Coaching tools › Activities › Dribbling and 1v1
Free activity · Intramural curriculum, ages 4–8Sharks & Minnows
The coach starts as the shark in the middle. Minnows dribble from one end line to the other while the shark tries to knock balls out; lose your ball and you become a shark too. The last minnow standing wins, and every island trick gets used.
Setup
The coach is the shark and starts in the middle. Minnows line up on one end line, each with a ball. On GO they dribble to the other end line while the shark tries to knock balls out of the grid. Lose your ball and you become a shark too. Safe minnows wait for the next round, then swim back. The last minnow standing wins.
- Keep the ball close.
- Dribble into open space.
Make it easier or harder
- Easier: Minnows who lose their ball fetch it and keep swimming.
- Harder: Start the round with a player as the shark.
Coach’s notes
- If It's Chaos: Minnows booting the ball across and chasing it? Rule: the ball stays close enough to pet.
- Coach Tip: Remind them of their island tricks to escape a shark: drag back, cuts, step over, scissor.
Why it works
Every coach knows Sharks and Minnows; what makes this version work is where it sits. It is week eight of the Pre-K season, so the minnows arrive with eight weeks of island tricks to escape with: drag back, cuts, step over, scissor.
The rule that the ball stays close enough to pet is the one that keeps it a dribbling game instead of a kick-and-chase game.
Where it sits
This activity is from Pre-K · Week 8 · Sharks & Minnows in the Full Season Intramural Curriculum for Pre-K to 2nd grade. Every session in the book has the same shape: arrival play, Soccer Island, two or three activities and the game, with two coaching points a day, an easier and a harder version of everything, and a fix for when it turns to chaos.
More like this
Ages 4–6 · Dribbling and 1v1Soccer IslandEveryone dribbles inside the island while the sharks wait in the water outside the cones to steal any ball that floats away.
Open the activity ›
Ages 4–6 · Dribbling and 1v1Space ManPlayers dribble anywhere in the grid and freeze with a foot on the ball when you shout.
Open the activity ›
Ages 4–6 · Dribbling and 1v13 SpeedsTurtle, dog, cheetah. Players dribble around while you call out speeds, switching often.
Open the activity ›Four grades, eight weeks each, every activity on video
The Full Season Intramural Curriculum covers Pre-K, Kindergarten, 1st and 2nd grade: one page per session, nothing to memorize, built so a professional trainer and a parent who volunteered last week run the same quality session. 112 animated videos included.