Coaching Soccer to Children 3-6 Years of Age

I constantly receive emails from various soccer programs and businesses that provide some great (and free) ideas.  Of course, they also want to sell you their coaching books or videos, but I usually find their basic information valuable.  Since the SoccerPlayGroup sesssions are geared to 3-6 year olds, there isn’t much out there.  Most of the information you find is for children beyond 2nd or 3rd grade.  My sessions are based on information such as this as well as ideas taken from my soccer coaching certification classes, my own experience running sessions and “testing” of fun drills and games with my own children.

Here’s a great overview of coaching for kids from Keith Boanas, an English Football Association Coach Educator with over 29 years of experience. As a courtesy, I’ve left the links to the coaching information he is selling.

Enter, Keith Boanas…

If they don’t have fun, they won’t come back

Children view drills for exactly what they are, boring and monotonous. If you keep running drills not only will you lose your player’s interest, ultimately, you will lose your players. No child is going to come to your sessions week after week if they are not having fun.

So, how do you overcome this? The answer is simple, play games.

What can Fun Soccer Games for 9 to 11 Year Olds do for your players?

• Teach basic soccer skills
• Let them have fun
• Engage them
• Educate
• Promote teamwork
• Fire their creativity
• Keep them coming back

Let’s look at each of these:

Teach basic soccer skills

Games are the best way to teach a range of basic soccer skills. In Fun Soccer Games for 9 to 11 Year Olds I have covered all of the basic skills such as passing, shooting, dribbling, heading and even goalkeeping.

Let them have fun

Above all else, children want to have fun. That’s why the soccer authorities in the UK and United States back the idea of teaching soccer through games.

Games are fun which is why we continue to play them well into adulthood. Top soccer matches are still games, they’ve just developed a more competitive, and commercial, edge.

Engage them

How do you get a child to buy into your games? Make them engaging.

The games in Fun Soccer Games for 9 to 11 Year Olds are based on things that every child can relate to, they use policemen and pizzas, meteors and mazes, and a whole host of other ideas as inspiration (see column, right for a list of game names).

Educate

Games can educate your players beyond the learning of basic soccer skills. My games are based on simple sets of rules and educate players in simple ideas such as right and wrong. They are introduced in a fun environment and with achievable, desirable objectives.

Introduce Teamwork

Young children can be selfish, they’re not always keen to share their toys and they strive to achieve objectives independently.

But by the age of 9 children are becoming aware of the benefits of teamwork and this needs to be developed by the coach.

Fun Soccer Games for 9 to 11 Year Olds introduces teamwork in a variety of ways.

• Working independently.
• Working in pairs.
• Working as a group.

Fire their creativity

I’ve used these games over and over again and I know that they work. However, I’m never afraid to make changes, to the rules, to the playing area, or even to the premise of the game.

If your children would rather be a fighter pilot than a spaceman, go for it. Based around a simple set of rules the children can put whatever spin they like on each game. If they want to be medieval jousters, that’s not a problem.

You can even let them change the rules. It’s a case of how would they like to play the game as much as how should they play the game.

Keep them coming back

If children play a game and enjoy it you can be sure they’ll want to keep on playing – ever played peek-a-boo with a baby? Ever seen a baby get bored of it? Your children are going to latch on to these games and want to play them over and over again.

At a young age you don’t need to introduce endless variety. Ask the children what game they want to play and off you go. They’ll be back week after week, there’s a big difference between consistent fun and monotony.

Age specific coaching

The English Football Association recognised the need to introduce soccer to young children in a way that is fun and specific to their age requirements and introduced new Youth Modules to address this important age of learning – which I highly recommend. This book should be a complement to the first levels.

Similarly, in the United States there is the National Youth License which works towards the same goal of age specific coaching.

The English Football Association issued technical foundations for coaching soccer in their 2008 document ‘Developing World-Class Coaches and Players’. They said:

At a young age, players need to be taught how to:

• Become technically competent with both feet.
• Control the ball effectively in a variety of different situations

All players should:

• Be comfortable in possession
• Understand that incisive forward passing, at the right time, leads to goal scoring opportunities.

Take a look at some of the actual illustrations used in Fun Soccer Games for 9 to 11 Year Olds…

Boot Camp

Secret Weapon

Throw-in Frenzy

New Scotland Yard

The Swamp

The Alamo

Fun Soccer Games for 9 to 11 Year Olds has been designed to be as easy to use and understand as possible. Download a free game from the book here.

funsoccergamessample

Special Bonus – My 25 Top Tips Collected in 29 Years of Coaching

Managing a group of young children is a difficult task at the best of times, and particularly hard if you are new to coaching.

However, there are small steps you can take that will improve your confidence speaking to children, help you to get and retain their attention, create a safe and fun environment and make sure that the game is enjoyed by all of your players.

To accompany each of the 25 games in the book I’ve written down 25 hints and tips that I’ve picked up in my 29 years as a coach.

These are not essays on mastering the art of coaching, but short, sharp insights that you can easily digest and make an instant difference to how you handle your team.

For example:

Essential Tips for Coaching Young Children #25

“Use and encourage humour but take care to avoid overuse of jargon. Remember, what adults see as funny, children may not.”