Flag football practice plan for 4 and 5 year olds (30 minutes)

🏈 Flag football · ages 4–5 · 30 minutes · 8 players · 4 balls

1. 0:005 min

   Warm-up Warm-up

   Jog on the spot, Arm circles, Skipping. About a minute each, easy first, then a little bigger.

2. 0:055 min

   Drill Flag grab

   X playerO partner or defender— run- - pass∿ dribble

   Set up. Everyone in flags inside a box of cones. Gear: a flag belt each, cones for a box.

   1. On go, pull as many flags as you can, holding each one up high and shouting 'flag!'.
   2. Give it straight back, the owner puts it on, and everyone keeps going.
   3. One minute, then a rest. Nobody is out, ever.
   4. Hands only go for flags: no pushing, no holding shirts.

   Say: “Eyes on the hips” · “Grab and shout” · “Hand it back”

   Easier: Walk it, and the box is bigger. Harder: Only your weaker hand can pull.

3. 0:105 min

   Drill Tuck and run

   Set up. Cones scattered round a box. Everyone with a ball. Gear: a ball each (any soft ball works), cones.

   1. Tuck the ball high and tight: hand over the front, ball against your side.
   2. Jog round the cones without dropping it.
   3. When the coach says 'switch', move the ball to the other arm.
   4. Freeze on 'stop' and show the coach your tuck.

   Say: “High and tight” · “Switch arms” · “Eyes up”

   Easier: Walk it, hugging the ball in two arms. Harder: Every time you pass a cone, switch arms.

4. 0:152 min

   Water Water break

   Everybody drinks, in the shade if there is some.

5. 0:174 min

   Drill Handoff exchange

   Set up. A quarterback at one cone; a runner three steps behind and to the side; the next runner waiting at a second cone. Gear: a ball a group, two cones a group. With your players that is 3 groups of about 3.

   1. The runner jogs past the quarterback, with the inside arm up and the outside arm low: a pocket.
   2. The quarterback puts the ball into the pocket, and the runner closes both arms on it.
   3. The runner jogs on to the far cone, then brings the ball back.
   4. Rotate: runner to quarterback, quarterback to the back.

   Say: “Make a pocket” · “Place, don't toss” · “Squeeze it”

   Easier: Walk the handoff, standing still to take it. Harder: Fake one way, then hand off the other way.

6. 0:216 min

   Game Keep your flags

   Set up. Everyone wears a flag belt inside a square of cones about fifteen big steps on each side. Gear: flag belts for everyone, cones for a small square.

   1. On go, everyone tries to pull other players' flags and keep their own.
   2. Pull a flag, drop it on the ground, and keep playing: nobody is ever out.
   3. A player with no flags left picks one up and puts it back on.
   4. Stop after a minute, count the flags each player pulled, and play again.

   Say: “Hands on flags” · “Dodge and turn” · “Flags, not shirts”

   Easier: Grown-ups wear the only flags, and the children chase them. Harder: Make the square smaller, so there is less room to dodge.

7. 0:273 min

   Cool-down Cool-down

   Reach for your toes, Butterfly. About a minute each, easy first, then a little bigger.

Every plan here has a water break, two in practices over an hour (our rule). On hot days the CDC says to drink more water than usual without waiting to be thirsty, to start slowly and build up, and to practice when it is cooler. cdc.gov: Heat and Athletes. Head knocks and concussion: read CDC HEADS UP, the CDC's page for coaches and parents. cdc.gov/heads-up