Your Football Plan
Design a personalized football practice plan: choose drills, create a weekly schedule, draw simple plays on a field diagram, and track progress.
About this activity
Design a personalized football practice plan: choose drills, create a weekly schedule, draw simple plays on a field diagram, and track progress.
What you need
Step by step
- 1
Step 1
Gather all the Materials Needed.
- 2
Step 2
Write your top three football goals at the top of a fresh sheet of paper.
- 3
Step 3
Brainstorm six different drills and write each drill on its own sticky note or index card.
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Step 4
Pick three drill cards to focus on this week and set them aside.
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Step 5
Draw a weekly schedule grid with seven boxes for each day on a new page using your ruler.
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Step 6
Place one or two drill cards into each day’s box on your schedule.
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Step 7
Write the time or number of reps next to each drill on the schedule.
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Step 8
Draw a simple football field diagram on a fresh page using your ruler.
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Step 9
Sketch two simple plays on the field diagram using O for teammates X for defenders and arrows for movement.
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Step 10
Give each play a short title and write which player positions do each movement.
- 11
Step 11
Make a progress tracker table in your notebook with columns for date drill and result.
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Step 12
After each practice time one drill and write the result in your tracker.
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Step 13
At the end of the week circle one thing you improved and write one goal for next week.
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Step 14
Put your finished plan plays and tracker into your folder to keep them together.
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Step 15
Share your finished creation on DIY.org.
Fun facts
How do I create a personalized football practice plan with my child?
Begin by setting clear goals (e.g., passing accuracy, speed, teamwork). Choose 3–5 age-appropriate drills for each session: warm-up, skill practice, conditioning, and a short scrimmage. Build a weekly schedule with 2–5 short practices, alternating focus and rest days. On a field diagram, draw simple plays using Xs and Os and arrows for movement. Track progress with a notebook or spreadsheet, recording drill completion, times, and notes to adjust the plan weekly.
What materials do we need to design a football practice plan at home?
Gather a printable field diagram or large paper, pens or markers, clipboard or notebook, and a football (age-appropriate size). Add cones, a stopwatch or timer, pinnies or colored bands, and a whiteboard for drawing plays. Optional items: agility ladder, portable goal or targets, cones, and a simple spreadsheet or tracking app to log progress. Always have water, sunscreen, and a basic first-aid kit on hand.
What ages is 'Your Football Plan' suitable for?
This activity works for ages 5–18 with adjustments. Ages 5–7: focus on basic motor skills, simple passing/catching, short 15–20 minute sessions with more play. Ages 8–11: introduce position basics, running routes, 30–45 minute practices and simple plays. Ages 12–18: full drills, strategy, longer practices, and tracked metrics. Always supervise younger children, match drills to ability, and prioritize safety over competitiveness.
What safety tips and variations should I consider for the football practice plan?
Safety: start each session with dynamic warm-ups, enforce proper tackling/catching technique (age-appropriate), require cleats if on grass, provide helmets and pads for contact drills, keep water breaks, and monitor weather. Teach boundaries and buddy checks. Variations: solo skill days, small-sided games, position-specific weeks, indoor chalk-field diagrams, family-friendly mini-camps, or using foam balls for younger kids. Track progress with stickers, charts, or apps to keep motivation high.
Watch & Learn
Need help?
I don't have sticky notes or index cards — what can we use instead?
If you don't have sticky notes or index cards, cut a sheet of paper into six strips or fold paper into six small cards and label each one to use when you brainstorm six different drills.
My child can't fit two drill cards into a day's box on the weekly grid — how can we fix that?
If two drill cards don't fit in a day's box on your weekly schedule grid, write the drill's card number and the time or number of reps in the box and keep the full cards beside the schedule as the instructions advise placing one or two drill cards into each day’s box.
How can we adapt this activity for a 5-year-old and a 13-year-old?
For a 5-year-old, limit to three simple drills, use a pre-drawn weekly grid and stickers for the progress tracker, and for a 13-year-old, expand the field diagram with detailed plays and track additional metrics (reps, time, results) in the progress tracker table.
How can we enhance or personalize the finished plan before sharing it on DIY.org?
To enhance the plan before putting it in your folder and sharing on DIY.org, color-code drill cards, add player photos or short video clips of each drill, and create a custom playbook cover with play titles and player positions noted on the field diagram.