Coaching Youth Lacrosse kids with 30 kids

[ctoomey]

I have been a youth lacrosse for over 3 years and have been able to coach the team however this year its gotten a little out of hand as we have 31 kids on the team.

The kids are 10 and 11 (3rd and 4th grade) so there attention span is very short and with the amount of kids i have i can't get them to focus on me. It has not become an issue of what to do but more a management issue with the kids not goofing off while im talking etc.

Any suggestion on how to manage this? I sometimes split them up into two sections but even that can be kind of hectic since i only have a parent volunteer helping me out.

I try and do things like 4 on 3 and 7 on 7 to use the amount of kids but i always have a ton of kids sitting around. Any suggestions?

When I try to get them to listen to me as i explain something it takes forever cause of so many kids. I went from a team last year with 21 to 31 and just those extra 10 kids makes it so so much harder.

I would love suggestions on how to manage/organize the kids and what drills are best with this many kids.

[mdlaxman]

a lot of scooping balls and putting them in the bucket. or whoever can scoop and collect the most balls wins? then they might get competitive going for ground balls

[ctoomey]

yeah i tried things like that and its good for basics. See the kids are actually very talented and know the basics like scooping and throwing. Its now how do i incorporate things like 4 on 3 and teach them things like zone defense but make sure all the kids listen but also do it fast enough so everyone gets a turn or something.

[lw210coach]

I am also facing the same problem this year, our second year. This is a problem that I like to have. We have gone from 21 players (5th-6th grade team) last year to 57 players (23, 5th-6th graders, 34, 7th-8th graders) this year.

Is there any chance you can create "A" and "B" teams. That's what I am going to have to do. I must say that I have two other parents that help coach and I am looking at adding one or two more if I can find them.

Lacrosse is new to our town and I find it very hard finding help. Most parents say they don't know lacrosse. I ask them if they can talk to kids and give direction. Ha-ha right? We can teach parents how to coach and run drills if they have an interest. We just have to talk to the parents and tell them we want all the kids to have a chance to play and not miss out on learning.

We will be having a parents meeting in two weeks. I hope to enlist two parents that night that had some type of coaching (soccer, baseball, football,etc.) in the past. Will let you know how it goes.

[amersurfcrwn]

This is identical to my team. The best thing I found to do is have them do ground balls first thing in practice. 1v1, 2 v 2 where you start behind the cage, toss the ball almost to midline, have them scoop and go back into a fast break. It can also be done with 4v3- gets them worn out & burns up all that pent up school energy. When they need a break, that's the best time to talk to them (they'll pay attention when tired) or work on partner passing.
I'm also going to have two more of my college guys coaching so we can divide them up into groups. & from keeping them get bored, I have each drill last about 10 minutes

[ctoomey]

my only problem is that we thought of splitting it up into an A and B team but its was an issue cause we didn't have enough coaches.

My kids already can do ground balls very well and even passing and throwing since most have been to lax camp before. Im still trying to figure out a way with limited field space i have and one goal to incorporate the kids. Sometimes its only me coaching and other times i have 1 or 2 other coaches but its not regualarly scheduled with them.

[byualum]

Sometimes its only me coaching and other times i have 1 or 2 other coaches but its not regualarly scheduled with them.
That's really sad...I've got 24 2nd-graders this year and we made if very clear during registration that we would shut-off registration at 20 kids/team unless we had commitments from other parents to help with practices.

We had our second practice last night and we had 7 other dads there besides myself. I don't see any other way to do it.

With our team, we break into four groups of six. We gather together to discuss/demonstrate the next drill and then go to our designated spots to work on the drill. Usually we have two "coaches" with each group.

What about hitting up the local HS for some varsity kids to come help out. You, unfortunately, have been put in a no win situation. It's unfortunate...all the parents want their kids to be able to play, but none of them are willing to put in the time to help out.

A lack of good coaching and officials will eventually slow the growth of this great game.

[LALAXMAN]

my only problem is that we thought of splitting it up into an A and B team but its was an issue cause we didn't have enough coaches.


You've got to get some support from somewhere. If not an actual coach, then a high-school player. And if not that then at least some parents to help keep the kids organized while you do the coaching. As a last resort, deputise some captains from the team leaders and ask them to help you teach and motivate the other kids.

One thing that I do is split up and run the same drill in multiple groups simultaneously. I can watch from the middle and/or walk around to the different groups and identify the ones who need the most support. You can't watch everybody at once, but you can see everyone over the course of a drill.

This has the added benefit of getting each player more reps at the drill instead of standing in line waiting their turn.

[Westfield92]

Hold a training session for parents to get them interested. Some may not be helping as they may feel intimidated about the game. Show them that it's not difficult to learn to how to help.

Canvass the community for former players looking to give back to the game. I'm not a parent of any of the kids on my team and got involved simply by hearing that there was a need. Try ads in papers or local community Web site or Recreation bulletin or with local Men's leagues.

[sicknastybeast]

"A" and "B" teams is a good idea but those kids are young try making two teams so your not hurting any kids feelings

[ATK.19.90]

Yeah, I would suggest asking a few varsity players from a local high school to help out when they can, I know there are kids at my school who ref games and sometimes help out at younger teams practices as well. And if you can get some players to help, you should divide them into smaller teams but instead of calling it A and B, I'd give the teams actual names, or just colors, so the kids dont think theyre being segregated by skill.

[sicknastybeast]

Yeah, I would suggest asking a few varsity players from a local high school to help out when they can, I know there are kids at my school who ref games and sometimes help out at younger teams practices as well. And if you can get some players to help, you should divide them into smaller teams but instead of calling it A and B, I'd give the teams actual names, or just colors, so the kids dont think theyre being segregated by skill.

I'm 13 but I've been there...even still in my league as an "A" team player we still have high schoolers help out...I can't tell from my team but I've seen other teams get better this way

[asanz]

I'm in the same boat, as I'm coaching 32 1st and 2nd graders, with one parent as a formal assistant. Use the parents that want to help. Unlike soccer or Baseball, lacrosse is not a sport that yuo can just hop in and help with.

Have your parents maintain control & help keeps the kids focused. Teach them basic drills, such as scooping or managing a hungry hippos-style game.

I'd love to hear how other coaches are doing it also... André

[MTIsaac]

30 to 33 is the hardest number of kids to have on a team: it's not quite enough to split into two teams (assuming you have enough coaches), and too many for one team. Especially at the 3/4 level. Yikes.

I've enlisted parents to help run games and drills in practice, as well as run lines in games (i.e., one parent runs middies, one defense, and another attack). In order to do this, though, you need to have a thoughtful practice plan in place to help those parents. HS and older (minimum 7/8) kids can help out a lot, too, while the parents are getting the hang of lax. Most practices just need "cat herders" instead of lacrosse coaches, and parents are great at that!

Another trick I've used is goal-based attention...give the kids a very specific reason to stay focused. Maybe give out colored balls as rewards, or helmet award stickers, or let "winners" run post-practice static stretching... Works wonders.

HTH!

MTI

[CoachK]

Get another goal... Bring the kids together to demonstrate, put 15 kids on each goal even with limited space & move back & forth. It's tough to get 1 on 1 instruction then, but with that many kids & 1 coach, it's tough anyway, I'd rather get the reps.

[BhamLax]

We have 30 kids in 2/3/4th grades. Ages are 7 thru nearly 11. We just started practice this week and are doing it 4 nights a week. We have two coaches, but it looks like we will occasionally have just one. I think the only way to do it effectively is with at least three coaches, but until we get our college kids we are stuck. On the days when we have just one coach, I think it requires a fair amount of planning prior to showing up.
Here is my plan for a solo coach tonight:
Circle them up and get started with jumping jacks, push ups, etc. Have two players lead this. Once finished they will jog two laps of the field with ball for cradle work. While they are doing this I will set up cones for two of three drills we will run. I don't trust them enough to give them a second of idle time. Whenever I do they start to melt down and slash each other, etc.
I will then separate the team into 4th grade and 2/3rd. Everybody will take a knee and I will give instruction on throwing and catching technique. We then pair up by grade and do one to one throw and catch. One minute timed competition to see who can get the most throws and catches in one minute. Top three teams may get out of running later. After this drill I will send the two groups to the two drill stations that I have already setup. The younger boys will start in a line drill (cradle, scoop, pass)
After instructing on the drill I will leave them to it. By this time the older boys will probably be in some form of chaos attempting to figure out a pecking order. Man it only takes two kids to melt the whole group.:banghead:
The older boys will do a 2 on 2 drill (call man, scoop, yell release, pass to free space man). this one requires a lot of coaching attention. I like the concept here because I get four lines of four and everyone gets a lot of action. We will then rotate.
Finish it off with some green bays and we are at 1 hour 15min time to go.
As I mentioned we have college kids coming in to help once they finish there semester. This will be great and give us chance to start running some plays or at least begin to prepare for our game schedule.

[asanz]

I'm glad I'm not hte only one in the same boat!

Can you tell me what "Green Bay's" are..?

Thanks

[BhamLax]

Lots of names for this one. But I know these sprints as a Green Bay from my old Football coach. Run to 10 then back 20 then back 30 then back, etc

[Wallace9645]

I had a similar problem with a youth track team where I had 60 kids from K through 8th grade. One suggestion would be to hold practice one night per week, say Monday night, exactly as you are with the whole team. On that night you work on basic skills, running, scooping throwing etc...things that you can do with a big group that don't need a lot of instructional coaching.

Then split the team into two practice groups, Red & Black, A & B, whatever you want to call them. Then run the exact same practice two nights in a row, one night for each group. Example Wednesday night is the Black Group working on zone defense or fast breaks. Then Thursday night do the same thing with the Red Group. This way you are only working with 15 kids at a time on the more difficult skills, and may actually be able to teach something with out going crazy!