{"id":2732,"date":"2017-08-18T14:45:20","date_gmt":"2017-08-18T19:45:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mansfieldsoccer.org\/?page_id=2732"},"modified":"2017-08-18T14:45:20","modified_gmt":"2017-08-18T19:45:20","slug":"11-tips-for-coaching-the-little-ones","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/mansfieldsoccer.org\/index.php\/11-tips-for-coaching-the-little-ones\/","title":{"rendered":"11 Tips for Coaching the Little Ones"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Friday, Aug. 18, 2017<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n\n\n\n
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11 Tips for Coaching the Little Ones<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
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(With the fall season upon us, we reprint this article with updated resource links at the end of the piece.)<\/em>
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\nBy Mike Woitalla<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI got recruited to coach my kid\u2019s soccer team. Any advice?\u201d The most recent time I heard this question, it came from a parent of a 6-year-old. It prompted me to put an answer in writing, based on some of the best insight I\u2019ve gotten from coaches and players I\u2019ve interviewed and observed over the years.<\/p>\n

11 Tips for Coaching the Little Ones<\/strong>
\n1.<\/strong> If all you do is set up goals and have them play as much soccer as possible during that hour of practice — you\u2019re doing a good job.<\/p>\n

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2.<\/strong> Familiarize yourself with the various age-appropriate games\/exercises to facilitate individual skills — but don\u2019t use ones that bore the kids. And if it takes more than a minute for 6-year-olds to comprehend the activity — it\u2019s the wrong one. (In other words, plan your practice but be ready to improvise.)<\/p>\n

3.<\/strong> No lines, no laps, no lectures.<\/p>\n

4.<\/strong> Enjoy yourself! If for some reason you\u2019re grumpy, act <\/i>like you\u2019re enjoying yourself. Kids pick up on body language and you\u2019ll get the best out of them if they sense you like being their coach.<\/p>\n

5.<\/strong> Greet each player when they arrive in a way that lets them know you\u2019re happy to see them.<\/p>\n

6.<\/strong> Always end practice on an upbeat, happy note. (Even if they drove you absolutely crazy).<\/p>\n

7.<\/strong> See the game through the children’s eyes. This will remind you that your main objective is helping them discover the joys of soccer. And not to expect a 6-year-old to play like a 16-year-old!<\/p>\n

8.<\/strong> Do not yell instructions at them! Do not coach from the sidelines during games! This interferes severely in their learning process. It also makes you look rather silly — an adult screaming at 6-year-olds while they\u2019re playing.<\/p>\n

9.<\/strong> Sit down during games, instead of prowling the sidelines, which only creates tension that unnerves your players.<\/p>\n

10.<\/strong> Always have a first-aid kit (including ice-packs) with you.<\/p>\n

11.<\/strong> Keep plastic bags in your coaching bag in case you need to pick up dog poo.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Friday, Aug. 18, 2017 Tweet This Share This 11 Tips for Coaching the Little Ones (With the fall season upon us, we reprint this article with updated resource links at the end of the piece.) By Mike Woitalla \u201cI got recruited to coach my kid\u2019s soccer team. Any advice?\u201d The most recent time I heard […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2732","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/mansfieldsoccer.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2732","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/mansfieldsoccer.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/mansfieldsoccer.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/mansfieldsoccer.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/mansfieldsoccer.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2732"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/mansfieldsoccer.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2732\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2733,"href":"http:\/\/mansfieldsoccer.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2732\/revisions\/2733"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/mansfieldsoccer.org\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2732"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}