About Our Classes:
Our classes are either 60, 75, or 90 minutes. The first half of class: Skills and fun game. Next 10 minutes: 1v1. Rest of class time: Soccer match. We divide kids into groups of 6-10 by age and level per coach. Kids 4-5 often have an assistant as needed.
The classes are run by our coaches who are all trained to coach young players of all levels. But for emergencies, the same coach(es) will be at the same location for the season, often for years. We strive for consistency in coaches. All our coaches follow the same curriculum per season so all locations run the same program for the same level per season. The curriculum changes from season to season.
About Our Camps:
Camp location varies and will be provided as soon as we secure the fields. Our Palo Alto YDP camps are often at Cubberly Field (park by 4000 Nelson Drive, Palo Alto) and the City of Los Altos Camps at Heritage Oaks Park, 1300 McKenzie Avenue, Los Altos. Coach Ken Soccer Camps in Mountain View/Los Altos area will be held in various locations depending on field availability.
Requirements:
1. All kids must register for camp. For our YDP Palo Alto Soccer Club camps, sign up is through BYGA, for Coach Ken Soccer camps in Palo Alto and in all other areas, sign up is through Activityhero. Sign up for the City of Los Altos.
ActivityHero:
https://www.activityhero.com/widgets/129/hosted?fbclid=IwAR39iI3WWCU_GNzhrs0ys_kqHQbdvHlFuVntoOfcsZssV2H_q_EIV73p1D4
BYGA:
https://pasoccerclub.org/camps
City of Los Altos:
https://secure.rec1.com/CA/LosAltosRecreation/catalog
2. It’s mandatory for all players to wear shin guards and closed-toe athletic shoes or cleats; bring enough water/drink and snacks for all kids. Due to allergy concerns, we do not allow kids to share drinks and snacks/food. Please remind us if your child has any allergies during sign-up. Sunscreen is recommended.
All players must be signed up prior to attending camp. The latest rosters will be printed on the morning of the camp. Players signed for just a few days can choose whichever day works for them to attend. You can also upgrade to do more days by paying the difference. Let the camp Site Leader know if you want to add day(s).
Camp Structure:
Players are placed in groups based on their age and skill level. Each group has 6-10 players. Kids 4-5 years play soccer from 9 am -11 am. Their snack break is 11:00-11:30 am. They then have supervised activities, like playing at the play structures or coloring until 1 pm. Any 4-5 year old who opts to play soccer will be allowed to, but it has to be THEIR decision. We do not want kids 4-5 years old to hate soccer because we push them to play longer than necessary considering their age. We would rather a kid loves soccer and plays for the rest of their life instead of forcing them to play 90 more minutes which would make them hate it and maybe never play it again.
Kids over 6 years, 9 am – 11 am is spent on warm-up, review of previous day lesson, agility for soccer-specific movement, speed, and coordination, followed by the lesson of the day. We focus on different skills each day, for example dribbling, fakes and moves, passing, shooting, shielding, and defending. The coaches will make sure each kid gets one on one attention and is helped to learn the skills. We use fun games to reinforce the skills, to ensure kids can apply them in real soccer situations. 11-11:30 is snack/lunch break.
After snack/lunch break for kids over 6, we do 1 on 1 until about 12:00. For older kids especially, we also do 2 on 1, 2 on 2, and numbers up and down possession games. We finish the morning soccer session with scrimmages/matches. Unless we do not have more than 8 kids per age group, all age levels are broken down further by age, size, and ability so that each kid plays with and among kids their size and level. Water breaks are given throughout the session depending on the intensity of the exercises and the weather.
Camps Schedule:
(Morning)
8:30 – 9 am: Setup & sign-in
Ages 4-5
9 am – 10:15: Skills & fun games
10:15 am – 10:30 am: 1v1 (less 1v1 and/or match for younger 4’s, if needed)
10:30 am – 11:00 Soccer match.
11:00 am – 11:30 am: Snack and bathroom break
11.30 am – 1:00 pm: Play structures and coloring
Ages 6-15
9:00 am – 10:30 am: Skills & fun games
10:30 am – 11:00 am: 1v1
11:00 am – 11:30 am: Snack and bathroom break
11:30 am – 12:00 pm: 1v1
12:00 pm – 12:10 pm: Keep away, passing with coach as neutral, no goals
12:10 pm – 1:00 pm: Soccer match
(Afternoon)
1:00 pm – 1:30 pm: Setup & sign-in
Ages 4-5
(Extended rest/lunch til 2:00 pm, if desired by player)
1:30 pm – 2:45 pm: Skills & fun games
2:45 pm – 3:00 pm: 1v1 (less 1v1 and/or match for younger 4’s, if needed)
3:00 pm – 3:30 pm: Soccer match
3:30 pm – 4:00 pm: Snack and bathroom break
4:00 pm – 5:30 pm: Play structures and coloring
Ages 6-15
1:30 pm – 3:00 pm: Skills & fun games
3:00 pm – 3:30 pm: 1v1
3:30 pm – 4:00 pm: Snack break and bathroom break
4:00 pm – 4:15 pm: Keep away, passing with coach as neutral, no goals
4:15 pm – 5:30 pm: Soccer matches (Players are divided into groups of 6-10 per coach by age and level. Ages 4-5 often have an assistant coach as well.)
Safety:
We have at least one coach for every 12 kids; this is to ensure kids get ample attention from our experienced coaches. Every camp will mostly have at least 1 male and 1 female coach, and a same-gender coach will generally take the kids to bathroom breaks. Coaches ensure there is nobody else in the bathroom before any kid goes in. They (coaches) wait outside the door. All our coaches have been fingerprinted and cleared to work with kids.
If you have questions, email me at coachkensocceracademy@gmail.com.