Active Start u4-u5: Session #2
Theme: Introduction to basic body and manipulative control
Physical Literacy: Collision Avoidance, Object Manipulation – Feet
pdf of Practice #2: 2 Active Start EPIC Player Development
Introduction : Attention Span SHORT. Be brief but deliberate.
Purpose: To continue the process of them listening (players and partners) to your voice. Review the practice space.
Introduce / REVIEW week prior explanation of Your Yard
We will be playing in our YARD defined by the “yellow cones”.
“This is your yard. WHEN I SAY GO, go explore your yard with your partner.”
Warm-up : Moving inside of the area.
Purpose: Learning To Listen for STOP and FREEZE commands. To get players smiling , sweating and to introduce dribbling with different parts of the foot.
“REHEARSE ‘STOP’ AND ‘FREEZE’
When your teacher/instructor says ‘STOP’ what do we do….When your teacher/instructor says ‘FREEZE’ what do we do …. DEMONSTRATE”
- “Moving around YARD holding hand of Partner
- Moving through YARD finding spaces
- Forward/Backward (when moving backwards how do prevent yourself from bumping into your Partner)/Sideways/Gallop
- Crawl, Bear, LEVELS”
PROVIDE lots of positive feedback for their STOP and FREEZE behaviours. i.e. “That is a great Freeze” “Wow, fantastic Freeze, you stopped as soon as I said “Freeze”.”
EVERYBODY IS ‘IT’ (3-5 min).
Purpose: To provide high energy / activity tag game for players and their partners.
– If you are tagged, you go down on one knee.
– When on one knee you can free yourself by:
- Reaching out and tagging someone else as they run past, or
- Reaching out and high-five someone who is on one knee freeing both of you.
Variations:
* Change the movement type … i.e. hopping, skipping, walking, galloping
** Everyone has a ball at their foot and must tag with their foot on the ball
Moving Within The Yard – With Disruptors (8 min)
Purpose: General Movement and Collision Avoidance (with Music where possible)
DISRUPTORS ARE THE OTHER PLAYERS/PARTNERS WITHIN THE AREA
– There is not purposeful disruption; however, the other pairs’ movement causes new decisions and collision avoidance
– Walking, Skipping, Galloping, Running, Dribble, Jumping Jacks (Leading to Splitting Feet), hops (plus leprechauns (take off and land on same foot and kicking heels up to the side) and dublichauns (double leprechauns – hop off of one foot then immediately hop off the other foot)
– Doing these activities going backwards
– All movements above while holding hands or linked arms with partner
WITH A BALL:
Players and partners move around the area attempting to avoid the other participants (Disruptors)
– Dribble/Gallop
– Stop = Foot on top of ball (“Great Balance!!”)
– Gallop around ball to right / to left (touching with little toe)
– Gallop on both feet
VARIATIONS:
1. Exploring Movements: Explore movements of different/favourite animals
2. Exploring Planes/Levels: Explore movement in the area that takes participants from low to high and turning in various ways around an axis (spinning like a figure skater, rolling like a log, skiing moves like daffys, backscratchers)
3. Balances: Various balances on number of points then in contact with partner same points
4. Ball In Hands
- Explore the yard while you toss to yourself and catch. Drop-bounce-catch
- Explore the yard while you put the ball on your shoulder, let it fall behind you, turn and catch after it bounces
- Explore while bouncing the ball between yourself and partner
Destroyers and Construction Workers (10 min)
Purpose: Soccer-specific ball and body awareness
- Scatter 15-20 pylons or markers on the field throughout a 20 x 20 y area (cans of food or drink, or plastic pop bottles and milk cartons filled partially with water or sand). These pylons/articles should be standing up straight.
- Divide the group into two equal teams (Players & Partners stay together). One group is designated the Destroyers and the other group the Construction Workers.
- On the coach’s “GO”, the Destroyers attempt to tip over the pylons with their hands, while the Construction Workers attempt repair the pylons by standing them back up.
- Set a time for this activity and at the end count the number of pylons that the Destroyers have knocked down, then allow the teams to switch roles.
- After each group has had an opportunity being both a Construction Worker and a Destroyer, reverse their roles again.
- The second time that the players must dribble a soccer ball and must have their foot on top of the ball when they tip over a pylon either as a Construction Worker or a Destroyer.
GOALS FOR EVERYONE (8-10 min)
Place small goals around the field. With all players, and partners where needed moving around the field, the players attempt to score on any of the goals.
- They cannot score on the neighbouring goal that they just scored on
- If a player is comfortable going around the field on their own then their Partner can play in a goal and pretend to be a goalkeeper
Wrap Up
Thank players for being great listeners and have them give their Partners a round of applause as helpers.
Ask them what ‘Stop’ and ‘Freeze’ mean and how are they different.
Have them high five 5 people or more before leaving and say ‘Good Practice Today’.