WAG Heel snap turn help

[LJL07]

It appears that the whole family is very challenged when it comes to this skill.
My dd cannot seem to get the hang of it. She has all other level 2 and 3 skills (still working on beam dismount), but heel snap is a mess. She sort of wobbles and topples over. It's two quarter turns. She's supposed to work on it at home. Dh and I tried to demonstrate it, and we looked like drunken loons. Why is this so hard? Any suggestions for helping her? Dd has no dance background.

 

[Sari]

With my girls, I always start teaching heel snap turns by making them stand in the correct shape before attempting the actual turn. Afterwards, I make them lift up onto the ball of the dominant foot, holding the same position. Some kids have problems doing this and that makes it almost impossible for them to do a correct heel snap turn because their heel will drop before they've turned all the way. I also spot them at the hip during the turn (basically doing it for them).

In my experience, a common mistake is incorrect leg placement. From what you're writing, it sounds like that might be your dd's problem. Try to make sure she stays as tight as possible and taps the leg that's up on the leg she's turning on. That's where I think spotting comes in handy, especially with younger kids. If you're standing next to them, they 1) probably don't want to hurt you and 2) don't have as much room for unnecessary leg (or even arm) movements.

 

[LJL07]

Thanks, that's a help! She is struggling with just staying up on the ball of the dominant foot, so maybe we just need to work on that to start. I tried it myself, and it's not that easy!

 

[livelifetumble8dx]

Not a coach but maybe some ankle strengthing excercises would help if shes having trouble balancing on the ball of her foot?