drveovru2
04-28-2005, 09:12 PM
I am coaching a tee ball team, its fun, but very frustrating. you want the kids to react, but they are only 4-5 so they really dont have the concepts down. Anyone have any coaching tips... not really worried about winning the games, i just hope they get it down so each player will be better the following year.
so far 1-1
Merax
04-28-2005, 09:33 PM
I used to help coach T-Ball. It can be a little frustrating at times, but it was still alot of fun. The biggest tip I can give, remember to treat it as a game both for you and for them. If it starts to be more of a "chore" than a game, they won't enjoy it and will start making life really rough on you:) .
It's a hard thing trying to teach and have fun with a sport like that. Thankfully there were 2 other coaches who had spent a few years doing it and had it down to a science. Just stick with it though! These days it's hard to find people who can devote time and energy to working with kids. I would still be doing it, especially since my oldest son is almost 5 now and loves baseball, but health problems pretty much keep me home and indoors:( .
Obiwanjacoby
04-28-2005, 10:47 PM
The way I heard, is that you start in a smaller setting indoors, but not like a gymnasium. More like a rec room. Better to keep the attention that way. Everyone's so cramped you can't get distracted by clouds, bugs, or your shoes. Work with imaginary equipment and work step by step, like directing a children's play.
Coach: Okay, batter swings (runs to point on carpet and points directly to floor). The ball lands here, what do you do Joey? Okay, good! Now you Ethan, what are you doing at the same time Joey's running? Etc. etc.
Then Choreograph a few basic plays just like that. Have the kids name the plays themselves so they will become more attached to them and recall the steps easier. "The Batman play", "Operation Zord", etc. Whatever they agree on. The ball can only go so many places once it's hit. ;)
When they get on the field, they'll focus more and be more willing to try it in real life. Maybe they'll even execute something they imagined in the pretend coaching session.
Hope it helps.
-PJ
SoulcatcherX
04-30-2005, 01:31 AM
I remember my days in Little League baseball....
I honor you for your patience and willingness to improve your coaching skills.
T-Ball is another game entirely however. I've two daughters that don't share my enthusiasm for the sport, so thusly I haven't been thrust into that direction. Obi had some good ideas though. Especially the play naming. I do a similiar thing with the kids I worked with when i assisted in junior league football. Since I played FB as a kid, I knew that often I would drop plays simply because I couldn't keep the difference between a Blue-42 and a Left-Shift-Green straight. Coming up with inventive titles helped out my offensive line much better.
Keeping their interest and focus are key. Heck... I don't have much of an attention-span myself at age 28. :D