Soccer academy teaches the tots

By TOM BONE
Bluefield Daily Telegraph

May 10, 2008 08:53 pm

— EAST RIVER — Sooner or later, children learn the pressure of games where a team wins or loses. At the age of 4 or 5, learning basic techniques while having fun is the important focus.
That’s the theory behind a young children’s soccer program that finished on Saturday afternoon at the East River Soccer Complex.
Under brilliant sunshine, parents and some grandparents watched 33 little ones playing skill-developing games under the direction of Concord University women’s soccer players and head coach Steve Barrett, who directed the East River Soccer Academy offering.
All the participating children wore T-shirts with a big numeral 1 on the back and the slogan “I’ve Got Goals” on the front.
“We’ve taken out the competition, the keeping score, the winning,” Barrett said. In the course of the eight “U-5 Academy” sessions, he said, they learned games with names like “Sharks” and “What Time Is It Mr. Wolf?”.
“These skills are related to playing the game (of soccer),” Barrett said. “They have fun. They may not realize what they’ve been doing, but they’ve gotten training in the fundamentals of the sport.
“We want the children to learn the very basics, so they can take that away and work at it on their own.” He said the 4-5-year-old group is at “a critical age” for learning.
At the same time, the adults have learned soccer-training tips, the coach said. “They’ve got the knowledge to help,” he said. “We want to coach the coaches.” During the Saturday sessions, he said, the adults “just show up, sit back and watch them play.”
During the afternoons, they were given sheets that described the activities and outcomes.
Phoebe Meadows, an area principal who was watching her granddaughter Riley Dempsey, said, “From an educator’s perspective, I think they’ve got it going on.”
She added, “I think that’s wonderful at this age because they’re focused on learning and not on winning.”
Monty and Beth Matthews of Bluefield enrolled their son William, 5. Monty Matthews said the academy’s approach “will teach them a lot more. They’ve brought it down to their level ... to make it fun and a good experience for them.”
Beth Matthews said their son has “loved” the experience. “He’s been excited, every Saturday, to come out here.”
Rachel Lester of Kellysville was watching her son Bryce, who turns 5 years old this week. “He loves it,” she said. “He’s very entertained — and very attentive to whatever they tell him to do.”
Connie Surface was keeping an eye on granddaughter Bryce Morgan Winfrey, 5, of Princeton. “They’ve improved so much,” Surface said. “I think it’s a wonderful opportunity, (both) socially and physically. The patience of the coaches is remarkable.”
The little girl “practices every evening,” Surface added. “That’s practically all she talks about, is soccer.”
She said it has also taught her grandchild about responsibility. “Every week she’s had to get her soccer clothes together, her water bottle, everything.”
The college students doing the coaching “have been really great, working with them,” Lester said. Surface said, “The patience of the coaches is remarkable.”
Barrett agreed during a rare break on the sideline. “It’s a challenge to work with a group this age,” he said while watching the nonstop action. “But it’s great.”
— Contact Tom Bone at
tbone@bdtonline.com

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