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Description

Aim: To learn the skills of juggling and practise some tricks. Taken from the BB Company Section Discoverer Pro Pack, Skills, Interests H2

Resources

Activity 1
3 juggling scarves (1 set) for each participant. These can be small scarves (a bit faster in the air) or large scarves (a bit slower in the air)
There are 2 sizes of scarves to consider:
1) small scarves (a bit faster in the air)
2) large scarves (a bit slower in the air)

Activity 2
• 3 Juggling scarves (1 set) for each participant. These can be small scarves (a bit faster in the air) or large scarves (a bit slower in the air)

Activity 3
• 3 x Juggling Rails or Beanbags (1 set)

Instructions

Activity 1 - Juggling 3 Scarves

Aim: To become a scarf juggler.

Instructions:
• Make sure that the leader in charge of this activity can scarf juggle! It is important that the young people can see the pattern.
• Make sure that each participant has 3 scarves in front of them and can clearly see and hear the person who is instructing this session.
• Inform the young people that they are going to learn to scarf juggle today. Let them know that it isn’t as difficult as it looks, and that all they need is to be able to catch 9 times in order to call themselves a juggler!
• Demonstrate the juggling pattern below. keep juggling. It may be helpful to shout out the colour of the scarf you are throwing, as the participants will see that they follow the same pattern (e.g. red, yellow, blue, red, yellow, blue etc.). Ask the participants to study the pattern, and then close their eyes and try to visualise the pattern.
• Ask the young people to hold one scarf by the end, and this scarf should be in their dominant hand. The other 2 scarves should be on the floor in front of them.

Scarves are a far slower way to learn some patterns, such as the basic cascade. Because the scarves float gently in the air, you have more time to put your hands in the right place to catch them. first trick to learn is the 3 scarf cascade, which you will see written out move by move below:

1. Scarf: Hold the scarf in the centre. Lift your arm as high as you can across your body, and toss the scarf with the palm of your hand facing outwards (like you are waving goodbye to someone)! Reach high up with your other hand and catch the scarf as you bring your hand down (this is called clawing). You are now ready to repeat the above moves and throw back to the first hand! Practise this for a minute or two until it seems natural and graceful before moving on to two scarves. Try to make each throw to the same height (peak).

2. Scarf Exchange: Hold a scarf in each hand. Throw a scarf from your dominant hand. When it reaches its peak (as high as it is going to go), then throw the second scarf. The throws and catches should follow a nice rhythm (throw, throw, catch, catch). Do not throw or catch both scarves at the same time! Practicing the “exchange” to some music may help you to space out the throws so they all happen in time with the music. Remember to practise starting from your weaker hand also!

3. Scarf Cascade: The first thing to learn is how to hold your 3 scarves. In the hand that contains two scarves, hold one at your fingertips. This will be the first scarf to throw. When your first throw reaches its peak, throw the next (second) scarf from your other hand. When this scarf reaches its peak, then throw your next scarf which is in the hand that you started with. You will soon see a pattern emerging which is like a figure of eight on its side. Every time you throw from one hand, you get ready to throw from your other hand and keep going!

Remember that with scarf juggling (as with a lot of juggling), only one object is usually in the air at any given time. This knowledge should help you to take your time and make your pattern smoother.

Tips / Advice:
After everyone has had 5 minutes of practice with the 3 scarfs, it may be worth telling the participants some of the following advice:

• If you are stuck with 3 scarves, then try moving back down to trying just 2 scarves for a while, then try again!
• Dropping is a sign of progress (if you never dropped a scarf, you would never learn how to correct yourself!).
• Try and visualise the pattern. Watch the leader juggling scarfs, and then close your eyes and try to recreate that pattern in your mind.
• If you keep making mistakes, have a break, relax, don’t worry about it. Try again later!
• Above all else, have fun. Juggling is a well known form of relaxation, If you concentrate on your juggling, then all other thoughts/worries/problems etc. are forgotten (for a short while anyway)!
• It is worth knowing that the methodology for learning the 3 scarf cascade can be used for learning to juggle, balls, rings, clubs etc! You may throw each item slightly different, but they all follow the same pattern (cascade) that you have just been taught!
• It would be very worthwhile if at all possible to lend the sets of scarfs to some young people so that they can practice some more in their spare time. Scarf juggling needs lots of repetition and practice in order to become a solid skill!

Safety Issues / Risk Assessment:
Participants should be advised not to run around with their scarfs, and to stay clear of everyone around them.

Activity 2 - 3 Scarf Juggling Tricks

Aim: To learn some scarf juggling tricks to accompany the cascade pattern previously learned.

Instructions:
• Make sure that the leader in charge of this activity can scarf juggle and is able to demonstrate each of the tricks! It is important that the young people can see the pattern.
• It may be worthwhile having a 5 minutes 3 scarf cascade practice session before starting this activity.
• Make sure that each participant has 3 scarves in front of them and can clearly see and hear the person who is instructing this session.
• Inform the young people that they are going to learn some scarf juggling tricks today.
• Demonstrate each trick in turn, giving The young people some time to practise each trick, before moving on to the next one. It may be worth asking if anyone is having problems, with any trick, so that you can assist them before moving on.
• If the participants can do the 3 scarf cascade prior to this session, then they should attempt each trick, returning to the cascade between tricks.

Here are some suggestions for 3 scarf tricks you can practise during this session. There is a trade-off in quantity of tricks to learn, and quality time to spend on each trick, so you may want to choose just a few tricks to practise, or try all the tricks briefly, and then let the young people choose which trick they want to spend time practising.

KICKUP: Start your routine with one scarf balanced on your foot, then kick it up into the juggling pattern. Alternatively, at some point in your routine, let the scarf fall onto your foot, and it makes a nice pause or finish to your routine!

TWO IN ONE HAND: Practise throwing two scarves in one hand in a clockwise and then anti-clockwise direction. Remember to practise this trick with your weaker hand also.

COLUMNS: Throw one scarf straight up in line with the centre of your body, then throw the other two scarves (which are still in your hand) up on either side of the middle scarf when it reaches its peak. Catch the middle scarf, toss it again, catch the outer scarves and toss them...and keep going!

UNDER THE LEGS: Stan your routine by throwing a scarf under your leg. Make sure you can throw it so that it still goes to a decent height and you can continue your pattern. Remember that you can throw with your left hand under each leg, and also with your right hand under each leg, thus giving you 4 different moves! Once you can do these moves from a start, try doing them during your routine!

CATCH ON HEAD: Throw a scarf extra high and make sure you can get your head underneath it, and let it gently fall on your head or upturned face! From this move, you can either let the scarf fall towards a hand to continue juggling, or blow the scarf back into The air and continue! Try landing all 3 on your head in quick succession!

BLOW UP As the scarf begins to fall, blow as much air as you can in its direction. You can blow the scarf out in front of you, or even back up in the air if you get your face directly underneath the scarf!

Tips / Advice:
After everyone has had 5 minutes of practice with the 3 scarves, it may be worth telling the participants some of the following advice:
• If you are stuck with any of the tricks, then break them down into their smallest components and practise each section of the trick individually.
• Dropping is a sign of progress (if you never dropped a scarf, you would never learn how to correct yourself!).
• Try and visualise the pattern. Watch the leader juggling scarves, and then close your eyes and try to recreate that pattern in your mind.
• If you keep making mistakes, have a break, relax, don’t worry about it. Try again later!
• It would be very worthwhile if at all possible to lend the sets of scarves to some young people so that they can practise some more in their spare time. Scarf juggling needs lots of repetition and practice in order to become a solid skill!

Activity 3 - Juggling 3 Balls

Aim: To become a ball Juggler.

Instructions:
• It may have been worthwhile to conduct the following programmes in prior weeks before moving on to this activity: Juggling 3 Scarfs, 3 Scarf Juggling Tricks.
• The 3 scarf cascade is very similar in methodology and identical in pattern, to the 3 ball cascade the young people will be learning.
• The correct position and stance for 3 ball juggling is as follows: You should be standing up, feet should be shoulder length apart, arms should be bent at the elbow at a 90 degree angle from your body, and slightly out from the body. You should have two balls in your best hand (the one that you use most), and one ball in the other hand. The two balls should be in line with each other so that when you throw one, the other one can roll to the tips of your fingers ready to be thrown.
• Make sure that the demonstrator can juggle 3 balls in a solid cascade pattern. Ask the young people to concentrate on this pattern, and Then close their eyes and fly to visualise the pattern. If Their brains can work out the pattern, then it becomes a lot easier to teach it!

Step 1 — Practise throwing one ball from one hand to the other until it is fairly consistent. Throws should not be out from your body, but upwards. The ball should peak just above the head, and fall neatly into the other hand.

Step 2 — Hold one ball in each hand. Toss one as before. As it reaches its peak, toss the other ball inside the first one, to the same height. (Most people at this point, are known to panic after the first ball is thrown and pass The ball horizontally from their weak hand, but this is a habit you MUST break, so repetition and continual practice will help solve this problem!)

Step S — Two balls should be held in your strong hand, and one ball in your weakest. You start by throwing from the stronger hand. W1en the first ball peaks, toss from The opposite hand. When this ball peaks, throw from your first hand, and keep going...

Consider doing another week’s activities with tricks from http://.jugglingworld.biWtricks or another website. You might even like to have some of these on hand for the more advanced members of the group. Why not try one of the following:

Shower
One hand throws high to the other hand, which passes to the first. In essence, one hand does all the throws, and the other hand makes all the catches. The balls travel in one direction (a kind of triangle). To begin with, just use two balls. Have them both in your dominant hand, and throw them high and quickly (one after the other). As soon as one ball lands in your sub-dominant hand, pass it horizontally to your dominant hand. When you feel ready to try three, remember that this will take a lot of practice to look smooth. Remember to throw high and accurately, as you have no time to chase far-flung balls! It is vital to master the shower in both directions.

Tips / Advice:
• If you are stuck with S balls, then try moving back down to trying just 2 balls for a while, then try again
• Dropping is a sign of progress (if you never dropped a ball, you would never learn how to correct yourself!).
• It is worth knowing that the methodology for learning the 3 ball cascade can also be used for learning to juggle scarves, rings, clubs etc! You may throw each item slightly different, but they all follow the same pattern (cascade) that you have just been taught!
• If some young people are finding that they are running forward each time they try to make another catch, then you can stand them about 30cm away facing a wall. They won’t be able to run forward any more!
• If some young people are getting stuck on throwing the third ball (the one that is at the back of the dominant hand when you start the cascade), then encourage the young people to just practise throwing all 3 balls up in the cascade pattern without worrying about catching them.
• Playing music during the practising part of this session may help participants to juggle, as they can throw on catch to each beat.
• It would be very worthwhile if at all possible to lend the sets of balls to some young people so that they can practise some more in their spare time. Ball juggling needs lots of repetition and practice in order to become a solid skill!

Safety Issues / Risk Assessment:
A young person may get hit in the face by a ball causing a nosebleed or bruising. The other hazard is tripping on discarded balls. These are both unlikely. SOLUTION: Balls will be kept in the area they were set out in. Each young person shall be in charge of his 3 balls, and removed from the session if he is seen abusing the equipment. If discipline is maintained throughout the workshop, then the likelihood of someone being hit is negligible.

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