Coaching Childrens Workshop Series

This course has three mandatory attendance dates in order to receive your certificate.

1) Saturday 5th November 9am-4pm Ballyheane Community Centre

2) Thursday 10th November 7pm-10pm Online Zoom

3) Thursday 17th November 7pm-10pm Online Zoom

All too often in the past, programmes offered to children in sport are scaled down versions of adult activity. Coaching was conducted in the main without sufficient regard to the principles of child development. Children’s needs in sport are different to the needs of other populations; therefore the coaches of children need to be equipped with specific knowledge, skills and competencies to fulfil the needs of children.

Children want different things from their participation in sport and physical activity and require different approaches given their stage of development. The research suggests that if we get it right at this early stage, a higher proportion of them will be equipped with both movement skills and love of activity, to remain active into their adult years and lead a healthy lifestyle. The stakes are high!

Sport Ireland Coaching have developed 4 modules, specifically to provide candidates with a basic understanding of children’s sport and physical activity and best ways to optimise children’s enjoyment, participation and positive outcomes. The concepts of Physical Literacy and Holistic Development run throughout the series of workshops and will be covered in detail.

Sport Ireland Coaching sees these workshops as the first stage of development and hope we can build on these workshops to develop a comprehensive education system for all those involved in children’s sport.

Workshop 1:

Coaching Children Successfully in Sport – An Introduction for Coaches

Key Learning Outcomes

On attendance to the workshop, learners will be able to:

1. Gain a sound understanding of the first three phases of the LISPA framework (Active Start, FUNdamentals & Learning to Play & Practice)

2. Identify the key reasons why children take part in sport and why they drop out

3. Design simple approaches to promote participation and retention and decrease drop-out

4. Identify and discuss the key benefits of a holistic, multi-skills-based approach to coaching sport for children.

5. Develop a ‘Child-Proof Sport Checklist’ and personal action plan

Workshop 2:

Child-Centred Coaching – Understanding Child Development & Learning and its Impact on How We Coach

Key Learning Outcomes

On attendance to the workshop, learners will be able to:

1. Review concepts and learning from workshop 1 and the impact attendance had on their coaching practice.

2. Explore your coaching philosophy and values

3. Identify key milestones in human development from 0 to 18 using the SPEC model (Social; Physical; Emotional; Cognitive) and how these impact on coaching practice

4. Explain basic learning theories and apply them to the design of effective coaching sessions

5. Identify key coaching skills necessary to maximise children’s outcomes during sessions and self-evaluate against them

Workshop 3:

Developing Physical Literacy through Sport 1 – Coaching Children to Move

Key Learning Outcomes

On attendance to the workshop, learners will be able to:

1. Review concepts and learning from workshop 1& 2 and the impact attendance had on their coaching practice.

2. Identify the basic building blocks of safe and efficient movement (FUNdamentals of Movement) and deliver activities to develop them

3. Show how the FoM combine to produce basic FUNdamental Movement Skills (FMS)

4. Observe children moving and pinpoint basic movement flaws and take corrective action

Workshop 4:

Developing Physical Literacy through Sport 2 – Coaching Children to Think

Key Learning Outcomes

On attendance to the workshop, learners will be able to:

1. Review concepts and learning from workshop 1, 2 and 3 and the impact attendance had on their coaching practice.

2. Explain basic theories and methodologies of skill acquisition and apply them to their coaching sessions

3. Identify basic FUNdamental Game Skills (FGS) and apply a games-based approach to their coaching sessions

4. Design basic games to support the development of FGS

5. Deliver inclusive and differentiated sessions that cater for a wide range of abilities