Week 3 · U10
Scanning & awareness
Objectives — what the players will do
- 1Check over the shoulder before the ball arrives
- 2Take a picture of the field — where is the space, where is the pressure?
- 3Use what they saw to decide faster: turn, pass, or keep
Play 1 — starts when the second player arrives
Scan Keep-Away (4v2)
Keep-away with one new rule: check over your shoulder before the ball reaches you, or the pass does not count. Coaches wander behind players holding up fingers — anyone who can shout the number clearly scanned. About 10-15 minutes.
Practice — the one taught activity of the night
Receive and Decide
Groups of three: a passer, a receiver in the middle with their back to a cone gate, and a helper behind the gate. Before every pass, the receiver checks over their shoulder; the helper stands to one side of the gate (or holds up fingers). The receiver must use what they saw — turn through the OPEN side of the gate and dribble away, or play back to the passer if the helper closed the space. Ten reps, rotate roles. Progress: swap the helper for a live defender who starts anywhere — now the scan decides everything: far away, turn; tight, play back. Roughly 25-30 minutes.
No defender and slower passes — just groove look-then-receive until the shoulder check is automatic.
Live defender, two-touch limit, and ask the receiver to call the finger-count while the ball is still traveling.
Play 2 — always finish playing the real game
4v4 Awareness Game
Normal small-sided game, but the coach watches heads, not feet: any goal where the scorer or the assist-passer clearly checked their shoulder before receiving counts double. Shout "seen it!" every time you catch a good scan — the heads start swiveling everywhere. Last 20-25 minutes.
Key coaching points — in your own words
- ·What did you see when you checked your shoulder?
- ·Can you take your picture before the ball arrives, not after?
- ·Did the look change your decision — turn, pass, or keep?
- ·See it, solve it, show it — scan while the ball is still traveling.
Mandatory scanning — no shoulder check, no point — and add defenders so the look really matters.
Fewer defenders and slower passes, and celebrate every visible shoulder check even when the touch goes wrong.
Game-day focus — watch for this on Saturday
Watch heads, not feet. Before every goal kick, throw-in, and pass, look for the shoulder check — especially from the three midfielders, who receive with the game on every side of them. Name the best scanner in the halftime huddle.
Message to forward to your parents
This week was scanning — checking over the shoulder before the ball arrives. It is the most important thinking skill in soccer, and it can be practiced anywhere. Great car-ride question: "What did you see before the ball came to you?"
This week's two videos
Prep the night before; copy the activity on the field.
How to Coach: Scanning
Watch the night before to understand the idea
The clearest five minutes you will find on how to actually coach scanning — when to cue it, what to say, and how to build it into a simple practice. Watch before Week 1 and lift the trigger language straight into your sessions: scan as the ball travels, not after it arrives. This is the See it, Solve it, Show it mantra made practical.
Watch on YouTubeScanning Drill For Teams | Check Your Shoulder | Scan Drill | Football/Soccer
A drill you can copy on the field
A two-minute team scan drill you can copy directly — players must check their shoulder and react to what is behind them before receiving. Drop it into the Challenge week as a sharp warm-up before the build-out games. Short enough to show players on your phone before the session.
Watch on YouTube