KID COACH'S CLIPBOARD: How to Teach Young Children/Kids to Hit a Baseball (The Grip)

Teaching Young Children Sports

As the top Youth Sports Instructor in the country, I believe there are incremental pieces of sport's larger fundamental philosophies that, if magnified and taught regularly to young children, can make a substantial difference in their development as young athletes. What I am about to share with you is one of those incremental pieces lacking in the coaching of youth baseball today. The instruction you are about to read is part of a larger systematical approach to sports I have developed specifically for young children ages 2-6 years old called Making Kids "Coachable" by Making Learning Fun (sm)-The Elite Athlete Developmental Program for Tots (sm). If you have a beginner athlete and you are interested in an elite athlete training program that teaches you the coaching techniques and drills that give children ages 2-6 years the competitive edge, this is program is for you. If you are interested read on, respond and I will send you more information about the Making Kids "Coachable program for the beginner athletes.

Teaching Hitting Grip

Children or adults, we all do better when there is a story behind what it is we are learning. The best stories are ones that relate to the experiences we have. Since young children have limited experiences, we must be a bit creative in our storytelling especially when we are relating sports.

Problem: One common problem I see with young and inexperienced players is incorrect grip.

Solution: Here is a creative story you can tell young children to teach them how to grip a baseball bat properly. The story is part of the Making Kids "Coachable (sm)" method that is great because it provides you with verbal cues young players will remember to correct their grip that you can use before they hit whether you are on the sidelines or in the stands.

Teaching Time: 5 Minutes

Level of Instructional Difficulty: Easy

Ages Appropriate for: 3 years +

Creating the Catepillar

One of the biggest problems with young hitters is they fail to keep their hands together on the bat. This instruction, if followed, can quickly overcome that issue.

Coach: What is a butterfly before it turns into a butterfly? The answer is, a catepillar.

1. Make two fists stacking one on top of the other.
2. Create a catepillar by lining up second knuckles.
3. Make the catepillar real by getting children to do the same. They won't always perfectly align their knuckles. This is O.K. Remember the purpose of this instruction is to keep their fists together.
4. As they do look at their fists and count the segments (knuckles) of their catepillar. There should be 8 segments. Count them out loud "1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8" pointing and touching each of their knuckles as you do.
5. After, have them count the segments of your catepillar. They absolutely love doing this. Even if they don't count the catepillar's correctly, the idea is that they know that their fist need to stay together for the catepillar to exist.
6. Test: Separate your fists and ask, is this a catepillar? They will hopefully say no. Ask, what do I need to do? They will tell you to put your fists together. Here is when you know they got it.
7. Finally, ask them the obvious question. So, how do you hold a baseball bat. The answer, catepillars.

If you have followed these seven easy steps, children will quickly and easily know how to grip a baseball bat properly. As a coach or parent, you will be equipped with "coachable" terminology children will undersand and remember. This allows them to make the split second adjustment that can make the difference in their hitting form.

Instructional Reminders

• Have patience. Introduce baseball a few steps at a time when teaching young children. Remember children learn best by doing.
• Have fun. Try to teach without using the word "no." Great coaches are birdies on the shoulders guiding players, not bulldozers.
• Use verbal cues. Try to use a hands off approach when coaching. Easy phrases like "catepillars" children understand, they can remember and they will be empowered by to make simple self-adjustments in their techniques. Good verbal cues are qualities of great coaching.
• Inspire children through praise. Enable a child's own ability to find value in self-improvement.
• Focus on the small wins. The perfect swing does not exist. Young children get better when they have fun.

Good luck and enjoy yourself.

~Coach Brad "Pickles" Kayden