First time coaching advice?

[badger_14 601]

Hi! Couldn't find anything quite like what I was looking for on the search engine, but I apologize in advance if this has been done to death in the past.

So I volunteered to help out with the local youth organization's Learn to Play program, and it's been going on a few weeks now. This is my first time coaching, basically, ever. So far I have a pretty solid rapport with the kids, and I'm getting the hang of wrangling everyone together, explaining, and demonstrating so everybody understands.

But since I'm not totally confident, and quite new, and because I want to be the best coach I can for the kids, I'm looking to see if anyone has any specific books, websites, videos, or plain advice for a new coach? I volunteer with both the younger (4 - 7 year olds) and older (8 - 10 year olds) groups.

So, tl;dr - help and advice, in whatever format, for a new coach/volunteer?

Thanks everyone.

[Chadd 916]

I'm guessing you're an assistant coach?

[Powerfibers 8]

I think the USA Hockey website has a lot of good info. The American Development Model manual (ADM) is a great place to start. There is a lot of good small ice stuff. Go to. Usahockey.com and then to COACHES and MATERIALS. Lots of skills and practice plan material there.

For advice I would focus on fun and skills through small ice games. Skating is the most important thing you can teach them. Use a lot of stations to get equal amounts of all three into each session.

Good luck, have fun with it.

[badger_14 601]

Chadd - Yes, assistant coach. I occasionally have to run a drill on my own if there's not enough volunteers on-ice.

Powerfibers - I think we are using the ADM, if not officially - but it's all small area drills, and cross-ice games. We usually have about six stations set up and the kids rotate through them, sometimes it's bracketed at the end with a full-ice game of tag or sharks-and-minnows. Thank you for the links.

[wrangler 157]

Some videos here: http://www.sportskool.com/sports/hockey

And you can also search youtube.

[Powerfibers 8]

I see you are in the US. If you have to be USA Hockey certified, Level 1 to be on the ice, you will get a lot of the materials at the clinic, and the online certification for the 8u will give you an awfully good idea of how to implement skills at a practice.

When I first started helping out, I watched a lot of other guys and opted how they set up an effective practice. Most youth coaches do the same drills, so sometimes it is easier to watch and learn from off ice.

Encourage the head coaches to do skating work and listen in for key terms and concepts. I am a big proponent of fun on the ice, BUT I don't think that by just being on the ice that the kids will stumble upon good edge work. I can tell now after about 5 years off coaching, which teams and organizations emphasize good skating and which ones throw pucks down and say have at it boys! Perfect example is my nephew who played house in the local town program. I would watch his gAmes and see no one skate backwards. He switched over to a different organization, and he is dramatically different in a year. He uses his edges a lot better and looks like he could move to AA travel soon if he wanted to do it.

PM me, and I might have some materials for you.

[Chadd 916]

Chadd - Yes, assistant coach. I occasionally have to run a drill on my own if there's not enough volunteers on-ice.

Powerfibers - I think we are using the ADM, if not officially - but it's all small area drills, and cross-ice games. We usually have about six stations set up and the kids rotate through them, sometimes it's bracketed at the end with a full-ice game of tag or sharks-and-minnows. Thank you for the links.

The biggest thing as an assistant is to make sure you understand what the head coach wants. Going over the practice plan before practice is always a good idea. Also, make sure you don't turn your back to the kid while explaining something. I wish I had a dollar for every time I've seen that happen.

[Powerfibers 8]

You'd be rich!

I just thought of two more things after Chadd posted that. 1. Establish a routine for when you model a station or skill for the team. Take one knee is what we do, and simple as it sounds, we demand that everyone is doing it and watching or else we don't start. It matters. 2. Make sure you always thoroughly model what you want them to do. I do, we do, you do is what your fifth grade teacher would call it. Don't expect they get it until you show them repeatedly and correct their faults. Practice makes permanent, so be careful to establish perfect practice.

[badger_14 601]

Sometimes it's a little confusing because there are multiple volunteers on the ice, and sometimes they move around so there might be like, 4 adults at one station and 1 at another. I think I have gotten a good sense of routine and how to adapt to the different ages/attention spans of the kids. With the younger group, often one of the adults goes through the drill alongside a kid. I like to think I'm pretty patient, though I know I am less confident addressing groups and more confident working with 1 or 2 kids.

The organization works with a private hockey training outfit, and their coaches help run the practices, and they have been very helpful. Most of their drills are for developing skating skills I try to use what I remember from coaches I've had and apply it to the way I explain things to the kids. One of the hardest things seems to be just confidence, and that I'm younger than most of the adults and not a parent, so even when I'm put in charge of a drill some of them don't listen to me, or tell the kids (their kids) to do something differently. But, this is something to learn from. For example, I am okay with the kids doing it slowly and accurately before they try and do it at top speed, whereas some volunteers encourage the kids to do it as fast as they can from the first time out. So it's difficult to speak up to a parent/volunteer who's been in hockey longer and say 'we should do [x]'.

I suggested a drill to the head coach, one I did at a hockey camp, that I thought would be fun and I remember being good for balance and edgework, and was told I'll be running it next week, so we'll see how that works out.

I don't know if the adult volunteers have to be certified for the Learn to Play. I wasn't explicitly told this, although I will probably attend a Level 1 clinic anyway, just in case I do need it at some point, and for the materials. What does a clinic cover, in general? (it always surprised me there doesn't seem to be any on-ice component at the coaching clinics).

[Powerfibers 8]

It sounds like you are off to a good start and have reasonable expectations.

The clinics cover small ice, the long term development ideas, etc... You can download the manuals at usahockey.com.

Yeah, I am surprised there was not a mandatory on ice component. I think everyone should have at least minimal on ice training to coach. We did have it when I did Level 1 a while back, and I was amazed how bad some of the skating was among coaches.

[goblue9280 33]

I don't know if the adult volunteers have to be certified for the Learn to Play. I wasn't explicitly told this, although I will probably attend a Level 1 clinic anyway, just in case I do need it at some point, and for the materials. What does a clinic cover, in general? (it always surprised me there doesn't seem to be any on-ice component at the coaching clinics).

I took the level 1 this year. It was an all day affair. The majority of it was going over the big picture stuff. Keeping things fun, being patient, handling parents, dealing with injuries etc. Then they did an hour on-ice small area game practice to show us how USAH want us running ADM practices... it was essentially 6 small area games. As was said, they gave out some great material with specifics on drills and practice plans, as well as how to teach specific skills. Additionally (something new starting this year), in order to complete your level 1 (and other levels) you have to take an online age-specific module... in your case you'd take the 8U course. Here's the link to where you can search for local coaching clinics: http://www.usahockey.com/viewallclinics.aspx

[Jason Harris 31]

If you realize that the only reason kids will want to come back is because they had fun, it actually becomes easier to lead them. I had a couple of parents help me over the years that would be too gung-ho initially, somewhat sternly yelling at the kids, but many of the kids at a Learn To Play Hockey program are split into too groups -- a) very young or b) less aggressive athletes. Most of them aren't the type that respond to being treated like high school athletes, so, as a coach, all you need to be concerned with is protecting their safety and making sure they're giving you attention when you need them to listen. Other than that, let 'em have fun.

Because I have a loud voice and never was worried about being heard, one thing I learned almost accidentally last year that helps is to ask them to take a knee when you're explaining something to them. You get a lot more attention than when they're thirty feet away and trying to talk to their friends. I wish I had stumbled upon that earlier.