The best exercises for minibasketball
At what age can children start training in basketball and what is minibasketball? We answer the essential questions about basketball training for kids and present you with a selection of the best exercises for improving fitness, ball handling, shooting and much more.
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- At what age can a child start training in basketball?
- What are the goals of training children in minibasketball
- What size balloon for children?
- What are the rules of the game in minibasketball?
- What outfit to wear for basketball training?
Basketball training for children: physical preparation
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- Endurance
- The power
- Speed
Basketball Training Drills for Kids
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- Steps: the pivot foot
- Dribbling technique
- Passing and receiving the ball
- To throw it
- Game ideas for mini basketball
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Answers to the main questions about basketball training for children
At what age can a child start training in basketball?
Between 5 and 6 years old, children have reached a stage of biological and motor development sufficient to begin basketball training. As children grow, it is especially important to avoid one-sided body overloads. The term MiniBasket is used according to the French BasketBall Federation for young people aged 6 to 12 years old.
What are the objectives of training children in minibasketball?
The main objective of minibasketball is to train and develop children’s motor, physical and social skills. The game of basketball should be learned in a child-friendly way. Thus, implicit learning, through trial and error, is better than explicit learning, in which children are trained according to clear guidelines.
Technical and tactical training should only be included in the training program after the age of 10. It is important that as a coach you do not congratulate the children for their victory, but for their individual game actions. This allows them to be more motivated and focus on learning how to handle the ball correctly.
What size balloon for children?
There are different ball sizes for children’s and youth basketball training
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- Ball size 3 and 4: minibasketball up to 8 years old
- Ball size 5: minibasket for up to 10 years
It is especially important that each child has a ball so that they can work on their technique individually.
What are the rules of the game in minibasketball?
The rules of the game in mini basketball are simplified, and therefore more suitable for children, than those of classic basketball. You will find an overview of the rules of the minibasket game on the website of the French Basketball Federation .
What outfit to wear for basketball training?
- B1 KIDS CHILDREN’S BASKETBALL JERSEYS
- LONG-SLEEVED OVERSHIRTS FOR CHILDREN FL1 KIDS
- BP1 KIDS CHILDREN’S BASKETBALL SHORTS
Basketball training for children: physical preparation
Endurance
Young children feel a great need to move, so it is quite easy to train their endurance. Running games are ideal for endurance training, such as “6 day running”.
Example: “the 6-day race” – rules of the game:
Install several benches in the star-shaped room (depending on the number of teams). Leave enough space around the benches. Now form teams. All members of a team must sit on a bench. A captain is appointed, who counts the laps.
The children must now run, one after the other, as many laps as possible around the benches, in a given time (around 10 to 15 minutes). The team having completed the greatest number of laps wins. You can make the 6 Day Race a pure running game, or have the kids dribble a basketball while running.
The power
Working on power is also an integral part of the fun training of young basketball players under 11 years old. With older children, you can also do more classic bodybuilding exercises. Here is a selection of particularly suitable exercises:
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- leg raises on a mat
- sitting on a small mat or towel, children stretch their legs upwards and must raise their torso by pulling their arms forward
- leg raises on a mat
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- push-ups
- fun variation: two players in a push-up position try to push each other’s hands away.
- push-ups
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- sit-ups or crunches
- fun variation: children throw the ball against the wall in a seated position.
- squats
- high jumps
- sit-ups or crunches
Speed
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- 10 to 15 children position themselves in a circle, legs apart.
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- one child takes the role of the cat, another that of the mouse.
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- the mouse tries to escape from the cat which is chasing it. To take shelter, the mouse can enter a mouse hole, that is to say, crawl between the legs of one of the children making up the circle.
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- if the mouse succeeds, the child who served as a mousehole becomes the new cat, the old cat becomes the new mouse, and the old mouse becomes a mousehole.
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- The game should last between 10 and 15 minutes.
- If your group includes many more children, it is then advisable to form two circles and not start with two cats and two mice, which can quickly lead to some confusion.
Basketball Training Drills for Kids
Steps: the pivot foot
The pivot step is an essential element in basketball. This is one of the basic techniques that every basketball player must master, in which the stepping movement is performed around the supporting leg:
Dribbling technique
No dribbling, no basketball. This is why it is particularly important for children to learn how to dribble from an early age. Several exercises are possible to train ball handling and dribbling, for example
- quick change of hand in front of you
- Dribbling with two balls
- dribbling in figure eight movements
You will find on this site a multitude of ideas for exercises for dribbling work.
Passing and receiving the ball
In addition to dribbling, passing and receiving are among the fundamental techniques in basketball. It is therefore appropriate to work on the reactivity of players as soon as they learn mini-basketball. An exercise particularly suitable for minibasketball training is, for example, the pass in the central circle with two players. The World Association of Basketball Coaches website offers several types of ball passing training exercises.
To throw it
The goal of a basketball game is always to score as many baskets as possible. This is why your minibasketball team should start practicing throwing from a young age.
Game ideas for mini basketball
Learn basketball in a fun way – the best way to do this is through games suitable for children. You can use several game forms for warming up and practicing your team’s different skills. The following three game forms, taken from the document Introduction to the game of mini-basketball from the German BasketBall Federation (site in German), are ideal for fun and varied mini-basketball training.
1. Warming up: the clothespin game
The clothespin game is ideal for warming up and getting in the mood, from the start of training.
Here’s how the game works:
Form two groups of children. One group hangs clothespins on the front of their jerseys, the other group is the “catchers” group. The clothespin group stands behind the baseline. The children have their arms behind their backs. The group of “catchers” stands in the middle of the field. The aim of the game is for the children in the “catchers” group to catch as many clothespins as possible.
2. Training focused on passing: the numbers game
The numbers game is a fun game that allows you to practice passing the ball. It is used to prevent injuries caused by uncontrolled passing, while training players’ communication skills.
How does the game work ?
- variation 1: the passer faces the receivers. Passes are made in a certain order (1, 2, 3, 4, 5). The ferryman calls a number. The receiver with this number must answer “ball”
- variation 2: after a successful pass, the passer must run to the line on the opposite side of the field
- variation 3: the passer can refuse the ball by crossing his arms over his chest. The smuggler must then quickly call another number
- variation 4: this game is played on the entire basketball court. The goal of each team is to bring the ball to the baseline, without dribbling.
3. Match type exercise: basketball game in 3 camps
With the 3-camp basketball game, kids can learn the rules of basketball while having fun.
Here’s how the game works:
Divide the basketball court into three zones. Use markers or cones to do this.
Divide the children as follows:
- camp 1: 1 defender and 2 attackers
- camp 2: 3 players from each team
- camp 3: 1 defender and 2 attackers
- players are not allowed to leave their camp
- dribbling is not allowed in camp no. 1
- long passes are not allowed between camp no. 1 and camp no. 2
- only after two successful passes to the middle camp can the ball be passed to an attacking camp.
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