Coaching

We are looking for qualified coaches for upcoming clinics and to help with various youth programs. We will be compensating coaches for their time and all coaches will have a demonstrated commitment to strong character and sportsmanship and will be chosen based on the following criteria:

• Must have or will get an active USA Ultimate Membership.
• Must agree to the USA Ultimate Coaching Code of Ethics.
• Completed Background check and SafeSport certification.
• Must agree to Coaching Code of Ethics and Spirit of Coaching.
• Must be available for virtual meetings in the months leading up to the season to discuss logistics and roles/responsibilities with the head coach and AYU Director of Operations.

APPLY TO BECOME AN AYU COACH

GUM Middle School Curriculum: a good resource for helping you plan out your 6 weeks, 12 sessions ‘season’…some players will be beginners, and others will have played a bit before on their MS team…you will have a variety of skill and ability.  This resource is designed for GIRLS teams but you will find some value looking it over for the boys too.

The Art of Coaching Youth Ultimate: eBook on how to coach youth ultimate from Elevate Ultimate.

How to Coach Kids: Resources and courses from Aspen Institute on how to coach youth

Way of Champions Podcast: Awesome podcast for building your coaching skills.

• Throwing and catching skills
• Rules  (Chapter 30 in Art of Coaching Youth Ultimate)

Defensive skills (Chapter 29 in Art of Coaching Youth Ultimate)

• • Positioning
  • Marking
  • Force – open-side and break-side

Offensive Skills

• Understanding of spacing 
  • Basic stack fundamentals (Chapter 25 in Art of Coaching Youth Ultimate)
  • Cutting
  • Handler Reset (Chapter 26 in Art of Coaching Youth Ultimate)

General Skills

• Improved physical literacy
• Give them a voice/develop confidence
• Build social skills

Spirit of the Game

• Focus on conflict resolution strategies.
• Taking responsibility for actions.

• Provide social opportunities.
• Create an environment that encourages children to
• Make decisions.
• Develop confidence.
• Develop concentration.
• Develop team spirit and relate to different groups.
• Teach children to enjoy the feeling of giving effort during an activity.
• Create an environment that leads to success to reduce dropout.
• Recognize that players will develop at different rates emotionally, cognitively, and physically.
• Create an environment where mistakes are okay and seen as part of learning.
• Create an environment where youth are supported for trying new skill or tactic even if it fails.
• Create opportunities for leadership.

* From Sam Callan’s Long-Term Athletic Development Guide

1. Establish a routine early in your season for your athletes. Whether this is a welcome and closing circle, or the same warm-up routine, or a fun call and response that gets all your athletes focused, make sure these are always built into your practice plan.
2. Include a warm-up, and not always a boring dynamic warm-up (we’ll give you more fun warm-up ideas later that still target fundamental movements).
3. Avoid games/activities that have ‘eliminations’.
4. Make partners for the group to avoid kids feeling “left out.”
5. Don’t try to change the world in one practice (i.e., have 1-2 points of focus).
6. Make the drills fun! They will try harder and learn faster when they are having fun.
7. Be creative and add new challenges, especially if your drills have lots of reps.
8. Take time for athletes to reflect on their learning throughout.
9. Name your activities in case you want to go back to them in another practice.
10. Ask your athletes what they have liked and what they haven’t liked.

*From Art of Coaching Youth Ultimate eBook

AYU requires that all coaches complete a NCIS background check and the SafeSport certification training. We request that all coaches send Mike Richard their name, email and USA Ultimate membership ID to ensure all adults involved have met these requirements.

Background Check: you can make sure your background check is up to date in your USA Ultimate Account.

If you do not have a background check, you can go to the USAU website and do an NCIS background check. Make sure to click the “Background Screening” tab

SafeSport: Make sure you have done SafeSport or up-to-date. This is FREE with your USAU membership! It takes ~2 hours for the initial certification and ~20 minutes to renew each year.

USAU Waivers: you can make sure your Release of Liability and Infectious Disease Waivers is up to date in your USA Ultimate Account.

REGISTER YOUR TEAM ON USAU

• Instructions on creating a roster
• Instructions on Registering for an Event

As a coach, you are considered a mandatory reporter for sexual incidents involving a minor. Each state has different requirements (see the link below). You are obligated to report the matter to law enforcement if the incident occurred when the victim was (or still is) a minor. This is true even if the person who told you does not want it reported. If you were told of an incident, but you do not know exactly when and/or where it occurred or even if you do not know who the assailant might be, contact your local law enforcement for guidance.

Often a coach (or other adult) may be asked by someone to promise not to tell anyone. A good guide here is not to make a blanket promise. You can tell a person who asks that (as an example), “I cannot make that promise without knowing what it is. There are certain things that I am required to report.”

You may also submit a complaint to USA Ultimate for the Judicial Committee to review even if you are not the victim/survivor. You can name the person who is the victim/survivor as a witness.

Pertinent Links
Protecting Young Victims from Sexual Abuse and Safe Sport Authorization Act of 2017
Individual State Statutes
USA Ultimate Athlete Safety

USOPC Quality Coaching Framework

Ultimate Frisbee Drills

A guide on engaging urban communities from US Lacrosse

Ultimate Instructional Cue Cards

Educator Quick Reference Guide (small-sided games)

How to Coach Kids by USOPC and Nike

Coaching Girls Guide by Nike created with We Coach

Free Project Play How to Coach Kids Resources