1

General Skills – Teaching points

Ready Position

• Feet shoulder width apart

• Weight on our toes (slide a piece of paper under your heel)
• Knees bent (knees over toes)
• Rounded shoulders and back (shoulders over knees)
• Arms slightly bent, palms facing up (holding a platter)

The Volley

Precontact
• Move feet quickly under the ball
• Arms moving upward, getting ready for contact
• Place hands above head as soon as possible
Contact
• Hands are in the shape of the round ball
• Thumbs pointing towards face
• Ball contacts most of each finger
• Fingers are relaxed
• Extedning legs, trunk and arms to generate force for the movement
• Contact is made above forehead
• Shoulder face target
Post Contact
• Weight is transferred forward
• Looking at back of hands after contact

KEYS TO SUCCESS
• Body is underneath the ball
• Contact is above the forehead
• Hands take the form of the ball
• Body is facing the target

The Forearm Pass

Precontact
• Move quickly to appropriate position; hands apart as the player moves
• Hands joinprior to contacting the ball
• Heels of the hands together “thumbs match”
Contact
• Arms fully extended and straight
• Wrists down to straighten elbows

Volleyball New Brunswick 1

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 2

• Arms away from the body to assure that the (i) player can see the ball, his arms and the target (ii)
power can be absorbed when the ball contacts forearms just above wrists

Post contact
• Weight is transferred forward
• “Hold” arms (platfrom) together- no swinging, breaking apart, or bending

KEYS TO SUCCESS
• Hands together
• Platform is straight/keep the action simple
• Angle the arms and face the target

The Serve

Ready position
• Left foot forward (for right handed hitters)
• Ball in left hand just below hip height, in front of your right foot
• Knees slightly bent, weight on your right foot
Pre contact
• Right arm swings straight back
• Small step with left foot, weight trasfers forward
Contact
• Firm flat hand, thumb pointing out to side
• Straight arm
• Arm swings straight through
• “Crisp” action

KEYS TO SUCCESS
• Ball is in front of the hitting shoulder
• Weight transfer
• Surface of contact is solid

The Attack

Ready position
• Player at attack line
• Left foot forward (for right handed hitters)
• Weight on right foot
Pre contact
• Left-right-left movement (last step brining feet together)
• Player jumps off two feet one meter from the net
• Shoulder almost perpendicular at the net on take off
• Both hands are raised in the air (after jump)
Contact
• High contact in front of hitting shoulder
• Open hand and relaxed wrist
Volleyball New Brunswick 2
506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 3

• Power provided by the rotation of the trunk, arm, forearm and hand
Post Contact
• Hitting arm follows through along the body
• Contact the ground on both feet
• Knees slightly bent

KEYS TO SUCCESS
• timing of the jump
• maximum height in the jump
• contact with the ball is in front of the hitting shoulder

The Block

Ready Position
• Feet shoulder width apart
• Knees are slightly bent
• Forearms are parallel to the net and the hands open
Pre contact
• Bend the knees and lower centre of gravity
• Shoulders shrug and hyperextension of elbow
Contact
• Keep eyes open
• Wrists held firm and the fingers are spread outward
• Tight throughout core to achieve a “pike” position
• Penetration of the arms/hands on the opoonent’s side of the court (depending on the situation and the
players athletic ability)
Post contact
• Athlete draws the arms back from the opponent’s side
• Land on both feet on a balance position, ready for the next action

KEYS TO SUCCESS
• alignment with the trajectory of the path of the attacker
• timing of the jump
• solid hands
• stability in the air

Volleyball New Brunswick 3

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 4

Beginner Levels of Competition

Level 1

Serve underhand toss directed to a player on the other side of the court
or an underhand serve direct to a player on the other side of the court

First contact caught and tossed towards a player on your own team who is in front of you (near
the net) “TO THE NET”

Second contact caught and tossed UNDERHAND along the net (toss must be higher than the
height of the net ‘ALONG THE NET’

Third contact caught near forehead (volley position) and pushed over the net
‘OVER THE NET’
Level 2

Serve must be an underhand or overhand serve (may be closer to the net)

First contact same as level 1

Second contact must be one continuous motion, from catch to toss, limited contact time with ball

Third contact not caught, just attacked over the net with two hands

Level 3

Serve must be an underhand or overhand serve (may be closer to the net)

First contact can not be caught, any form of contact is acceptable

Second contact must be one continuous motion, from catch to toss, limited contact time with ball

Third contact may be attacked with one or two hands

Level 4

Serve must be an underhand or overhand serve (from end line)

First contact can not be caught, should be working towards forearm passing only

Second contact must be one continuous motion, from catch to self toss, to a volley for your team
mate to attack
Third contact may be attacked with one or two hands

Volleyball New Brunswick 4

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 5

Advanced Competition: Circulation Volleyball (Grades 1-3) &

Atomic Volleyball (Grades 4-5)

Circulation Volleyball

Circulation Volleyball is the official competition format for Canadian regions offering 6-
8U age competitions.

Playing Surface: Full court badminton lines

Net: Net height of 2 metres. Badminton or volleyball nets.

Ball: Mikasa Superlite MVA123SL is recommended.

Number of players: 4 on 4. Maximum 6 players per team. Any extra players form a line
off the court. participation is encouraged.

Stage 1 (Grade 1)

Players catch and throw the ball over the net and try to get their opponents to misplay the
ball or ground the ball on their opponent’s side of the net.

Always encourage players to play the ball the special way

• Toss the ball with the arms outstretched, similar to arm position for a
forearm pass.
• Push the ball from over the head, similar position for an overhead pass
(volley).

Starting/Resuming a Game: Any player on either team tosses the ball over the net from
any area on the court. The ball may hit the net while crossing to the opponents side.

Rotation: When a teammate throws the ball over the net, the whole team rotates one
position clockwise, with the exception of after the serve.

Playing the Ball: If the ball is mishandled (i.e. dropped, thrown out of bounds or into the
net), the player leaves the court and forms/joins a line beside the court. When the ball
contacts the floor, the player who is closest to the ball leaves the court. Encourage players
to decide who was closest to the ball by a) rock/paper/scissors, or b) volunteering.

Volleyball New Brunswick 5

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 6

When a player from “Team A” catches a ball that comes from “Team B”, the first player
waiting in the line off the court from “Team A” returns to the game (and fills in where
needed).
The ball must be thrown over the net each time (one contact). No walking with the ball.
Players may not throw the ball to a teammate unless they are too far from the net, then it
is encouraged.

Scoring: When “Team A” loses all their players (none left on court), “Team B” wins a
point. Next, all players return to the court and a new set begins.

Stage 2 (Grade 2)

*All rules listed in Stage 1 apply, with the exception of the following modifications:

Starting/Resuming a Game: Any player on either team underhand serves the ball over
the net from any area on the court. Players may reposition themselves to serve
successfully.

Playing the Ball: One contact. The ball must be thrown over the net each time.
When “Team A” catches a ball that comes from “Team B”, three times in a row, the first
player waiting in line may return to the court.
When a player succeeds in forearm passing the ball from an opponent and the same
player can catch his own pass, all players may return to the floor.

Stage 3 (Grade 3):

*All rules listed in Stage 1 apply, with the exception of the following modifications:

Starting/Resuming the Game: Any player on either team underhand serves the ball over
the net from any area on the court. Players may NOT reposition themselves to serve.
Serving errors result in the player leaving the court.

Playing the Ball: When a player forearm passes the ball and a teammate catches the ball,
the first player in line may return to the court. Or if there is one player, this player may
forearm pass the ball and catch it themselves.
Every ball, with exception of the forearm pass to a teammate, must go directly over the
net.

Volleyball New Brunswick 6

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
H8## >'#"$*/$#*.1#/&"=,&#$%&#2*,&I##
O.B#-+*B&/#'.#&!$%&/#$&*,#$'""&"#$%&#G*++#'@&/#$%&#.&$#(/',#*.B#*/&*#'.#$%&#)'=/$8#>%&#G*++#
,*B#%!$#$%&#.&$#F%!+&#)/'""!.2#$'#$%&#'--'.&.$"Q#"!1&8#
! # 7
:8# R%&.#*#$&*,,*$&#$%/'F"#$%&#G*++#'@&/#$%&#.&$?#$%&#F%'+&#$&*,#/'$*$&"#'.&#-'"!$!'.#
)+')CF!"&?#F!$%#$%&#&J)&-$!'.#'(#*($&/#$%&#"&/@&";8##M&+'F#*/&#$%&#$%/&&#&J*,-+&"#'(#$%&#
,'@&,&.$#/&S=!/&1#*($&/#$%&#G*++#!"#$'""&1#'@&/#$%&#.&$8##
! "#$%!&'(&)*+!&(,!&(--!'./!01'/(/*2!/'!1*3#,4!$-(5*1+6!!
! "#$%!*,&'.1(7*!$-(5*1+!/'!/)1'8!/)*!9(--!#33*4#(/*-5!(:/*1!#/!#+!&(.7)/!/'!&1*(/*!(!:(+/!$(&*4!
7(3*6!
! Rotations with 4, 3, and 2 players:
"#$%!*,&'.1(7*!$-(5*1+!/'!/)1'8!/'!/)'+*!$-(&*+!8)*1*!/)*1*!#+!,'!'$$',*,/6!
!
!
#
!
#
#
# # # # # # T# # # ###T# #
# # # # # # # # # ###T# #
# # # # # # # # # #### #
#
#
#
#

Atomic Volleyball

Atomic Volleyball is an excellent progression from Circulation Volleyball with more

freedom to use passing and hitting while eliminating the need to rotate each time the ball
crosses the net.

Playing Surface: Badminton court (6.10m x 13.40m).

Net: Net height of 2 metres.

Ball: Mikasa Superlite MVA123SL is recommended.

Number of players: 4 on 4. Maximum 6 players per team. Any extra players form a line
off the court. Participation is encouraged.

Contact with the ball: 3 compulsory passes and 2nd contact may be caught

Stage 1 (Grades 4-5)

Standard volleyball serving, rotation and scoring (rally point) procedures. Extra players
are obliged to rotate into the game at the service position. Underhand serves only.

Three compulsory passes before directing the ball over the net, or a replay occurs. The
second contact must be a smooth, non-stop, catch-throw movement. This movement can
be done in three ways:

Volleyball New Brunswick 7

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 8

1) With extended arms tossing in a forward direction

2) With extended arms tossing in a backward direction
3) Catch the ball with extended arms above the head, bending knees and
pushing upwards
Tip: Encourage players to play the ball “to the net” (to the setter in position 2), “along
the net”, and “over the net”

The team winning the rally earns 1 point and initiates the next play by underhand serving.
Max 3 serves before rotating to the next server.

Timed games, Jamboree style competition (all teams play one another, with an emphasis
on placing similar levels together) is encouraged. No points are recorded.

Stage 2 (Grade 5-7)

*All Atomic Stage 1 rules apply with the exception of the following modifications:

1) No amount of compulsory passes before directing the ball over the net required,
but is encouraged.
2) All contacts are volleyball skills.

Volleyball New Brunswick 8

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 9

Session # 1
WARM UP 10-15 minutes

Introduction – take some time to establish the general rules and expectations for the program, i.e.
behavior, attendance, building rules etc.

Keep it up (with a partner)

• While one partner uses whatever body parts they want to keep the ball from hitting the floor (without
catching it) the other partner must do some sort of physical activity, e.g. jumping jacks, run on the
spot etc.
• When partner one drops the ball, or catches it they change rolls
• Every minute or so change the type of physical activity

SKILL OF THE WEEK THE VOLLEY

• Discuss teaching points 5-10 minutes

PRE CONTACT CONTACT POST CONTACT

• Move feet quickly under the ball • Hands are in the shape of the • Weight is transferred forward
• Arms moving upward, getting round ball which may cause a step forward
ready for contact • Thumbs pointing towards face • Hips move forward
• Place hands above head as soon • Ball contacts most of each finger • Palms of hands face ceiling after
as possible • Extending legs, trunk and arms the ball leaves the fingers
to generate force for the
movement
• Contact is made just above
forehead
• Shoulders face target

ACTIVITIES 15-20 minutes

Goalies set up
• Starting with ball in setting position, push ball to partner who will catch the ball in the ready
position
(Weight forward, carrying serving tray) switch positions each time
*Person with the ball always starts with back to the net
• Self toss and volley to partner
• Self toss and volley to partner who will set the ball to themselves
• Attempt continuous setting with partner
• Attempt continuous setting with partner over the net

Volleyball New Brunswick 9

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 10

O = player without ball X = player with ball = ball

travelling
net
X O
O X
X O
O X
X O
O X

ONE on ONE

• 1 v 1 using the net (start with a throw to opponent as serve)

• May catch and self toss if continuous setting is too difficult
• ‘court’ is long and thin, start working cooperatively, then move to playing competitively
looking to score points vs. your opponent
• there can be anywhere from 4 to 10 players on one court (i.e. 2-5 mini courts)

X X

X X

X X

Volleyball New Brunswick 10

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 11

GAME PLAY
GAME WARM UP 10 minutes

C P2 P1 xxx

xxx P1 P2 C

C = Coach P1/P2= Player 1/Player 2 xxxx= other players waiting

• coach throws ball to player 1 from the opposite side of the net
• player 1 catches the ball and throws it ‘TO THE NET’ (player 2)
• player 2 catches the ball and throws it “ALONG THE NET’ (underhand to player 1)
• Player 1 volleys the ball back over the net to the coach
• Player 1 becomes player 2 and a new player one comes on the court

PLAY 15-30 minutes

• Play 2 vs. 2 at beginner level 1 or 2 (may need to play kings court if not enough space)

HITTING 5 minutes

Coaches will toss balls to players to hit (don’t worry about any technique at this point) with lowered net if
needed.
Tosses should be about 1 m in front of the coach, and about 2 m above the net

REVIEW ‘ KEYS TO SUCCESS’ FOR TODAY’S SKILL 5

minutes

• Body is underneath the ball

• Contact is above the forehead
• Hands take the form of the ball
• Body is facing the target

CHEER!!!
Volleyball New Brunswick 11
506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 12

Session # 2
WARM UP 10-15 minutes

Keep it up – with a group of 4/5 players

• with one ball the group has to hit the ball up in the air to each other keeping it off the floor
• if the ball touches the floor the whole group has to do a ‘consequence’ for example; 10
jumping jacks, or run 1 lap of the gym etc
• .
REVIEW OF LAST WEEKS SKILL 5 minutes

• Talk about the important parts of the overheard pass (the triangle, touch to forehead, push out of
the phone booth, see all ten fingers)

• Go to the wall and practice proper volley technique with a partner. Each person takes a turn
trying to play the ball continuously volleying against the wall. Go 10 times then switch with your
partner. Ask that the children help remind each other of the proper technique.

SKILL OF THE WEEK THE FOREARM PASS

Discuss the starting ‘ready position’,(holding the platter)

• Demonstrate hand position, thumbs glued together pointing down, straight arms, SEE the hands
when you pass the ball, eye’s and shoulders face target.

PRE CONTACT CONTACT POST CONTACT

• Move quickly to appropriate • Arms fully extended and straight • Weight is transferred forward
position: hands apart as the player • Wrists down to straighten elbows which may cause a step forward
moves • Arms away from the body • Hips move forward
• Hands join prior to contacting the (shoulders shrugged in) to assure • Some backspin on the ball is
ball that the (i) player can see the ball, desirable
• Heels of the hands together his arms and the target (ii) power
‘thumbs match’ can be absorbed when the ball
contacts the forearms just above the
wrists

Volleyball New Brunswick 12

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 13

ACTIVITIES 15-20 minutes

In “goalies” set up:

Partner 1 (at the net) will underhand toss the ball to partner 2 (3/4 of the way back on the
court), who will pass the ball to themselves, catch it and then switch places with partner 1

Be sure to encourage that they take their time and all coaches should be giving lots a feed back,
reminding them of the technique as they go.

• Partner 1 tosses underhand, partner 2 tries to pass back to partner 1

• They will try to continuously pass back and forth
• For an extra challenge they can try to keep the ball going back and forth using either the
overhead or underhand pass, be sure to mention how you make the decision. (High ball,
we use a volley, low ball, an forearm pass.)

GAME PLAY
GAME WARM UP 10 minutes

First use one group to demonstrate, set up in the 2 person game to use the 3 hit cycle. (to the net,
along the net, over the net)

• Put the coaches as we did in week one, 2 coaches per court with either side.

• To start they will do all catches until they get warmed up a little bit.

Once they are warmed up, the first ball can no longer be caught, they can either
overhead/underhand pass the ball to their partner at the net. The partner at the net will still catch
it, and UNDERHAND toss it up and the first player will hit it over the net.

PLAY 15-30 minutes

• Play 3 on 3 using Beginner Competitions Level 1 and 2

• The team that wins the point gets to start the next rally

Volleyball New Brunswick 13

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 14

HITTING 5 minutes

To make sure that they all get a chance to practice hitting coaches will toss for their group.
Players will hit a ball, go chase it and bring it back to the coach. (Everyone should get half a
dozen chances)

Encourage them to jump and hit the ball down.

REVIEW ‘ KEYS TO SUCCESS’ FOR TODAY’S SKILL

5 minutes

• Hands together
• Platform is straight/keep the action simple
• Angle the arms and face the target

CHEER!!!

Session # 3
WARM UP 10-15 minutes

Volleyball Relay Race-

• Divide group into teams of 4/5, each group gets one ball and starts on the end line of the ‘mini
volleyball court
• Players will be given different tasks to get to the other end of the court and back. Doesn’t really
matter what the ‘skill’ is as long as they are taking the volleyball with them. e.g. crab walk with the
volleyball on your stomach, or walking keeping the ball above your head the whole time (volleying)
• The key is that the ball never touches the floor!! If it does individual must go back to the start and
begin again.
• After each race switch leaders, make sure that everybody gets to be the leader once. (i.e. 4/5 different
relays)

REVIEW OF LAST WEEK’S SKILL 5-10 minutes

Ask for the key things that were learned at last weeks session, regarding the forearm pass.

Volleyball New Brunswick 14

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 15

• In ‘goalies’ set up, have partner toss you the ball, forearm pass to yourself, and switch spots( 10x
each)
• Then try passing back to your partner (10 x each0
• See if you can do 5 in a row with your partner “REMEMBER PROPER TECHNIQUE”
• Incorporating both overhead, and underhand passing go to the net with partner, one person on either
side.(may need to tie up skipping ropes to make enough room for everyone)
• TRY to play ‘2 contact volleyball’ – each player can contact the ball 2 times, the first must be
underhand, (pass the ball to themselves), the second is overhead, ie volleyball back over the net.
• If this is too difficult, they can catch the ball after they underhand pass to themselves, then volley it
over, or they can catch it when it first comes over, then just toss it to themselves and volley it back
over.

SKILL OF THE WEEK Serving

Ready Position Pre contact Contact

• Left foot forward • Right arm swings straight back • Firm, flat hand, thumb pointing
• Ball in left hand just below hip • Small step with left foot, weight out to side
height, in front of your right foot transfers forward • Straight arm
• Knees slightly bent, weight on • ‘crisp’ action
your right foot

ACTIVITIES 15-20 minutes

• Go to the wall and stand about 3 m away

• Practice serving towards the wall
• Give the children a target that’s about .5-1m higher then the net
• Go to the net, with one partner on either side
• Start very close 1-2 m back from the net and serve to your partner who will be your target
• After you feel comfortable at that distance take one GIANT step backwards.
• Continue moving back until you get to the end of the court

Overhand serve 5 minutes

• Feet set up the same as for underhand serve
• Make sure shoulders are facing the net
• Hold the ball in your left hand in front of your hitting shoulder
• Pull arm back ‘Bow and Arrow’
• LIFT (not throw) ball in your left hand and ‘HIGH FIVE” the ball at the top of your reach
• Drag you right foot through

Volleyball New Brunswick 15

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 16

You can go back to the same routine as the underhand serve. Have coaches going around and
letting children HIGH FIVE them as high as they can so that they feel what it is supposed to feel
like

GAME PLAY
GAME WARM UP 10 minutes

• Run the ‘game warm up’ drill as before moving from except we will move to a 3 on 3 format
• It is played the same way except there will be two players back and one at the net
• Whoever plays the first ball sends it to the player at the net, who must then set up the 3 player
(everyone touches a ball every time!)

PLAY 15-30 minutes

• Play 3 on 3 using the Beginner Competition Level that is appropriate

HITTING 5 minutes

• Players will hit from coaches toss

• Or play ‘Clean your Bedroom’ hitting from one of your team mates tosses

REVIEW ‘ KEYS TO SUCCESS’ FOR TODAY’S SKILL

5 minutes

• Ball is in front of the hitting shoulder

• Weight transfer
• Surface of contact is solid

CHEER!!!

Volleyball New Brunswick 16

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 17

Session # 4
WARM UP 10-15 minutes

• Any type of tag game that the children like, ‘ameoba’, ‘freeze’ etc
• Make sure that it is a high activity / low organization game

REVIEW OF LAST WEEK’S SKILL 5-10 minutes

• Quick review of the positioning for the underhand serve

• Serve to partner (who will be using the ready position to catch the ball)
• Overhead pass with partner (ready position) 20x
• Forearm pass with partner (ready position) 20x
• 2 touch volleyball with partner

SKILL OF THE WEEK ATTACKING

• Break the skill down into smaller pieces and progress based on the
skill of the participants.

READY POSITION PRE CONTACT CONTACT POST CONTACT

• player at attack • left-right-left • high contact in • hitting arm follows

line movement front of hitting through along the
• left foot forward • player jumps one shoulder body
• weight on right meter from the net • open hand and • contact the
foot • shoulder almost relaxed wrist ground on both
perpendicular at • power provided feet
the net on take off by the rotation of • knees slightly
the trunk, arm, bent
forearm and hand

ACTIVITIES without approach 15-20 minutes

• With nets lowered, while standing, have children hit out of coaches hand
• With nets lowered, while standing, have children hit toss from coach (about 2 m)
• With nets lowered, self toss and hit

Volleyball New Brunswick 17

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 18

ACTIVITIES add the approach 5-10 minutes

• With nets lowered, do last 2 steps and hit ball out of coaches hand
• With nets lowered, do last 2 steps and hit from coaches toss
• With nets lowered, self toss, approach and hit!

C
X X X X

X X X X

C =COACH STANDS ABOUT 2 ft FROM THE NET

X= PLAYERS LINE UP AND HIT FROM TOSS

GAME PLAY

GAME WARM UP 10 minutes

• Run the game warm up drill using the 3 player format (playing the 1st and 3rd ball, catching the
2nd)
• If you can see an obvious difference in the level of play of different children it is okay to have
1 group playing at level 1 (all catching) and other groups playing at level 2 (playing either the 1st,
2nd, or 3rd contact)

Volleyball New Brunswick 18

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 19

PLAY 15-30 minutes

• Advance to 4 on 4 at the Beginner Competition Level

HITTING 5 minutes

• End the day with a last chance to practice the hitting one last time, being sure to look for proper
technique now that it has been learned

REVIEW ‘ KEYS TO SUCCESS’ FOR TODAY’S SKILL

5 minutes

• Ball is in front of the hitting shoulder

• Weight transfer
• Surface of contact is solid

CHEER!!!

Session # 5
WARM UP 10-15 minutes

Clean your Bedroom…with a twist!!

• Players will be given specific skills to use to get the ball over the net (e.g. volley, tip, self toss and
hit etc)
• The TWIST is…everytime you put a ball over you have to run back and touch the wall before
you get another ball, or do jumping jacks, tuck jumps etc.
• It’s a warm up drill so you will do 3 or 4 rounds until all players are properly warmed up

Volleyball New Brunswick 19

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 20

REVIEW OF LAST WEEK’S SKILL 10-15 minutes

• Talk about the important parts of the spike approach and arm swing
• Have children do several approaches as a group, coaches reminding them of the important parts,
especially the footwork.
• Hit balls from coaches, 2 m sets
• Serve and catch with partner (with ready position/alternate types of serve)
• 1 on 1 with opponent, start with serve

SKILL OF THE WEEK BLOCKING

READY POSITION PRE CONTACT CONTACT POST CONTACT

• feet shoulder • bend the knees • keep eyes open • athlete draws the
width apart and lower centre • wrists held firm arms back from
• knees are slightly of gravity and the fingers are the opponent’s
bent • shoulders shrug spread outward side
• forearms are and • penetration of the • land on both feet
parallel to the net hyperextension of arm/hands on the in a balanced
and the hands elbow opponent’s side of position, ready
open the court for the next
(depending on the action
situation and the
players athletic
ability)

ACTIVITIES 15-20 minutes

• With nets lowered players will stand on the ground with their hands over the net, and block the
ball from coaches throw (directly into their hands)
• With nets still lowered if needed, coaches will hold the ball at the top of the net and players will
jump and
push against the ball
• With nets still lowered if needed, coaches will throw the ball to the top of the net and players will
jump and block the ball. ( It will take a bit of time for them to figure out the timing so give lots of
feedback like, you jumped to early, or too late, etc.

GAME PLAY
GAME WARM UP 10 minutes

• With nets lowered players will stand on the ground with their hands over the net, and block the
ball from coaches throw (directly into their hands)
Volleyball New Brunswick 20
506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 21

• With nets still lowered if needed, coaches will hold the ball at the top of the net and players will
jump and push against the ball
• With nets still lowered if needed, coaches will throw the ball to the top of the net and players will
jump and block the ball. ( It will take a bit of time for them to figure out the timing so give lots of
feedback like, you jumped to early, or too late, etc.

HITTING 5 minutes
• Same hitting as usual, from coaches toss
• Let everyone go twice just simply hitting…then…
• After you hit a ball, you become the blocker on the other side
• After you are the blocker you go get the ball and bring it back to the coach

PLAY 15-30 minutes

• Introduce Circulation Volleyball/Atomic Volleyball (Level 1)

REVIEW ‘ KEYS TO SUCCESS’ FOR TODAY’S SKILL

5 minutes

• alignment with the trajectory of the path of the attacker

• timing of the jump
• solid hads
• stability in the air

CHEER!!!

Volleyball New Brunswick 21

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 22

Session # 6
WARM UP 10-15 minutes

• Blob tag – 2 people start as it, if they tag someone the person becomes attatched to them. Once the
group grows to 4 people they divide into 2 separate groups and continue until everyone is a part of the
‘Blobs!’

REVIEW OF LAST WEEK’S SKILL 15-20 minutes

• Ask for key points that we learned about blocking from last week
• In partners, one partner holds the ball above the net, while the other partner practices jumping, and
pushing on the ball without touching the net.
• Pass ball to self, (goal 10 in a row)
• Set ball to selft, (goal 10 in a row)
• Alternate pass/set ( goal 10 in a row)
• Serve and go 10 times (half under/half over hand)

SKILL OF THE WEEK Defence: “Stride and Slide”

PRE CONTACT CONTACT POST CONTACT

• Starting in a LOW position, • With arms extended out ward to • You will catch yourself with
backside down, head up forearm pass the ball, all weight your weight distributed from
• Take a LONG step at a 45 is transferred to the leading foot your thigh up to the side of your
degree angle • Let the ball rebound off of the chest
• Make sure that your toe is facing platform made by your arms • Your knee and your hands will
inward not hit the floor
• If your knee hits the floor you
didn’t turn your toes in far
enough
• Push off your feet to slide across
the floor

ACTIVITIES 15-20 minutes

• Demo how to practice stride and slide with partners

o Starting in a low squat take a step on a 45 degree angle away keeping your toe pointed in
o With your partner supporting you by holding your hands, they will guide you to the floor, on
your side
Volleyball New Brunswick 22
506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 23

o Try this to both sides 5 times each

o Then try on your own

Coaches should be very observant to make sure that participants are working at their own pace,
They need to keep their heads up, looking forward to avoid hitting their head on the floor.

• Have your partner toss a ball to the side and try to contact the ball finishing in the stride and slide
• Coach will toss balls, players will stay low and dig the ball finishing with the stride and slide to the
appropriate side

GAME PLAY
GAME WARM UP 10 minutes

• Run the game warm up drill using the 3 player format with all contacts being volleyball plays (no
catching)

PLAY 15-30 minutes

• Circulation/Atomic Volleyball

HITTING 5 minutes

• Same hitting as usual, from coaches toss

• Let everyone go twice just simply hitting…then…
• After you hit a ball, you become the blocker on the other side
• After you are the blocker you go get the ball and bring it back to the coach

REVIEW ‘ KEYS TO SUCCESS’ FOR TODAY’S SKILL

5 minutes

• STAY LOW
• Take an extra long step
• Keep toes turned in
• Move quickly!

Volleyball New Brunswick 23

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 24

CHEER!!!

Session # 7
Because we are coming down to really wanting to play as much as possible the format for
this session will be a little different than usual.

WARM UP 10-15 minutes

Everyone with a partner, one ball

Partner A – 20 volleys to yourself
Partner B – Jumping jacks til part. A is done
Switch
A - 20 forearm passes to yourself
B -run on the spot
Switch

Back and forth with your partner

• 20 Volleys
• 20 forearm passes

Everyone with their own ball

• serve and then chase down your ball (15x)

SKILL OF THE WEEK TEAM PLAY

Divide the group in half , one group on each court (or into smaller groups, depending on the number of
courts and leaders that you have available. The idea is to make sure that they are getting a chance to
really understand the game without getting bored from doing it too long)

Volleyball New Brunswick 24

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 25

Group A
Working on the game set up and rotations etc.

Set them up in the four on four set up

net

4 2

1 3 3 1

2 4

To get the extra player in the

game when the team rotates (they
win the serve back) player one goes
off the court and player 5 goes to the
position player 4 was in (4 moves to
3, 3 moves to 2 to moves to 1)

The important things to remember is that 1 will be serving, whoever wins the point gets
to serve again. If one player gets 3 points in a row, the serve goes to the other team who
rotate for the next server.

We still have to have 3 hits, tell them not to panic about who gets each contact but
remind them to say to themselves…or out loud…To the net, Along the net, Over the
net…you may need to help them by saying it along with them.

Other than that let them play and just help them as the go along, trying to keep things as
calm as possible. Make note of what situations confuse them or they have difficulty with
so that we can discuss it later.

Volleyball New Brunswick 25

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 26

Group B

Work on their serving, working their way back to see if they can serve from
the back line

PLAY ‘DEAD FISH” serving game

• Divide the group in even halves.

• Everybody gets to serve from where they feel comfortable
• If you get your serve in you just wait for another ball and serve again
• If you MISS your serve, you become a ‘Dead Fish’ which means that you
have to lie on the floor on your side of the court, if you get hit by a serve from
the other side you become a member of the other team
• The game keeps going until one side has no more ‘Active’ servers left and you
can play again
If there is extra time left you can play some one on one, changing partners every 1.5
minutes

AFTER 20-25 MINUTES THE TWO GROUPS SWITCH COURTS AND DO THE
OTHER ACTIVITIES, COACHES SHOULD STAY WITH THE SAME GROUPS
SO THAT EVERYBODY LEARNS THINGS THE SAME WAY

GAME PLAY

Because it’s been a ‘tough’ day , learning a lot of new things, you should finish with
a quick game of ‘Clean your Bedroom’ ! Focusing on proper skills. Players should
now be able to pass the ball to themselves instead of catching it and then tossing it to
someone else to hit over the net

CHEER!!!

Volleyball New Brunswick 26

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 27

Session # 8,9,10

For the final 3 sessions of the program the focus will be on the playing of games to
prepare participants for a program end tournament. By the end of the program the older
participants should be able to run a game (understand rotation, when you score) without
constant intervention of a coach or leader.

It is important to ensure that you do not have a lot of standing around time though. If
there is not enough room for teams of no bigger than 6 to all be playing at once you
should make sure that either a. there is another place for them to practice their skills
while they are waiting for their game, or b. games are short enough that there isn’t a lot of
waiting around, for example a ‘king’s court’ type of activity.

WARM UP 10-15 minutes

Fun Games!

It’s important to keep the activity level high and the atmosphere high even though later in
the sessions you may be spending a little more time on game time, which often will lower
activity levels initally. So a great way to start each session is with a fun game of tag or
something else that the participants really enjoy, as long as it is of high activity level and
low organization so as not to waste any time explaining.

SKILL REVIEW

At this point you can decide if you want to do a focus on any particular skills or just have them do
a series of different activities. They will always need to work on passing and volleying as well as
serving, so you can do either partner activities, or individual activities or coach centered activities
where the coach will be tossing balls into the drill. Just be sure that the activities are simple
enough that the participants can really focus on the basics of the skills while still being active.

Examples

Work on individual skills in the goalies formation changing positions each time

Volleyball New Brunswick 27

506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com
 28

• If working in a large group that requires standing in a line give them an activity to do
after each time through the line, pass the ball then go do 10 jumping jacks, or run and
touch a certain line, or do 10 block jumps
• Any type of stations is a good way to mix things up. Spend a certain amount of time at
one station and then switch to the next. A good way to do this is with music, play music
while they are active, when you stop the music they have to quickly move the next station

Hitting warm up

• Before you start playing it’s a good idea to do a hitting warm up, from coaches toss at
first, then try having the participants toss the ball for each other so that they get used to
depending on each other which is what they will have to do when they are actually
playing.

GAME PLAY

For the last few sessions you really want to have them playing the full 4 on 4 (Circulation
or Atomic) game as much as possible. It might be a good idea to start with some 2 on 2
play to get them warmed up and have more people playing at once. But as much as
possible you want to just let them get used to playing.

You should play timed games instead of games to a certain number of points, it’s an
easier way to keep things on schedule.

DAY REVIEW 5 minutes

This is a chance to go over anything that you may have noticed they had difficulty with
or to go over any details about upcoming tournaments or any other club business

CHEER!!!
Volleyball New Brunswick 28
506-451-1346
vnb@nb.aibn.com