If your looking for a exciting camp program check out www.creativeskillcamps.com they're a street soccer camp focussing on skill devlopment.
No I'm looking for anyone who has attended this week long intense program and not a 3 hour-a-day experimental camp where kids are "taught" street soccer. Don't make me laugh
Bajanyankee There is a lot more behind street soccer. Street Soccer is for everyone who refuses to let their individuality, creativity and imagination, die. Many of the greatest players in the world have grown up playing street soccer, this in a nutshell, is having the freedom to experiment and discover who you uniquely are. For me Soccer has been coached far too long using an outmoded traditional approach which breaks the game into key physical, technical and tactical factors. The coaches rigidly instruct the players to ensure that they know, understand and apply these factors in practice repeatedly. Many coaches, as a result of their training in the method, start to build and develop a belief, trust and reliance in it. Although on the surface of these camps it looks like a reasonable way to coach players, at its core, the approach is flawed and based upon a false premise. I have seen many of these types of camps before I have to ask myself ‘what change are you going to really have on developing a child in one week?’ So for me the camps main objective is to light this flame inside every player so they love their experience and NOT to give too much information to them on the whole player development. This should be done in their clubs over a period time and the camp is to give the young players a break. The Street Soccer concept presents players with an exciting different approach to coaching the world game. Instead of dictating to players what they must or must not do, the coach will show players how they can be much more effective by getting their players to become more responsible and aware of their own inner-potential which has largely been hidden for too long. This in turn, will allow them to unlock previously dormant abilities so that they can find their own solutions to whatever the game throws at them. This coaching approach promotes deeper learning, faster development and better performance. For a lot of people they see street soccer and don’t really understand what is going on with the learning process, they see music, fun, kids making mistake etc and believe this is a camp of no direct link to soccer development. What street soccer is doing with these methods is coaching “self 2” of every individual, focusing on the Inner Game. “The Inner Game provides principles, methods, and tools to learn to get out of your own way so you can express your full potential in whatever your chosen activity. The fundamental method is overcoming self-interference, no matter what outer game is being played. For example, if a person learns the art of relaxed focus of attention in one activity, that skill can be applied to any other activity. This provides great leverage for anyone attempting to maximize excellence in any field”. Timothy Gallwey Many camps that largely happen throughout the world rely on coaching in the old traditional method – there are disadvantages with this: •Little chance of any feedback between coach and player •No regard to individual differences, players all do it the same way •Little opportunities for thinking for yourself •No sense of responsibility for your own learning •Little attention to emotional understanding in learning •Little sense of self-awareness or esteem developed Creative skill camps are based on the player being just as important as the coach in the learning process. The method involves an increased focus on the mental aspects of performance and how the player can improve them. There is a lot behind the concept that you may have failed to see...
My son and some friends/teammates went to YPT last year and loved. It was the second year for aome of them, and they may return this year. The trainers were from various European clubs - Man U, Benfica, etc. Some of the trainers brought gear from their club which they gave away at the end of training. The training facilities were good, although some preferred the prior location in Delaware over the Maryland location. The location is a bit of a downside as it is not very close to any airport, but they will arrange to pick players up at the closest airport if they fly in. The level of the players attending was pretty high, probably due to the application/screening process. The players are divided up on a birth year basis. Based upon my son's experience I would highly recommend it.
My son attended this camp for 2 years when it was in Delaware. He loved it. He did not attend last year because of ODP commitments so I can't comment on the new location. The level of play is high including some National Team Camp players and Regional Pool players. The training is intense enough that you need to be in good shape when you go. The price is reasonable. I think one of the better camp experiences out there.
Thanks to the positive words about this camp we're interested in sending our son to it this summer. However we're about 2 hours away from a major metropolitan area and he plays for a community club, not a premier or select team that anyone would recognize. He did do ODP a couple years, made regions one year and the state pool the other. Is it worth applying to attend the YPT camp? He does fit the description of the small but skilled player they seem to be looking for.
Fairly young, like 11 or 12, but this year's camp was canceled we heard. No word on next summer. My son *loved* it two summers ago, it convinced him he could play at a high level.