I have now completed a full week of coaching with World Cup Soccer Camps. It has been a lot of fun. I have really enjoyed it. I have learned a lot though. When you coach young children soccer, you are less coaching and more being child care. The number one thing that I think I understand now is this: you are not trying to teach kids to be amazing soccer players at this age. If you do they will become uninterested, and burnt out. The only thing at this age you have to do is keep them interested. If the kids are willing to come back, and keep playing. There will be plenty of time to develop and improve when they get older.
Another thing that I learnt is that you have to show off. As ridiculous as that sounds it is true. When you play with the children, sometimes you have to do tricks and run around with them. Obviously don't try and smash the ball and score or anything, but make them look up to you. I remember when I was younger and I was coached by some really good players, who would play in the scrimmages with us. Having a coach playing who is amazing and is doing cool tricks, and easily beating all of the other players is good to have. It makes the kids strive to do their best. They all want to beat the coach. To be like the coach. And at that age having a coach that they want to be like is probably not a bad thing.
Those are some of the things that I learnt in my first real coaching environment. Hopefully I will be able to take those things into my next job, and even build on those skills more.
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