Walking to 3 Years
⏳ Session Duration: 40 minutes
👥 Parent Participation: 100% (1 parent per child)
This foundational stage encourages full parent involvement, strengthening both skill development and parent-child bonding. Using engaging equipment and small footballs, sessions introduce football-related activities that improve:
- Agility, balance, coordination, movement, football and social skills
- Number and language skills through interactive play
- Confidence in group environment
Sessions also focus on fostering a love for movement and building early physical literacy in a fun, age-appropriate setting.
2.5 to 3.5 Years
⏳ Session Duration: 40 minutes
👥 Parent Participation: 100% (1 parent per child)
This transitional class bridges the gap between toddler and preschool sessions, helping children adjust to being in a group with older toddlers. Like the Walking to 3 Years stage, it enhances:
- Football fundamentals through playful activities
- Physical development, agility, and motor skills
- Parent-child interaction, reinforcing language and number skills
The sessions create a supportive environment, improving children’s confidence in group settings while fostering a love for an active lifestyle.
Soccerstarts: Transitioning to Independent Play (3-5 Years)
⏳ Session Duration: 40 minutes
👥 Parent Participation: 50% (1 parent per child taking part during the advanced parent and child activities in this class and ideally child takes part on their own for 50% of session)
(1 parent per child taking part during the advanced parent and child activities in this class and ideally child takes part on their own for 50% of session)
This stage blends structured football activities with independent play, helping children gain confidence on their own while still benefiting from parental support too. Parents actively participate in at least half of the session, engaging in more advanced activities with their child, while the other half encourages independent participation working on age appropriate activities.
Children who are not keen/confident to take part themselves can be supported by their parents for the full class initially but parental involvement should be phased out over time.
Key Development Areas
- Strengthening social skills as children start interacting more independently
- Providing more advanced parent and child activities to develop football skills.
- Building confidence through structured football training
- Offering flexibility—some children may transition to non-parent participation classes from 4 years old, while others may benefit from continued parental involvement until they are ready to move up to the next stage at their own pace as this varies for each individual.
For new Soccerstarts participants aged 3 to 5, this group is recommended over the 4 to 6 years group, to ensure children develop at their own pace. (especially if children have not taken part in structured sports classes on their own previously)
Once children are ready they move up onto classes where they fully take part on their own.
Next Progression Levels (Non-Parent Participation)
- 4 to 6 years
- 5.5 to 7.5 years
- 7 to 9 years
This structure ensures every child is placed according to their confidence, listening skills and considering them as a individual, making the transition smooth and engaging.
