The Game of the Month is Soccer! This month we're sharing fun soccer skills building games. This week's game is fun skills building game to practice accurate kicks and trapping and dribbing the ball. The Game of the Week is Soccer Smash!
Group Size: 10+
Age Group: Grade 1+
Length of Activity: More than 10 minutes
Developmental Goal: To practice teamwork, kicking, trapping and dribbling soccer skills.
Equipment: Soccer balls and cones
Before You Start:
- Explain and/or demonstrate that players must stand at least two feet away from the cones and center dividing line.
- Explain that the ball must stay below head level and that hands are not allowed to touch the ball.
- Create two groups of players using their favorite soccer teams (such as Real Madrid and Barcelona) or another team name.
- Each team receives a soccer ball. Choose a volunteer from each team.
- Create a start signal, such as a magic word, whistle blow or first kick.
Set Up:
Use a large play space, such as a basketball court or small soccer field. Divide the play area in half, into two courts. Place five cones equally scattered around each side of the court.
How to Play:
- The goal of the game is to knockdown all the cones in the opposite court during an allotted amount of time using soccer skills.
- If a team knocks down all the cones, play resets.
- The ball can be hit with feet, chest, or head, but not hands or other illegal soccer moves.
- If a player touches the ball with their hand, pause the game and let one player from the other team take a free shot at one of their cones (a penalty kick). Alternatively, you can assign that player as the ball retriever when balls leave the play area.
- Players must stay at least two feet behind the center dividing line on their side of the court.
Variations:
- Add more cones. Playing with twenty plus cones on each side will make the game more exciting, especially for younger students.
- Add more soccer balls. It turns the game into a soccer style castle ball.
- With a smaller or younger group you can have just one team. They can kick and try and accurately hit the cones on the other side.
- Add hula hoops or different colored cones as markers where players can stand to kick the ball.
Love implementing Game of the Week? Playworks offers professional development programs that will teach your staff to use recess and playtime to improve health and support learning. Curious to learn more? Submit the Training Assessment form and a local Playworks representative will respond directly.
