Soccer!

So this evening, I learned how to be a Kindergarten soccer coach. I've signed up to coach LilKat1's soccer team, and today, we had a U-6 (under 6 for all you non-youth-soccer types) coaches clinic. It was great! I am very excited about this whole soccer thing. Now keep in mind, that I know pretty much NOTHING about soccer. I know that you can't use your hands and it's hard to kick the ball where you want if you kick with your toe. That's about it. I still don't know a whole lot more about the actual sport of soccer than I did before I went to this clinic, but now I have some good ideas about how to help kids enjoy soccer and learn some basic skills.

I've coached other sports in the past and one of my big things for this age of kid is learning through play. In other words, set up games that help kids naturally learn various athletic skills and have a great time doing so.

I've been teaching K/1st grade Sunday School for about 9 years now, so I feel pretty confident about what kids this age like to do and don't like to do. I also love sports and am looking forward to helping the kids on my team have a great experience with organized soccer (or really organized sports in general).

The teacher had 4 L's that we had to remember. Unfortunately, I only remember 3 of them. One was no lines. Waiting in line is no fun. So try coming up with games where all of the kids are involved. Or if some kids have to wait, make sure that it's not boring for them while they're waiting (for example, if you have a fast paced game, waiting your turn may give you an opportunity to catch your breath). I remember when LilKat1 played basketball. It seemed like all of his drills had lines. Not so much fun. One kid would do something (and that something was not always that interesting) and the rest would just wait. So one of the challenges is to find activities where all of the kids are involved. Another 'L' was no lecturing. Keep instructions short (or if they're a little extended, then at least make them entertaining). The fourth 'L' was no bad language. Apparently this is something that you have to talk with your kids' parents about. I wish I could remember the other 'L' but I can't right now.

Anyhow, we have a team meeting on Wednesday, and then practice will start next Tuesday. I'm really looking forward to this. It seems like a lot of work, but I think it'll be a great time. I really hope LilKat1 likes it. I think he'll really enjoy the games we do. Hey, this is one advantage about being his coach. I get to plan games that I know he'll enjoy! Well, he already can't wait. I showed him the shoes, shinguards, and ball that I ordered for him and he is very excited about this.

Hard to believe that I'm actually coaching soccer! Not quite as strange as if I were coaching baseball, but it's up there!