Soccer drills at home for 4 year olds

At a glance

At 4

16 soccer drills the app opens for a 4 year old work at home, across 5 skills.

How long

15 minutes is a full session and 10 minutes is a quick one: a few games of about three minutes, with a rest between.

How often

A few short sessions a week at most, with days off. Free play counts too.

What you need

Most used: size 3 soccer ball (9 of the 16 drills), beanbags or rolled-up socks (1), big soft ball or beach ball (1), bucket or a big box (1), cones or shoes (1), cones, shoes or toys (1), rope or line of cones (1), ropes, towels or chalk lines (1). 2 drills need nothing but space.

Safe at home

One child and one parent in a room, garage or yard. Never tackling, contact, diving or head-first falls, no stunts or loaded lifting, and nothing that needs a coach, rink, pool or court. Stop when anything hurts.

16 at-home drills

Soccer drills for 4 year olds to do at home

Every drill below is one the app opens for a 4 year old and one that works at home: a room, garage or yard, one parent as the partner, no venue. Each drill's page has the steps, a diagram where the setup can be drawn, three ways to make it a game and a log to print.

dribbling

Dribbling

• Big Ball CatchAges 4 to 6 · 3 min
• Flamingo BalanceAges 4 to 6 · 3 min
• Grown-Up Says DribbleAges 4 to 6 · 3 min

fitness

Fitness

• Animal ParadeAges 4 to 6 · 3 min
• Frog Jump the RiverAges 4 to 6 · 3 min

pace & agility

Pace & Agility

• Rocket RunAges 4 to 6 · 3 min
• Tail TagAges 4 to 6 · 3 min

passing & receiving

Passing & Receiving

• Clear Your YardAges 4 to 6 · 3 min
• Pass Through the TunnelAges 4 to 6 · 3 min

shooting

Shooting

• Knock Down the BottlesAges 4 to 6 · 3 min
• Score in the Little GoalAges 4 to 6 · 3 min

A 15-minute session

A home soccer session for a 4 year old

A warm-up, 3 drills and a cool-down, 15 minutes in all. Do it up to a few times a week, with rest days between.

1. 1Soccer Warm-Up Games, Ages 4 to 6A 3-minute warm-up game for soccer at ages 4 to 6: follow the leader, animal walks, a freeze game, soft landings and a little soccer play. No lines, no waiting.3 min
2. 2Red Light, Green Light DribbleSay: "Green light, dribble! Red light, foot on top of the ball and freeze!" Praise the stop: “You stopped it right under your foot!”3 min
3. 3Squish the BugSay: "Here comes the ball. Squish the bug with your foot!" Praise the try: “Squished! You stopped it dead.”3 min
4. 4Score in the Little GoalSay: "Dribble, dribble, then kick it in the little goal!" Praise the try: “Goal! You looked at the goal before you kicked.”3 min
5. 5Soccer Calm-Down Stretches, Ages 4 to 6A 3-minute calm-down for soccer at ages 4 to 6 after play: slow breathing and animal stretches, each held for a slow count of 5.3 min

At 4

What changes in soccer training at 4

Four is the first year of the ages 4 to 6 games: play with a ball or a soft object, no positions, no contact and nothing a child has to read.

Before six, play comes first: organized sport is not the goal, and rest days and other sports count (American Academy of Pediatrics (HealthyChildren.org)).

The week

Fitting soccer into a week at 4

At 4, a week is a few 15-minute sessions at most: under an hour in all, a small part of the day. The rest is free play, which is the point.

The research behind it

• Most children are ready for organized sport at about age 6; before that, young children need ample free play every day.

  American Academy of Pediatrics (HealthyChildren.org)

• Organized sport should total no more hours a week than the child's age in years, with two rest days a week.

  NATA youth sport specialization recommendations

• Parents' praise of young children's effort predicted the children believing, years later, that ability can grow, and enjoying challenges.

  Gunderson et al. 2013

Questions and answers