Soccer Shooting Practice Plan for 11 and 12 Year Olds

Every shot today arrives out of movement, and every finish is a choice: near or far post, first-time or touch-and-strike, laces or inside. The notebook keeps the count, and the far post gets the respect it deserves.

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Dead-ball corner strikes from eight steps: two at each corner each foot, walking the checklist. Then five roll-and-strikes per foot on the move. The warmup ends when both feet have hit a low corner off a moving ball, however many reps that takes today.

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Dribble at the cone (the imagined defender) at pace, push the ball past it with one purposeful touch OUT of the feet at an angle, and strike within two steps, low corner. The setting touch is the drill: too close and the strike is cramped, too far and the keeper arrives first. Six reps each direction, each foot finishing. Log corners hit.

Attack the first cone, chop the ball back inside with a cutback (inside of the foot dragging it across the body), and finish with the OTHER foot at the far corner within two touches. This is the classic cut-inside-and-curl pattern every kid this age suddenly wants; teach it now with placement discipline before highlight culture teaches it with blast discipline. Five each direction.

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You serve rolling balls across the goal face from wide; they arrive and finish FIRST-TIME, and today every first-time finish aims far post, the corner away from where the serve came from. Eight serves per side, both feet get their turn by geometry. The far-post habit is a career-length gift: it opens the whole goal and turns keeper spills into second goals.

Deliberately imperfect serves: bouncing, behind, too firm. Their job is the honest decision at speed: first-time when the ball allows, killing touch then finish when it does not, and a laces-through-the-bounce half-volley when it sits up. Ten serves, mixed. Grade decisions out loud, not outcomes: a good decision that misses beats a lucky blast.

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Three stations, ten attempts each, corners logged: (1) touch-set-strike off the dribble, alternating direction, (2) first-time far-post off your serve, (3) weak foot only, any pattern they choose. Write the three numbers down, dated. Over weeks these three counts become the truthful picture of a finisher being built, and the kid starts chasing their own numbers without being asked.

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Five finishes off self-serve, each corner called out loud first, ending on a called-and-hit. Then two minutes of rebound instinct: you spill saves on purpose after their strike, and the rep only ends when the rebound is buried too. First look after every shot: where does the next ball land?

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What to watch today: balance at the strike after movement. Almost every wild miss at this age is a body arriving sideways or leaning back, two steps before contact. If the finishes spray, ignore the goal and watch the approach steps. Fix the arrival and the ball starts obeying again.