Soccer Skills for Kids

Soccer Skills for Kids
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Youth soccer is one of the fastest growing sports. Kids' soccer games are frequently held in city parks all across the country. Participants have a great time running around and kicking the ball all over the place. Games and practices are a good opportunity for kids to improve their soccer skills. Some of the most important soccer skills for kids to learn are dribbling, passing, trapping and scoring.

Dribbling

Dribbling is how a child moves the ball up the field when he has possession of the ball. A skilled dribbler can really make things happen on the soccer field. A child can initially start practicing dribbling skills by simply dribbling the ball up and down the field. The child should work on increasing speed while dribbling. To become a better dribbler, he should go against a few defensive players or dribble around cones. Being able to maneuver the ball around opponents is a vital soccer skill. Kids should also learn how to effectively use the inside of the foot, outside of the foot and the full instep to dribble the ball. The ability to change direction and rhythm while dribbling is a good way to confuse defenders.

Passing

While a young soccer player is dribbling the ball, she will frequently have opportunities to pass. A soccer team that is skilled at passing the ball has a better chance of scoring goals. Usually the inside of the foot is used to pass the ball to a teammate. A child should practice passing to other players who are stationery and players who are on the move. It is important to develop a knack for accurately passing the ball out in front of a player who is running. Poor passing skills can lead to an interruption in the flow of a possession and can lead to the other team getting the ball.

Trapping

A child is often on the receiving end of a pass or punt in soccer games. He will need to become skilled in trapping and controlling the ball when a ball is received. There a few different ways of trapping the soccer ball. The inside of the foot or the sole of the foot can be used to trap balls that are rolling or slightly bouncing on the ground. For balls that are in the air, it is sometimes necessary to use a caving-in motion of the chest to receive the ball. A couple of kids can significantly improve their soccer skills by just running up the field together as they continuously pass and trap the ball.

Scoring

Kids get a thrill out of kicking the ball into the goal. There are several methods that kids can use to improve their skills at scoring goals. The ball can be kicked from various distances and angles. A good way to begin to practice kicks at the goal is without a goaltender. Eventually a goalie can be added to challenge a child's skill at getting the ball past him. Kids should also learn about the mechanics of strongly kicking the ball toward the goal. They should understand how to plant one foot and use the instep of the other foot to swiftly kick the ball.

References

Article reviewed by Lynda Moultry Belcher Last updated on: Mar 23, 2010

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