How to Teach Baseball to Your 7-Year Kids

Like any other task, teaching children requires patience, motivation, and strength to continue even when the odds are not friendly. The same rules apply when it comes to teaching 7-year old children how to play baseball. It is essential to keep in mind when dealing with a group of children that not all of them have the same comprehension level.

Their some children who will understand the game faster than others will. To keep them at the same learning level, here are some techniques that will help you as a coach or parents teach all your kids baseball. You should also have fun in the process.

1.    Associate the baseball drills with fun

It has statistically been proven that children often remember anything when it is put in a fun way. It becomes easy for them to recognise and understand. No, wonder the many colour and picture books they have when in grade school.

To help them understand the rules and drills of baseball teach them in a fun manner. For instance, when training them on how to pitch a ground ball, you can ensure they use both hands to ground the ball. Then later give it a funny name like the alligator chomp.

As the ball falls on their hands, you can have them clasp it with the other hand. The clasping of the ball with both hands will look like an alligator closing its mouth. This technique will help ensure that even the fielder does not let go of the ball.

2.    Teach them hitting routines

It is essential to teach your children the appropriate technique of swinging a bat. For them, it may be merely swinging a bat, but it much more than that. They have to understand that the process involves their whole body. Their legs need to lead when swinging the bat, while their hips have to supply the necessary power to hit the ball.

For a young player, these concepts are hard to understand. To help them learn how to swing the bat correctly, you can make them rotate their hips and tell them to pretend they are squashing a bug. The thought of bug squashing will inspire them to twist their left foot and swing the bat in the right manner.

3.    Help them learn how to throw

Throwing is also another crucial technique for baseball. You can get them to learn how to throw a ball by teaching them how to throw overhand. You have to demonstrate the proper throw technique for them to understand.

As you demonstrate a proper throw, you can state something like your thumbs to your thigh and your fingers up in the sky. The statement will help them remember what they have to do, to throw the ball correctly. Also, the statement is something they can use even as they grow up and become better in baseball.

4.    Practice their pitching skills

You can teach them pitching skills by having them participate in a knockout game. In the Knockout game, you can have all your players’ line up right behind the pitching mound. Have the first player on the line throw a pitch. If the pitch is a strike, then the player is safe. If the pitch is a ball, then the player goes to the hot seat.

When the next player throws their pitch, if the outcome is a strike, then they are out of the game. You can keep the game going until there is only one winner. The winner gets the opportunity to start the next game’s pitch.

5.    Include specific drills 

For them to gain knowledge in baseball drills are essential. You can introduce basic drills like the alligator drill, which can teach them on how to catch ground balls. There is also the batting tee technique to help them hit the baseball, the knockout drill for pitching skills among others.

Understanding that children get bored when they stick to one thing for too long, ensure you give them breaks in between the practices. You can also provide each player with a water bottle to keep them hydrated.

Motivate them also at the end of every practice session with a healthy snack to keep them coming back for more lessons.