Teaching the young ones to throw

[Jaroext]

Not trying to over-simplify things...but my girls were taught to step toward the target (toe pointed to side), ball initially pointed toward 3rd, point their glove hand at target, and lead the throw with their elbow (force them to snap the ball). Is this accurate?

 

[BB875]

One more thing- girls definitely gravitate toward facing their target when throwing (like throwing darts), constantly reinforce with them the need to get sideways to the target (glove pointing at the target if you want to, otherwise have the elbow pointing at it). start with the glove shoulder toward the target and finish with the throwing shoulder toward the target. we are moving when throwing so don't expect to stand still while throwing. the whole body gets into it. (sometimes it helps for them to relate the throwing motion to a swimming motion where one arm is going back while the other goes forward)

good luck!

This is the most important bit of advice for young kids. GET SIDEWAYS. My DD#3 would not get sideways(she was 7 yrs old). We stopped and watched DD#1 HS practice for awhile & I pointed out all of the good throwers get sideways & the bad throwers do not. I had her evaluate each thrower (we were watching behind the back stop) and showed her that "good" throwers get sideways. Sometimes talking till you're blue in the face stinks, visual aids help. Of course I finally figured this out (a little) for DD#3...DD#1 & DD#2 got the lecture...lol. Good luck & whatever you do HAVE FUN with the kids!

 

[Sparky Guy]

It is worth the $40 bucks to save that training time. And I know I'll need it for someone else eventually. It's a great tool!

Amen.. Amen.. Amen... It is EXACTLY that! A Tool. Every girl I've ever had who used one all had the same thing to say at first. "It feels funny." Young kids seem to learn more quickly when they can feel something. A ThrowMax helps keep the arm at the correct angles without the player having to think about it. Now they're free to concentrate on the other mechanics of the throwing motion that are being taught. Once they quit fighting the Throwmax the correct muscle memory seems to take over even quicker.

 

[Sparky Guy]

Not trying to over-simplify things...but my girls were taught to step toward the target (toe pointed to side), ball initially pointed toward 3rd, point their glove hand at target, and lead the throw with their elbow (force them to snap the ball). Is this accurate?

What I tell the young girls to do is to point the little finger of the glove hand at their target. What I see when you tell them to point with the glove they will point with the thumb and never get to the fully open position. They will allow the shoulder of the glove hand be lazy and sag. Sometimes you'll see the elbow bend downwards. When you tell them to point at the target with the little finger of the glove hand it forces them to turn the arm over and it pulls the front shoulder towards the target without them having to think about it.

 

[ecflyguy]

I have learned the younger girls learn better if you keep them actively involved and use repitition. One "drill" I use involves groups of 4. One girl throwing from home plate, and 3 girls receiving: one down each baseline and one toward the pitching circle. The distance of the throw will vary with ability. I get them far enough apart to challenge them yet close enough to be at least semi-accurate to build confidence. The main point of emphasis is to get the body perpindicular to the target. I place a bucket of balls next to the plate (I usually use 9 balls but definitely a minimum of 3). She must start facing the target and then turn aligning her shoulders to the target. If she doesn't get turned properly, she gets "buzzed" (I use a buzzer from the Taboo game - the girls get a kick out of it). She will throw to each of the three receivers until the bucket is empty. They get a point if they start and turn correctly and make an "accurate" throw (i.e., receiver doesn't have to move).

This allows for significant repitition and quality individual instruction in a short period of time. I have seen coaches that try to teach during "warm-up" time with the girls throwing in pairs. The coach's attention switches between each of the girls after every throw. While one girl is getting instruction, the other loses focus and has less retention and incentive to adjust to the instruction she got from the previous throw. This results in lots of wasted time.

As they improve (or for the older girls), I add to the challenge level by increasing the distance, using a time limit rather than a set number of balls, or other creative ideas that the girls will come up with themselves. It is possible to have fun while maintaining strict fundamental principles. Also, the entire throwing motion can be coached using this "game." I just believe it's unfair for the players to coached on step #3 before they have the foundation of step #'s 1 & 2.