Nick Smallridge
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nasthe3rd.bsky.social
Nick Smallridge
@nasthe3rd.bsky.social
Strong views, weakly held | CLA | ⚽️ | Sporting Arkansas | Bentonville High School Women’s Soccer AC | M.Ed | USSF C |
🤣😂🤣 That would work!!
February 1, 2025 at 1:26 PM
Trying to imagine what could be played…
February 1, 2025 at 1:18 PM
“Rats,” not “rat?” 😬😬😬
January 18, 2025 at 4:53 PM
For more on Deliberate Play, check out the following:

open.substack.com/pub/nicksmal...
Inbox | Substack
open.substack.com
December 4, 2024 at 12:43 PM
Saw a similar post from Mike Kenny on the other site. I think too often we over-focus on what players(and students) ‘don’t do well,’ rather than look for ways to lean into their strengths. What will set us apart most- what we can’t do, or what we can?
November 20, 2024 at 4:43 PM
For further explanation, check out the following:

youtu.be/mzHhSbGq3JQ?...
Player Centered Approach: 1) Autonomy
YouTube video by Nick Smallridge
youtu.be
November 15, 2024 at 8:11 PM
Whether it’s simple choices- How do we advance the ball- could we dribble, pass, make space, lose our opponent? Or even further- What principles are our essentials for our season? - it’s imperative that we encourage autonomy for players for better long term development.
November 15, 2024 at 8:11 PM
3️⃣ Motivation

When players become accustomed to making choices, their adaptability fosters greater competency and confidence, which further encourages intrinsic motivation, strengthening the basis for long term development.
November 15, 2024 at 8:11 PM
2️⃣ Adaptability

By continually facing challenges that encourage autonomy, players are more effective at adapting their behaviors, individual and collective, to the continually changing situations they face.

Are we asking what they SHOULD do, or what they COULD do?
November 15, 2024 at 8:11 PM
1️⃣ Representative Learning Environment

By making practices representative of the In Game Situations players face, their attention is better paired with intentional objectives:

🔹How do we advance the ball?
🔹How do we break lines?
🔹How do we create effective shapes?
November 15, 2024 at 8:11 PM
What is autonomy?

Autonomy at its base level is choice- making decisions. But decision-making is vital for encouraging players to explore and attune to the opportunities they might not otherwise recognize with too much instruction.

So- how do we encourage it?
November 15, 2024 at 8:11 PM