Coaching Mixed Ability (U12)

Do some of your skill work in stations. Areas designated for different skills. You can also have exercises or drill stations each has different drills. That you fit with the players he needs work in one area and not another individually on in small groups.

Have some stations for new players to the game. Have other stations for more experienced player skill work.

So they are working on what they need, and others are working on what they need. Your doing both at the same practice.

Have an assistant, he can work with the less experienced, while you work with the rest or visa versa.

Then join them alll for some group work, and also when you break the team up to play at the end of the practice.

Take notes so you know who can do what. it is easy to forget who can do what and move on. Keep going back to stuff each has a problem with in other practices as you see those problems.

 

With 11-12 year-old girls, keeping interest will be a problem regardless of ability.

 

Pretty simple concept to follow when running a youth sessions is to incorperate a coaching technique called "Layering", meaning that each activity that you ask of your players can be made more simple or more difficult/complex depending on the individual players comfort level in that specific activity.

Dont be scared to ask more of better players, and more importantly make sure the players that may struggle will succeed at some point within all activities.

Also make sure activities are age appropriate, anything to easy will bore them and anything to complex will lose their interest fast. Try to limit downtime in between activities,,several very short breaks are far better then one big one.

Best of luck, enjoy

 

Re: Re: Coaching Mixed Ability (U12)

That's not true at all from my experience. Sure, they'll socialize, but give 'em 10 minutes at the start of practice (and make practice 10 minutes longer) and you're golden.

I think you definitely are going to want to have them play a lot of small sided games. 3 v 3 and 4 v 4. The better players can go up against each other and challenge each other, be competitive...while the less skilled players will get a lot of time on the ball and be able to improve more quickly. Constant playing will also take care of your fitness needs for the most part. Players who are in the middle in terms of talent can play with the better group sometimes - forcing them to raise their game - or with the beginning group where they will have more responsibility with the ball and gain confidence.

If you don't have enough players to run 2 small-sided games simultaneously, you can divide your players into 3 groups and have one group work in skills sessions while the other two play (and an assistant will be really helpful if you do this).

Good luck and if you keep it fun they'll stay interested (challenging and fun can go hand-in-hand)