Throwing is an object control skill that is required for many sports and games. A mature overarm throwing pattern is essential to produce powerful, forceful throws. Effective instruction of the overarm throw at a young age establishes an effective movement pattern that can later be developed and enhanced for use in sports and games. Teachers can use cues to provide effective and efficient instruction. Cues communicate the critical elements of a skill (Landin, 1994) in a descriptive, easily understood language. The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of critical cues on the body components of the overarm throw (Roberton, 1984) and ball velocity. Participants (n=81) were systematically assigned to one of four intervention groups based on modal body component level on an initial pretest. The CUE group (n=20) was prompted to “throw the ball hard,” given one of five cues based on their throwing performance, and feedback regarding the speed of each throw (using a radar gun). The cues focused on the key elements of a forceful throw including the step, trunk rotation, backswing, and weight transfer. The TFb group (n=20) was prompted to “throw the ball hard,” and provided feedback regarding the speed of each throw, but did not receive specific instructional/cue feedback. The Task group (n=20) were prompted to “throw the ball as hard as they could,” but were not provided instructional feedback or feedback regarding the speed of the throw. The Control group (n=20) were told only to “throw the ball.” Each participant completed 15 trials over the course of four sessions. The maximum velocity for each session and the components of the step, trunk, and humerus for the first and final session were utilized in data analysis. A MANOVA with repeated measures was conducted using the mean step, trunk, and humerus body component scores for session 1 and session 4. A significant multivariate Group by Time interaction was reported (F[1,77]=4.51, p=.006, h2=.149). Post-hoc Tukey HSD analysis reported the only significant differences were between the CUE group and Control group with respect to the step component (p=.004) and trunk component (p=.031). Critical cues with feedback regarding the speed of the throw can be useful tools for teachers when instructing the overarm throw. Results support the use of cues to promote changes in the step and trunk component and have implications to instruction of young children.