisp, clean movements and clean, long body lines unless dictated otherwise by your choreography.

References

• Pom Savvy
• Pom Polishing