Week 3 · U4
Heads-up games
Objectives — what the players will do
- 1Peek up while dribbling to see the coach’s signal
- 2Shout out the number or color the coach shows without losing the ball
- 3Look up first, then dribble where they want to go
Play 1 — starts when the second player arrives
Follow the Leader
You lead a dribbling parade around the field — silly walks, sudden turns, dramatic freezes — and everyone copies with their ball. They can only copy what they SEE, so eyes drift up all on their own. Let kids take turns leading.
Practice — the one taught activity of the night
Magic Numbers
Everyone dribbles in a big space. Every few seconds, hold up fingers or a colored cone and shout "MAGIC!" — kids peek up and yell the number or color while keeping their ball. Wander around so they have to find you first. Gasp in amazement every time they get it right, which is always.
Freeze the ball with a foot on top first, THEN look up and shout the answer.
Point at a corner or a cone color and kids dribble TO it — look up, then go, without losing the ball.
Play 2 — always finish playing the real game
Periscope Game
Play a real 4v4 game. Celebrate any child who looks up before they dribble or kick — "great peek!" is tonight’s magic phrase. Sneak in one mid-game MAGIC number for the giggle.
Key coaching points — in your own words
- ·Peek up! What number am I holding?
- ·Eyes up like a periscope!
- ·Look… then go!
- ·You saw it AND kept your ball — magic!
Show signals mid-dribble and from further away, so the peek happens while the ball is moving.
Stand close, hold signals longer, and let them stop the ball before every peek.
Game-day focus — watch for this on Saturday
4v4 diamond, everyone attacks and defends — rotate everyone, and cheer every heads-up peek; the score takes care of itself.
Message to forward to your parents
This week we dribbled with our eyes up, spotting secret numbers and colors. While they dribble at home, hold up fingers and have them shout the number — it’s magic practice!
This week's two videos
Every session is Play-Practice-Play: kids play from the moment they arrive, you teach ONE thing in the middle, then they play again. Watch the prep video the night before — the activity video is that middle PRACTICE part.
10 Best U6 Soccer Drills | Fun Soccer Drills by MOJO
Watch the night before to understand the idea
If your 4v4 group skews young or has first-year players, this is the simplification library. Take any game here and add a goal at the end so every activity finishes with a strike. Good bank for Ignite arrival activities all month.
For U4: Pick the two most eyes-up games from the menu and repeat them all night — repetition is mastery at U4.
Watch on YouTubeSoccerCoachTV - Try this Fun Pre-Warm Up Game.
Your PRACTICE part — the one thing you teach mid-session
A simple arrival game that gets kids moving and laughing the moment they step on the field. Steal it as your welcome-back activity in Weeks 1–2 — it solves the drifting-start problem every pre-season session has. Add a ball per player to turn it into bonus touches.
For U4: Run as the arrival game with parents joining; add a ball per child for bonus touches.
Watch on YouTube