Free drill library · Basketball

At-home basketball drills for 7 to 10 year olds: forward

This is a free sample week of at-home basketball training for 7 to 10 year olds, for a forward: 3 of the 7 plans SSTracker has for this group, each 12 minutes, with every step and minute. Nothing here is written for this page alone; it is what the app gives a family.

Everything here can be done in a room, garage or yard, or at a driveway hoop. Drills that need a team are left out; a parent can be the partner in a pair drill.

A free sample week of basketball for 7 to 10 year olds

Session 1

Forward: Around the World 12 minutes

  1. Warm-up: easy jog, skips and arm circles · 2 min
    Start slow and build up. Loosen up; nothing should hurt.
  2. Around the World · 4 min
    Slow down after a miss. Reset your feet.
  3. Soft Ball Push Toss · 4 min
    Legs, then arms, push! Safety: Throw only into clear space or a solid wall, with nobody in the way. Use a soft or light ball.
  4. Cool-down: walk and easy stretches · 2 min
    Breathe slowly and hold each stretch about 20 seconds, never to pain.

Session 2

Forward: Hands Up, Feet Moving 12 minutes

  1. Warm-up: easy jog, skips and arm circles · 2 min
    Start slow and build up. Loosen up; nothing should hurt.
  2. Hands Up, Feet Moving · 4 min
    Hands busy, feet quick.
  3. Around the World · 4 min
    Slow down after a miss. Reset your feet.
  4. Cool-down: walk and easy stretches · 2 min
    Breathe slowly and hold each stretch about 20 seconds, never to pain.

Session 3

Forward: Wake-Up Starts 12 minutes

  1. Warm-up: easy jog, skips and arm circles · 2 min
    Start slow and build up. Loosen up; nothing should hurt.
  2. Wake-Up Starts · 4 min
    Pop up and push the ground away. Safety: Run on flat, clear, non-slip ground with plenty of room to slow down. Stop if anything hurts.
  3. Layup Lines · 4 min
    Outside foot to inside hand. Look at the square.
  4. Cool-down: walk and easy stretches · 2 min
    Breathe slowly and hold each stretch about 20 seconds, never to pain.

Want the rest of the plan?

This sample is 3 of the 7 basketball plans SSTracker has for this group. In SSTracker every step is on the screen, your child logs the work, and you see it. No club needed: the family plan is $7.50 a month per player, or $12 a month for the whole household, and the first 14 days are free.

Get the full plan free for 14 days Coach or club director? Set up your team free Print a free week for another sport or age

The drills in this week

Around the World

Ages 7 and up · 12 min

A classic shooting game: make a shot at each spot to move to the next.

  1. Mark 7 spots in an arc around the basket within your range.
  2. Shoot from spot 1 until you make it, then move to spot 2.
  3. Count the total shots it takes to finish all 7 spots.
  4. Try to beat your count next time.

Coach's cue: Slow down after a miss. Reset your feet.

Bring: basketball, hoop

Soft Ball Push Toss

Ages 6 to 10 · 8 min

Push a big soft ball from your chest to a partner or wall as hard as you can. Teaches using legs and arms together.

  1. Hold the ball at your chest with both hands.
  2. Bend your knees a little, then push up and out.
  3. Push the ball to a partner or a wall.
  4. Do 15 pushes.

Coach's cue: Legs, then arms, push!

Bring: large soft ball or beach ball, partner or wall

Safety: Throw only into clear space or a solid wall, with nobody in the way. Use a soft or light ball.

Hands Up, Feet Moving

Ages 7 and up · 6 min

Keep one hand up and one hand low while you slide, the way defenders guard a dribbler.

  1. Stand in stance with one hand high and one low.
  2. Slide 4 steps left, then 4 steps right.
  3. Switch the high hand each time you change direction.
  4. Do 4 rounds of 20 seconds.

Coach's cue: Hands busy, feet quick.

Bring: wall or open space

Wake-Up Starts

Ages 6 to 10 · 8 min

Start a short run from lying, sitting or kneeling, the way an animal jumps up when it wakes. Race only your own clock.

  1. Set two markers about 10 big steps apart.
  2. Lie on your tummy, sit or kneel behind the first marker.
  3. On "go" get up as fast as you can and run past the second marker.
  4. Walk back slowly; do 6 to 8 starts, trying a new start position each time.

Coach's cue: Pop up and push the ground away.

Bring: two cones or markers

Safety: Run on flat, clear, non-slip ground with plenty of room to slow down. Stop if anything hurts.

Layup Lines

Ages 7 and up · 10 min

Practice the layup approach from both sides at game speed.

  1. Start at the wing. Dribble in at an angle.
  2. Take off from the foot opposite your shooting hand, knee up.
  3. Lay it off the backboard. Do 10 from the right, 10 from the left.
  4. Finish with 5 using only your weak hand.

Coach's cue: Outside foot to inside hand. Look at the square.

Bring: basketball, hoop

Safety for ages 7 to 10

  • Plans for this age group use beginner drills only. Advanced drills open from age 13 in the app.
  • Home plans use only drills for a room, garage or yard (or a driveway hoop). Stop if anything hurts.

Before you start: basketball

  • A ball and hoop sized for age: size 5 ball and 8-foot rim at 7-8; size 6 and 9-foot rim at 9-11.
  • Court shoes that grip; ankle brace after a sprain if a doctor suggests it.
  • Land softly with knees over toes on every jump; a short landing and balance warm-up protects knees.
  • At least one day a week away from basketball, and play other sports until about 14 (USA Basketball and NBA).
  • Box-outs, screens and post contact: walking pace first, coach watching, light contact.
  • Watch packed tournament weekends: many games in a short time raise injury risk.
For every sport and age (7)
  • Head knock or concussion signs (headache, dizziness, confusion, feeling "off"): when in doubt, sit them out. See a doctor, and no return the same day.
  • Back to sport only with a doctor's written OK, after a step-by-step return. Every U.S. state has a youth concussion law.
  • Heat: drink water before, during and after. Take shade breaks, ease into hot weather over about two weeks, and stop if dizzy, sick or headachy.
  • Lightning: if you hear thunder or see lightning, go inside a building or a closed car. Wait 30 minutes after the last thunder (the 30-30 rule).
  • Pain is a stop sign, not something to push through. Stop and tell a grown-up; pain that lasts or comes back each session needs a doctor.
  • Water and rest are part of training: 1-2 rest days a week, plenty of sleep, a meal or snack before and after, and other sports welcome.
  • Know where the nearest AED (heart defibrillator) is, and who calls for help in an emergency.

The research behind these plans

Which drills are shown at which age, and the safety notes, follow the 29 sources below: national governing bodies, medical associations and studies on youth sport (last reviewed October 2026). Where no study gives an exact number, the plans use cautious defaults, and we change them as the research does.

Basketball: governing bodies, safety and development (9)
Youth athletic development and safety (20)

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