Guide your players, don't kick every ball yourself

Courtesy of www.footy4kids.com

Guide your players, don't kick every ball yourself

"The discovery method is a teaching technique that encourages students to take a more active role in their learning process by answering a series of questions or solving problems designed to introduce a general concept." (Mayer 2003)

Many coaches have an 'instructor' style, constantly telling players what to do and when to do it. This is not the best way to teach children how to play soccer (or anything else for that matter). It's much better to act as a 'facilitator' and help your players find their own answers to soccer problems.

Take this easy passing game as an example.



Pass, dribble, move

Objective: To encourage players to pass correctly.
Skill level: Beginner to intermediate.
Number of players: The whole squad.
Set up:

Create a 20 yards by 30 yards playing area with one dozen cones spread equally around the edge. Divide your players into pairs with one ball between each pair.

How to play:

Players dribble within the playing area, passing to their partner. After every pass, the passing player runs around one of the cones and back into the playing area. The receiver is limited to a set number of touches. On the second or third touch (depending on how experienced your players are), they have to return the pass regardless of where their partner is.
You can make the game competitive by challenging your players to make a set number of passes or see which pair can make the most number of successful passes in two or three minutes.

What does the instructor do?

The instructor will tell their players to pass towards feet or space if their partner is running towards them, and to pass into space if they are running away. The instructor may also tell their players that they know their partner is ready to receive a pass if they are making eye contact with them. They will tell their players not to pass the ball so hard that their partner can't control it.

While the instructor's players may look like they are passing correctly, they are not learning why they are doing it. So the exercise is largely wasted. The instructor's players aren't learning anything except how to follow orders.

It's little wonder these coaches get frustrated and send me emails saying, "they can do it in training, so why can't they do it on match days?"

What does the facilitator do?

A coach who is using the 'guided discovery' method will ask questions such as:

"If your partner is running towards you, where should you pass the ball?"


"If your partner is running away from you, where should you pass the ball?"


"How do you know your partner is ready to receive the pass?"


"Why do you think your partner couldn't control that pass?"


"Which foot should you use for your first touch?"


"What part of your foot should you pass with?"

And so on.

There may be no right or wrong answers to these questions. But by asking a question and waiting for an answer, instead of simply telling them what to do, you are forcing your players to think the problem through. It also means you won't continue talking until they have come up with the answer.

There will be times when your players are unable to come up with an answer. If that happens you will need to tell them, and it's fine to do that. However, if the game and questions are well thought out, your players should be able to answer by themselves.

You may find your players are resistant to this kind of learning. Many are used to being told what to do and expect it, so you need to be patient. But the pay-off is worth it.

If you can create a team of youngsters who can come up with their own answers to problems on the field, you will have a strong, confident team that will learn quickly and solve problems on match days without any intervention from you.