Things to Think About When Coaching 6-and-under Soccer
One of the most interesting challenges I have had this year is coaching my son's 5-year-old soccer team. While I've coached older kids, I hadn't had the pleasure of coaching children this young.
This age group can be squirrely, giggly, and tricky to keep on-task (and on the field!). Hopefully I can offer some suggestions to help you with your very young players.
"I want the toy!"
Under-6 soccer is characterized the infamous "blob" or "beehive." Both teams will clump around the ball and somehow push it around the field. Each child fights feverishly for their chance to play with the toy, and on occasion the ball finds its way into the net! But don't fret coach, for this is normal.
Most children under 6 do not yet have the cognitive ability to play like an older team; passing and strategy are out of the question, and selfishness for the ball wins out every time. Once we understand this, we can use it to our advantage in practices.
Our goal in practice should be to have fun, while giving the players the opportunity to touch the ball as much as possible. This means planning a practice with lots of fun games where each child has a ball of their own at all times.
Fun and simple games such as Red Light Green Light, Follow The Leader, and Tag are great for this age group; adding the ball will help develop dribbling skills that are fundamental to the game. Adding variety will keep your players' attention, and good planning will help keep your practice on track.
Of course after playing some of these simple games, you can add some fast-paced 1v1 or 2v2 matches and work up to a short scrimmage at the end of practice. I like to end my practice with match-like conditions to emphasize direction of play, and goals to attack, and then finish with one more goofy game to bring the intensity back down a bit.
Always remember the key is to emphasize fun. We want our kids to enjoy the game of soccer, and hopefully stay with the sport for many years. By developing dribbling skills and a positive environment at this age, we provide a foundation for success that will benefit our players as they grow in the game.
Most children under 6 do not yet have the cognitive ability to play like an older team; passing and strategy are out of the question, and selfishness for the ball wins out every time. Once we understand this, we can use it to our advantage in practices.
Our goal in practice should be to have fun, while giving the players the opportunity to touch the ball as much as possible. This means planning a practice with lots of fun games where each child has a ball of their own at all times.
Fun and simple games such as Red Light Green Light, Follow The Leader, and Tag are great for this age group; adding the ball will help develop dribbling skills that are fundamental to the game. Adding variety will keep your players' attention, and good planning will help keep your practice on track.
Of course after playing some of these simple games, you can add some fast-paced 1v1 or 2v2 matches and work up to a short scrimmage at the end of practice. I like to end my practice with match-like conditions to emphasize direction of play, and goals to attack, and then finish with one more goofy game to bring the intensity back down a bit.
Always remember the key is to emphasize fun. We want our kids to enjoy the game of soccer, and hopefully stay with the sport for many years. By developing dribbling skills and a positive environment at this age, we provide a foundation for success that will benefit our players as they grow in the game.
Coaching Under Six Soccer: The Book!
David Williams and Scott Graham have published a fantastic book for coaching under-6 soccer players. This book spends a short time on philosophy and lays out their coaching plan for this age group, emphasizing fun and skill development with under-6 players in mind.
Many of the ideas I have used for my practices this fall have come from this book. The authors base their practice plans on using Red Light-Green Light as a foundational game for a series of practices. The game is used to develop basic dribbling skills, adding dribbling at speed, cuts, pull turns, receiving and juggling with each successive week of practice. This allows players to develop new skills while building on those used in previous weeks, within a structured environment that they become familiar with.
In addition to this game, there are several other fun games described here that our kids have enjoyed in practice. The book comes with plans that can easily be copied and incorporated into your practices. Remember that it is especially important at this age to have a structured plan that you can follow. Kids thrive when they expect a structured routine for soccer practice, and it will keep you on task as well, especially when things start to get squirrelly.
The book is an easy read and has a lot of information that is very helpful for beginning coaches. There are clear instructions and photos to demonstrate proper ball-handling skills, and the handy chart in the back makes it easy to keep them all in one place for quick reference.
Experienced coaches will also find this guide helpful. I appreciate how the authors put our job into perspective, and their love of the game and the kids they coach is evident throughout the book.
Many of the ideas I have used for my practices this fall have come from this book. The authors base their practice plans on using Red Light-Green Light as a foundational game for a series of practices. The game is used to develop basic dribbling skills, adding dribbling at speed, cuts, pull turns, receiving and juggling with each successive week of practice. This allows players to develop new skills while building on those used in previous weeks, within a structured environment that they become familiar with.
In addition to this game, there are several other fun games described here that our kids have enjoyed in practice. The book comes with plans that can easily be copied and incorporated into your practices. Remember that it is especially important at this age to have a structured plan that you can follow. Kids thrive when they expect a structured routine for soccer practice, and it will keep you on task as well, especially when things start to get squirrelly.
The book is an easy read and has a lot of information that is very helpful for beginning coaches. There are clear instructions and photos to demonstrate proper ball-handling skills, and the handy chart in the back makes it easy to keep them all in one place for quick reference.
Experienced coaches will also find this guide helpful. I appreciate how the authors put our job into perspective, and their love of the game and the kids they coach is evident throughout the book.
Coaching 6-and-Under Soccer (Baffled Parent's Guide)
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Amazon Price: $14.35 (as of 12/02/2008) 
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Fernanda wrote
Thanks for the useful imformation, I will be coaching soccer for the little ones :)
Posted July 08, 2008
