League Week 1
Curriculum & Tips for 4&5’s
First impressions are important. Set a positive tone right away by greeting each participant with a smile, introducing yourself, and asking for a high five!
Environment Tip:
Have Fun by playing the games WITH the kids. The participants will follow your lead and your energy, so if you’re having fun, the kids will too! Don’t explain the game and stand back to watch; get involved.
Week 1 is Merch Day, make sure every participant receives their team jersey!
4&5’s Week 1 Curriculum
The 4&5’s curriculum builds on the skills learned in earlier programs and introduces new skills & games each week.
4&5’s Skills
4&5’s Games
4&5’s Scrimmage Type
Traditional. In this approach, the kids play 4 v 4 soccer with one ball for the entire field for two 12-15 minute halves.
The role of the coach during the game is to be high energy, offer praise and congratulations to the kids for trying new things and progress their development. Remind the kids during the scrimmage to use only their feet, to watch out for their friends and the other team. Have an extra ball in hand to use if the ball on the field goes out of bounds.
The successful coach will incorporate a “volunteer cheer zone helper” to help with substitutions and explaining the game to ensure that the majority of time is spent with the kids playing.
4&5’s Tactical Goals
Feet Only/No Hands. Continue helping the kids get in the habit of using feet only, no hands.
Jerseys, why do we wear them? Remind them there are two teams in soccer games, which is why we wear different jerseys/pinnies.
Scoring, which goal? Explain which goal they should score in and which goal they should protect.
Corner Flags/Out of Bounds. Tell the kids the corner flags help us see where out-of-bounds is.
4&5’s Character Goals
UPside Skill: Try New Things. To teach trying new things, give lots of praise and high fives to encourage the kids to step out of their comfort zones. When introducing new games or skills, tell them you’re proud of them for trying something new. Remind them that while trying new things can be scary, but it’s the best way to grow. When we try new things, we open ourselves up to finding new favorites!
