Course:KIN355/2020 Projects/Manipulative Skill: Dribbling

Defining the Concept and Its Importance

“Dribbling” may simply be defined as the ability to control the ball and is considered the most important skill in [ball-related] sports (Hargreaves, 1990). The skill of dribbling is multi-faceted and incorporates a variety of movement mechanics to perform, such as change in direction and speed, acceleration, and coordination (Miller, 2012). Dribbling is a manipulative skill that primarily involves hand-eye and foot-eye coordination, which subsequently form the foundation for many game skills (Pangrazi, 2007). The skill of dribbling is used in numerous sports but in the context of the examples drawn on below, the primary focus will be on basketball and soccer dribbling.

The benefit of teaching children movement skills, such as dribbling, is the improved competence and confidence in the child’s athletic performance, which may lead to a greater willingness to participate in physical activity. (Lubans et al., 2010). An increase of interest in physical activity or a particular sport may subsequently improve fitness levels and reduce the risk of unhealthy weight gain, thus movement skill development should be incorporated in schools and within communities (Lubans et al., 2010). It is critical to note that the particular benefits, from developing fundamental movement skills (FMS) and participating in physical activity, is prolonged throughout adolescence by engaging in physical activity early, where it is shown that high-skilled children were more likely to engage in physical activity at a young age (Chen, Hammond-Bennett, Hypnar, 2017).

Dribbling skills are imperative to being an effective athlete in dribbling-related sports (and all sports in general) as dribbling the ball under control and maintaining possession is essential to the player and team’s success (Miller, 2012). Soccer, in particular, is one of the most popular sports amongst youth, and that children learning to dribble with their feet add complexity to learning and acquiring new skills, thus the child is able to be challenged developmentally (Miller, 2012). Acquisition and practice of dribbling using bilateral limbs in the context of both basketball and soccer (arms and legs, respectively) is important to consider when performing the skill, for example, to defend the ball from an opponent that may approach from both sides of your body, as well as the use of both the dominant and non-dominant hand (Stockel, Weiglet, & Krug, 2011). Additionally, manipulative skills are imperative in daily functions that are very detailed and potentially complex functions such as tying a shoe lace or using scissors, thus it is imperative to develop these specific skills appropriately in children to prevent difficulty in basic activities of daily living (Fitzpatrick, 2002).

Role in Childhood Development and Contemporary Considerations

Motor skill development and learning is at its peak during the elementary years when a child’s growth is slow. This growth is supplemented through developing highly developed motor pattern recruitments (Pangrazi, 2007). Soccer dribbling (i.e. feet) in particular allows for a transition from the typical hand-brain feedback to manipulating the ball using every other body part besides the upper limb and hands, allowing the players to develop new highly developed neuromuscular pathways in conjunction with the central nervous system to master this skill (Miller, 2012). To appropriately benefit from movement skill acquisition like dribbling, it is important that the child engages in repetitive practice with the ball (Coerver and Galustian, 1995). Children construct knowledge as they manipulate and explore their worlds, similarly, through repetitive practice dribbling with a ball, children are able to explore and develop their dribbling (Berk, 2007). A child's skill development and acquisition also allows us to recognize the importance of learning movement skills early, as bad habits can be changed in young athletes, but are almost impossible to remove as they grow (Howe & Waiters, 1993).

Children often struggle with movement skills that require rapid responding, such as dribbling (Berk, 2007). Consequently, skill performance is dependent on cognitive, perceptual, and motor skills, which interact in rapidly changing environments (Russell & Kinglsey, 2011), thus accommodations to assist the skill of dribbling may allow children to improve such skills as processing rate, reaction time, and coordination (Miller, 2012). Considering the progress of motor development in children, it would be beneficial to accommodate the learning of dribbling by changing the size of the ball in which they will be using (either soccer- or basket- ball) to better adjust to their smaller feet/hand size of children (Miller, 2012).

In addition, it is difficult to generalize the development and learning of movement skills to all children as biological and age factors do exist (i.e. girls may have lower skill proficiency than boys), thus teaching movement skill and competency subjectively is crucial when looking at implementing motor skill interventions (Lubans et al., 2010).

It is significant to note that in the process of learning motor skills, if the child were to pay too much attention to their performance, the learning may be degraded, thus in the context of dribbling, it is important to direct the child’s attention to the external aspect (i.e. ball) and away from the internal aspect (i.e. foot or hand) (Abdollahipour, 2008).

The environments the children engage in movement skill learning is particularly important. Training programmes that a child participates in throughout their life may play a significant role in the development of his or her manipulative skills, thus, the quality of training environment is a significant aspect of research and should be taken into consideration as well. (Logan, Robinson, Wilson, & Lucas, 2012). Additionally, the utilization of motor games to improve fundamental motor skills of children are effective, particularly the use of games based on manipulative motor skills such as ball rolling, throwing, etc were effective in developing manipulative skills such as dribbling (Donath et al., 2015).

Practical Applications

As discussed in the previous sections, dribbling is a very valuable component towards developing hand eye coordination, fundamental motor skills and so much more. Therefore, dribbling skills should be incorporated into the lives of children to assist in these benefits and provide a solid foundation for other sports children may play. Two dribbling games to incorporate into play time or physical activity classes for children are red light, green light and dribble survivor.

Red Light Green Light

Red light green light is an easy to set up game that can be modified and adjusted for either dribbling with hands or dribbling with feet, and can be tailored for multiple ages, although the target age range would be for children aged 6-12. The purpose of this game is to improve hand-eye coordination or foot-eye coordination, improve processing rate, and develop fundamental motor skills through the manipulative skill of dribbling. The environmental space needed would be a gymnasium, basketball court (if dribbling with hands) or a grass/turf field (if dribbling with feet).  Red light green light can be played inside or outside, as long as there is a suitable environmental space like the ones listed previously. The equipment needed for this activity is any type of ball that could be kicked or bounced. A list of appropriate balls is that could be used, but are not limited to is: soccer balls, basketballs, dodgeballs, or even blow up beach balls.

Instructions for Red Light Green Light:

1. Have all players line up on one side of the space being used, and have them standing shoulder to shoulder, with an arms width of length between them.
2.  Indicate the direction that the players are going to be dribbling towards, showing them where the finish line is.
3. When the coach or teacher yells “green light” the players must move forwards while dribbling the ball, making sure that they are keeping control of the ball.
4. When the coach or teacher yells “red light” the players must stop moving forwards and either hold the ball still with their feet (if dribbling with feet) or maintain the dribble with their hands (if dribbling with hands).
5. Continue to prompt “red light” or “green light” until all of the players have reached the finish line.

Since motor development progresses as children age, accommodating the learning of a difficult skill such as dribbling could be done by changing the size of the ball that they will be using to better suit the children’s feet/hand size. Ensuring proper size equipment will help the children to follow proper movement patterns when performing the skill. If the children are competent at dribbling already and need a challenge, the size of the balls can be made smaller to force them to focus on their coordination and control of the ball more, thus improving the children’s coordination and processing rate.  Additionally, in the process of learning a challenging skill such as dribbling, if too much emphasis is placed on performance, the learning may be degraded, so teacher’s or coaches should keep competition separate from this game until they have acquired the skill first. To use this game for older children who have already mastered the skill of dribbling, the game can be modified to a harder level by sending a player back to the start line if they are not dribbling in control. The distance that the players dribble for can be lengthened or shortened as well; choosing a challenging but doable distance for the particular group of children will allow them to practice repetitive dribbling with the ball, while improving confidence and self-efficacy by having an achievable length to complete.

Diagram:

X indicates the players, the arrows indicate the direction the players should be moving in towards the finish line

Dribble Survivor

This game is a fun and more challenging dribbling game that can also be tailored to fit multiple ages, although the target range for this activity is 7-12 as it is more competitive game. This game can also be modified to be played by dribbling with hands or feet. The purpose of this activity is to improve reaction time, coordination, processing rate and fundamental motor skills through the manipulative skill of dribbling. The environmental space needed for this game is a gymnasium, grass/turf field, or basketball court. Dribble survivor can be played inside or outside, as long as the space permits. The equipment needed for this activity is any type of ball that could be kicked or bounced, and possibly cones to outline the "island" the players will be playing inside. A list of appropriate balls is that could be used, but are not limited to is: soccer balls, basketballs, dodgeballs, or even blow up beach balls.

Instructions for Dribble Survivor:

1. Pass out a ball to each player
2. Indicate the size of the “island” that the players will be playing inside. This can be made to be half-court on a gymnasium or basketball court, or perhaps the 18-yd box on a soccer field. Use cones or lines on the space being used as visual representation for the players of these limits.
3. While staying on the “island” players have to dribble their ball around the island while simultaneously trying to knock the other player’s balls “off the island”.
4. If a player’s ball gets knocked off the indicated “island”, then that player is now out.
5. Continue playing until there is only one player remaining

Modifications that can be made to this game can include things such as increasing or decreasing the size of the “island”. By increasing the space that the players have to move around in, they have a longer time to think and therefore, a longer period of time to react before a player tries to knock away their ball. Conversely, if the size of the “island” is modified to become smaller, this forces children to think faster, and improve their reaction time with less time to plan their next move. As discussed in the previous game listed, accommodating the learning of a difficult skill such as dribbling could be done by changing the size of the ball that they will be using to better suit the children’s feet/hand size. Doing so, will allow children to ensure proper movement patterns are being learned. To make the game more challenging, adjusting the size of the ball to be smaller will force children to focus on their coordination and control of the ball more, thus improving the child’s coordination and processing rate.

Diagram:

X indicates the players, the arrows indicate the way the players should be moving toward each other on the "island"

Summary

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References

Abdollahipour, R., Bahram, A., Shafizadeh, M., Khalaji, H. (2008). The effects of attentional focus strategies on the performance and learning of soccer-dribbling task in children and adolescences. Journal of Movement Sciences and Sports. 83-92

Berk, L. (2007). Development through the Lifespan (4th ed.). Boston: Pearson Allyn and Bacon.

Chen, W., Hammond-Bennett, A., & Hypnar, A. (2017). Examination of motor skill competency in students: Evidence-based physical education curriculum. BMC Public Health, 17, 1. doi:http://dx.doi.org.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/10.1186/s12889-017-4105-2

Coerver, W., & Galustian, A. (1995). Score! Soccer Tactics & Techniques for a Better Offense. New York. Sterling Publishing Company.

Donath, L., Faude, O., Hagmann, S., Roth, R., & Zahner, L. (2015). Fundamental movement skills in preschoolers: A randomized controlled trial targeting object control proficiency. Child: Care, Health and Development, 41(6), 1179–1187

Fitzpatrick, T. L. S. (2002). The development of fine isometric force control and manipulative hand skills in healthy children and adolescents (Order No. MQ74105). Available from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. (305490711). Retrieved from https://ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/login?url=https://www-proquest-com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/docview/305490711?accountid=14656

Hargreaves, A. (1990). Skills and Strategies for Coaching Soccer. United States of America: Leisure Press. Human Kinetics.

Logan, S., Robinson, L., Wilson, A., $ Lucas, W. (2012). Getting the fundamentals of movement: A meta-analysis of the effectiveness of motor skill interventions in children. Child: Care, Health and Development, 38(3), 305-315

Lubans, D.R., Morgan, P.J., Cliff, D.P. et al. (2010). Fundamental Movement Skills in Children and Adolescents. Sports Med 40, 1019–1035 https://doi.org/10.2165/11536850-000000000-00000

Miller, K. (2012). The effects on soccer dribbling skills when training with two different sized soccer balls. University of Kansas.

Pangrazi, R. (2007). Dynamic Physical Education for Elementary School Children (15th ed.). San Francisco: Pearson Benjamin Cummings.

Russel, M., & Kingsley, M. (2011). Influence of Exercise on Skill Proficiency in Soccer. Sports Med. 41, 523-539.

Stöckel, T., Weigelt, M., Krug, J. (2011). Acquisition of a Complex Basketball-Dribbling Task in School Children as a Function of Bilateral Practice Order, Research Quarterly for Exercise and Sport, 82:2, 188-197