Breakaway!

Skill: Dodge, Dribble, Kick, Run, Strike, Trap
Time Required: 15
Activity Type: Physical
Group Size: Large Group, Medium Group, Small Group
Age Group: 6 - 9yrs, 9 - 12yrs, 13+ yrs
Play area: Gymnasium (large indoor space)
Safety Considerations: Remove any safety hazards from the activity area.
Remind participants to be aware of their surroundings and to keep their head up.
Hockey: Remind participants to keep their sticks on the ground!. No slap shots. If there is a goalie, be sure they have proper safety equipment on.
Equipment: This activity can be for soccer or hockey.
Hockey: Hockey sticks, tennis balls/ball hockey balls, pylons, hockey net (optional)
Soccer: Soccer balls/indoor soccer balls, pylons, indoor soccer net (optional)
Objective:
Participants get to go on a breakaway and go around obstacles to score!
Other Skills:
Coordination
Set up:
Have a net at one end of the activity space (or use pylons to set up a net).
In front of the net place pylons as obstacles (depending on the skill level of the participants, place a lot or a few obstacles).
Participants will stand at the other end of the activity space in a line.
If there is space, set up two of these activities.
Step by Step:
1. The participants will be standing behind a line with their hockey sticks (or with just themselves if they're doing soccer).
2. If using a hockey stick, remind participants to hold the hockey stick with two hands and to keep the blade on the ground at all times.
3. The leader or a participant will stand to the side of the participants with the balls.
4. The leader or participant will pass the ball forward towards the net for the first participant.
5. The participant will run to it and dribble/stick handle the ball towards the obstacles.
6. They will have to go around the obstacles and then take a shot when they get to the net.
7. When participants get to the obstacles, the leader/participant can pass the ball for the next participant in line.
8. When a participant shoots, they get their ball and bring it back to the leader and go to the end of the line.
9. Raise the difficulty: If a participant's ball touches a pylon, they are out for the round.
10. Have a goalie be in net. If a participant doesn't get the ball in the net, they are out.
11. Take away the pylons/obstacles and add a defender (no longer a breakaway, but they could break away from the defender).
Variations:
If there is space, set up two activity spaces. Have the different groups go against each other. Each participant will start with their own ball. The first participants in each group will begin to stick handle/dribble the ball down and go around the obstacles and then shoot. When they shoot, the next participant starts to stick handle/dribble. The groups with the most goals scored at the end, wins. If a participant touches an obstacle with their ball, they cannot shoot and have to go to the end of their line.
Sources: Developed for the Leisure Information Network.