Mary Wenstrom

Tumbling Skill Progressions

Rolls
Skill Key Words
Log Roll Body straight and tight.
Arms stretched overhead.
Egg Roll Arms around tucked legs.
Roll onto one shoulder, onto back, other
shoulder, and up.
Straddle Roll Legs in straddle position. Arms grab leg as
close to ankle as possible.
Shoulder, back, shoulder, up.
Each roll should turn the body 180 degrees.
Shoulder Rolls Put on arm out to the side.
“Peek-a-boo.” Bring same arm, with hand
From knees facing upward, across body as if covering
From one knee and one straddle leg eyes.
From straddle legs Roll down onto shoulder of arm crossing
From straight legs body.
Return to original position after roll.

Forward Roll From push up position. Hands straight

ahead.
Little Jumps 3 little jumps and over.
Completed Skill Tuck head. Look at knees.
Legs extended until hips hit mat, then
tucked.
Look ahead as you come around. Lean
forward.
Don’t paddle push the floor.
Dive Roll Reach out as you put hands down.
Dive over a mat to get horizontal distance.
One Step and Roll
Two Steps and Roll
Short Run and Roll
Back Shoulder Roll Lay on floor on back in a T position, hands
straight out to the side.
Bring legs up over one shoulder until knees
touch. Transfer body weight to knees.
Roll over shoulder, not head. (Not shown)
Backward Roll Thumbs in ears. Hands facing ceiling.
Elbows tight
On Cheese Mat Elbows tight.
Completed skill on floor Hug knees with elbows.
Roll back. Push off with hands when they
touch mat.
Maintain hollow in front of body.
Bring arms and hands up into moose ears.
For those having trouble with hand
placement, have them first roll up the
cheese mat to get the feel for where the
hands should be.
Back Extension Start on cheese mat again.
Push straight up into handstand when
hands touch mat.
Keep hollow position.
Straight Arm Back Straight-arm skill. Arms start above head,
hands hyper extended, fingers pointing at
Extension Roll one another.
When body reaches upside down position
with arms fully extended, arms rotate 90
degrees so that hands and fingers are
pointing straight ahead.

Upside Down
Handstand Bend over. Put hands on floor, shoulder
width apart, with thumbs pointing at each
Leg Kicks other, fingers spread apart and straight
ahead.
Lift one leg up, bring down. Do the same
with the other leg.
Handstand From same position lift one leg up into the
air, then the other leg. Land on first leg,
Up, Up, Down, Down and then bring other leg down.
Power comes from the leg on the ground
which should punch up from a point
directly under chest.
Handstand Same as Up, Up, Down, Down but with a
chance to stop for a second in the upside
Up, Up, Down, Down Against Wall down position (supported by a wall) in
or Mats between bringing the legs up and letting
them down.
Handstand Fingers pointing ahead, thumbs facing each
other.
Handstand with spotter Fingertips and heel of hand are in contact
with ground.
Arms locked out directly under shoulders
 and next to ears.
Head in neutral, looking straight ahead and
not at floor.
Whole body is tight and pushing up.
Stomach in, butt tight, legs tight, toes
pointed.
No sags in body. To check tightness have
spotter grab legs and push down. Body
should stay rigid and not collapse.
Handstand Roll Hands and fingers start out pointing
straight ahead in normal handstand
position.
As center of gravity moves past hands arms
pronate and fingers point toward each
other.
The tumbler then tucks head, lands on
shoulders, pikes body, and rolls onto feet
while keeping arms out in front.
Keep arms straight throughout skill.

Cartwheels
Side to Side Set up train of 6-inch mats. Place both
hands on the mat with both feet on one
Jump at Mats side.
1. Jump onto mat with both feet, then
off the other side with both feet.
Work down the length of the mats
moving side to side.
2. Work down the length of the mats,
jumping over the mats, tow feet to
two feet.
3. Work down the length of the mats,
jumping over the mats, one foot to
the other foot, alternating feet as
you move side to side.
This drill will help improve laterality.
Side to Side Each person has own 6 inch mat.
Face forward. Place hands facing
Run Around Mats backwards on end of mat. Run to other
side of mat and face forward again.
Side to Side Place hands backwards on mat and jump
over to the other side. Get feet a little
Jump Over Mats higher each time until student is doing a
cartwheel over the mat.
Side to Side Make sure that the hands are facing
backward.
Completed Skill on Floor Arms, body, hips, and legs are in line
throughout skill.
Front to Front Start facing forward and end facing
forward.
The key is the placement of the hips.
Hips start facing forward, move into
sideways position in line with the rest of
the body for the cartwheel, and then return
to a front facing position on completion of
the cartwheel.
Front to Back Hips facing forward to start, sideways
through cartwheel, and end facing back the
other way.
One Handed Near Arm Only first arm placed is used for support.
If student pushes off with right foot, then
right arm is placed on floor for support.
Left arm stays next to body.
One Handed Far Arm Only arm normally placed second is used
for support.
If student pushes off with right foot, then
left arm is placed on floor for support.
Right arm stays next to body.
Both near and far arm cartwheels can be
done using the mat as in the side-to-side
progression.
Punch Away Cartwheel A front to back cartwheel with flight off the
hands.
Dive Cartwheel Push off and out with legs to create a little
airtime.
Aerial Cartwheel Use Reuther board as take off. As the
student progresses have the student push a
little harder so that less and less support is
given by the arms in the upside down
position.
The ability to do the splits is almost a
necessity for this skill.

Handsprings
Front Handspring Form triangle with hands and one foot.
Have partner hold other leg at his or her
Quick Kick, Kick Up waist level.
 Snap leg on the floor up to the other leg to
develop strength and get the feel of the
quick snap.
Look at knees.
Front Handspring Handstand and over into pit.
Quick kick and over into pit.
Handstand Into Pit
Front Handspring Back flop on mat from handstand.
Lead with heels. Keep body straight.
Pancake Should be one sound as you hit.
Front Handspring Use rhythm sounds to get the second leg
snapping up to the first. 1,2. Hands, leg-
Handspring Into Pit kick.
First leg goes to 12 o’clock. Second leg
snaps up to it and they both go over.
Use mats to build up area where hands are
placed if someone is having trouble getting
all the way around.
Back Handspring Slide backwards off of 2 big mats with
hands on floor.
Slide Off Mat Walkover.
Legs together.
Back Handspring With partner. Keep toes on floor to help
generate power.
Fall, Bend, Jump 1. Fall
2. Fall, Bend.
3. Fall, Bend, Jump, trying to jump
onto partners toes.
Back Handspring Spotter on each side standing on ground.
Start with hollow in front of body.
On Big Mat Keep arms reaching back for mat. No
acute angles.
For those needing help with momentum,
have them start with arms straight out in
front.
Back Handspring Another method to try. Student may have
more success because of taking off of a
Into Pit firmer surface.
Lay a 6-inch mat on pit surface for landing
mat. (Not shown).
Back Handspring With spotter (See Round Off/Back
Handspring).

Completed Skill on Floor Without spotter.

Round Off Put hands down on line and run around the
hands.
Hand Placement
 First hand faces sideways as in a cartwheel.
Second hand is facing back, at right angles
to first hand (pointing in the direction from
which the tumbler is coming).
The tumbler does bigger and bigger jumps
as he or she continues to run around his/her
hands.
Round Off Like Cartwheel progression.
Push off with hands.
Over Mats
Round Off From kneeling position.
This drill isolates the power position ad
On Mats enables the tumbler to develop a feel for
properly pushing out of this position.
Round Off Everything on a straight line-feet running,
hands when placed. Feet straddle line
Completed Skill when landing.
Maintain hollow position.
Hands up to moose ears.
Second leg kicks up to first leg.
Round Off 1. Step-hop (or skip), step, place
hands.
Completed Skill with Hop Step 2. Step, step, step, step-hop (or skip),
step, place hands.
Round Off With Back Fall onto mat to get the feeling of falling
backwards into a handspring.
Handspring With spotter and then with out.
Round Off/Fall Back
Valdez Back handspring walkout from sitting
position.

Sommies
Front Sommie 1. Onto mats laid in pit. Tuck Head.
2. Without hands.
Dive Roll
Front Sommie Hands reach forward, then pull down like
milking a cow and continue swinging back
Jump and up, ending with arms pointing straight
back and hands facing up.
1. Jump up off two feet when hands
swing up behind body.
2. Run, hop to two feet, jump up, run
forward out of jump.
3. Add a little circle with arms to get
hands in position to milk cow.
 4. Time with hop step.
Front Sommie Tuck head
Look at Knees
Dive Roll With Jump Chase feet to seat
Front Sommie Tuck and land on feet.
Chest to knees
Completed Skill Heels to butt
Back Sommie Knees to Chest
Arms begin skill straight overhead and
create an imaginary hoop which legs try to
snap up to and through.