Hoops

Teaching skills to kids

It would be an excellent idea to give the kids a list of team rules in writing. Make sure you give the parents a copy as well so they're fully aware of what the expectations are. You're more likely to have first time rep parents in U12's so they'll be new to the expectations of rep ball as well.

If you have an assistant coach I would also suggest you get them to keep a substitution log. It can help you to monitor how long each kid has been on the court for in case they're out there too long or if a player has been on the bench too long. There's not a coach alive hasn't thought they played a kid more/less than what they actually have. It's also handy to have the log should a parent want to discuss playing time (BTW, never do that directly after the game, too much emotion). Having evidence to back up your position will help you tackle that one. For example, the team I was assistant coaching on last year had a parent that believed her daughter was only playing about 6-8 mins a game when in fact she was playing about 12 mins per game (28 mins game total game time 4x7 min qtrs)

If you're looking for drills I'd suggest going to YouTube and just start searching and watching. I find watching videos of the drills in action much easier to pass onto the kids than trying to learn them from drawings. Also a good idea to watch other teams train and see what drills they're doing and copy the ones you think would be appropriate for your kids.

Try to give them a basic core activity but throw in variations.

For example, after teaching them the standard layup loop, throw in something different. Before they can rejoin the rebounding line, I make them do things like touching the baseline, sprinting around the half, running to the corner and doing 5 defensive shuffles along the sideline, 5 jumps to touch high up the nearest wall, passing at the circles on the nearest wall, etc.

You could also put down cones and make them do a slalom as part of the layup, change the angle they approach the backoboard, change the type of layup they need to do, include a stationary defender, challenge them to score 20 in 2 minutes or 10 in a row, etc.

Is it rep or domestic?

How many sessions per week & how long is each session?

Try to use the fun stuff as a reward for completing the other drills at a satisfactory level. Say to the kids something like, "If we do this drill to the acceptable standard, we'll do this "fun activity" Dangle the carrot a little as a reward good behavior & execution.

It's also really important to clearly define what acceptable behavior is. It's reasonable to expect that the kids listen to your instructions and aren't watching what's happening on the court next to you while your talking. If you see wondering eyes, stop, tell them to concentrate on what you're saying, then continue.

Keep your instructions simple and try not to overload them with too much detail. Emphasize one or two things for each drill.

Every coach is has their own definition of acceptable behavior. Personally, I don't mind kids having a bit of fun if they're waiting in line as long as they not distracting the kids in the middle of the drill and they're ready to go when it's their turn. You should also look to eliminate or reduce the length of lines in your drills where possible.

If you find the standard of any drill dropping (even the fun ones), stop the drill, remind them of the standard you expect, then continue.

We've all been in the same spot before and it's easy to get overwhelmed at first but with a little persistence you'll be fine. Not sure if you're coach rep or domestic but hopefully these pointers can be of some help.

Defensively, I'd start with teaching them the basic defensive stance, hand position and how to slide. Your players will need a reasonable understanding of individual defensive basics first, before they advance to shell drill and other team defense concepts.

Offensively, basic ball handling, being able to dribble with either hand without looking down. Shooting, keep the kids in close and focus on correct shooting form. Passing (chest, bounce overhead to start with), correct technique, make sure they put some muscle behind it. Soft passes get stolen. Layups (both hands) & footwork (pivoting, forward & reverse, etc)

Depending on how many hours you get with the kids it can be hard to get through everything. If your short on time choose a couple of things each session for O & D and encourage the kids to work on everything at home. Some will, some won't but there's only so much you can do.

Try to keep training fun and don't keep each drill going for too long. Bored kids will lose interest and act up. Try to make the drills competitive rather than just doing line drills but make sure you keep the standard where you want it to be.

Kids that are having fun are much easier to coach than kids that are just doing it because they're told to