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Free practice plan · Ages 6–7 · 1st gradeA U7 1v1 practice plan:
Make the Defender Move
The first real defender. Sixty minutes, eight to twelve players, and two coaching points: fake out the defender, then go to the open space. It starts with a line neither player can cross, so a first-grader can try a move again and again without losing the ball to a lunge, and it ends with a 4v4 game on four goals. Every activity here is free on this site, with its own page and an animated video.
- Fake out the defender.
- Keep the ball close, then go to the open space.
Bring: 1 ball per player, 30 cones, 4 to 8 pug or cone goals, pinnies in 2 colors.
Your job: Praise every attempt at a move, even the ones that fail.
The session, minute by minute
Small-sided games
ArrivalAs players arrive, send them straight into 2v2 or 3v3 on two small fields with cone goals. No lines, no laps, no lecture. Ball goes out? Roll a new one in and keep it moving. Brand-new group? Swap this for free play on the island, every player with a ball.
Soccer Island: Space Man
Every weekEveryone dribbles inside the island while sharks wait in the water outside the cones to steal any ball that floats away. New today: Players dribble anywhere in the grid. When you yell FREEZE, everyone stops with a foot on the ball. Whoever is in the most space wins 100 points.
EasierNo ball: run, freeze, find space.
HarderBonus points for first foot on the ball.
If it stallsAll in one clump? Freeze more often and point to the open space.
1v1 to Cones
PracticePairs face each other across a line neither can cross, a cone at each end. The attacker scores by stopping the ball next to either cone; the defender blocks with a foot in front of it. Lose control and swap roles.
HarderMove the two cones closer together.
If it stallsPairs drifting together? Give each pair its own lane.
Water break
WaterFour minutes.
1v1 Fields
PracticeBuild two small 1v1 fields side by side, each half the usual size, with pug goals or cone goals. On each field one line attacks and one line defends. Stand between the fields so you can see both games. Small fields mean short lines and lots of turns. The defender starts a few steps behind the attacker. Switch lines every 2 to 3 minutes.
EasierCoach plays defender, and a gentle one.
HarderAttacker and defender start side by side.
If it stallsLines getting long? Add a third field, or start the next pair the moment the ball is dead.
4v4 Four-Goal Game
The game4v4 with two mini goals at each end, so each team attacks two goals. If one goal is crowded, turn and go to the other. Head up to find the open one.
EasierMake the field wider.
HarderScore in one goal, then you must score in the other.
If it stallsEveryone at one goal? Freeze and point to the empty one.
The coach tip
In 1v1 to Cones, run ninety-second games and then find a new partner. The variety of defenders is where the move gets tested.
Questions coaches ask
Why can’t the defender cross the line in 1v1 to Cones?
A first-grader learning a move needs a defender who cannot tackle. The line does that, so the attacker can practice making the defender move first without losing the ball to a lunge.
What if the lines get long in 1v1 Fields?
Add a third field, or start the next pair the moment the ball is dead. Small fields mean short lines and lots of turns.
Why four goals in the game?
If one goal is crowded, turn and go to the other. It gets players’ heads up, because the open goal is only useful if they see it.
More free practice plans
Thirty-six sessions like this one, Pre-K to 2nd grade
The Full Season Intramural Curriculum is one page per session for four grades, eight weeks each, with an easier and a harder version of every activity, a fix for when it turns to chaos, and an animated video of all 112 activities. Built so a professional trainer and a parent who volunteered last week run the same session.