If you are looking for physical activity to keep your children from being on a potato couch, there are basketball drills for kids early. The sport will build their interpersonal ability, help them acquire the game’s basic skills, and learn team-building techniques. It will encourage them to exercise and stay active later in life.

For 7-year old kids, the focus is on developing fundamental skills, and the program is designed to make it a fun experience. Follow us as we look into fun basketball drills for beginners, tweaked a bit to make it interesting for your little tyke.

Why are Basketball Drills Important for Kids?

Watching your NBA heroes do their stuff on the court is fun and exciting. But playing the game may seem difficult because it requires myriad skills, stamina, and smarts. Good thing it is a sport for all ages. Kids involved in any form of sports are helpful to the development of their physical, mental, and emotional well-being.

Some programs are designed for children under 10. When it comes to basketball drills for 7-year olds, kids will have a fun time playing while acquiring the basic skills of the sport. The minor players will enjoy working through challenging games while developing their technical and tactical abilities.

That said, your youngster acquires dribbling, passing, and shooting skills which they use when they are up against an opponent in a real game. 

Following are benefits derived from basketball drills for your kids.

Physical Fitness

Your little tykes are still in the developmental stage. Basketball drills will develop leg and foot strength when running and jumping, keeping their balance while walking. Exercises are essential for young children who need encouragement to walk.

Getting physically active earlier develops excellent energy levels, aerobic capability, and muscle improvement. The energy levels are increased to avoid fatigue acquired from a hard day’s work at the office. Better balance and gait coordination prevent older people from falling.

Builds Social Skills

Beginning basketball training at an early age develops your child’s social skills. Playing with other kids allows him to interact and make friends with peers. Team sports improve communication and solve fundamental problems. Experiencing success and failures in a healthy competition prepares children to cope with situations in the future.

Improves self-esteem

Basketball has its ups and downs. Failures from a lost game or a wasted shot allow your child to wallow in self-pity. Coaches and teammates are there to boost your kid’s morale and to provide the motivation to do better. Playing ball with friends is a great stress reliever for stuck kids. Playing great and receiving praises from the team lowers anxiety and encourages self-confidence.

Encourages Sportsmanship

Humans, by nature, find happiness in success and depression in defeat. Kids are not born with good sportsmanship. You’ll see sad faces, tears, or unusual behavior when they lose—to them, winning means a lot.

Basketball drills teach kids to be graceful in defeat and celebrate success without being conceited. When kids are taught how to lose gracefully, their tempers are kept in check when someone loses theirs.

Nurtures Competitive Spirit

Basketball is a game that encourages players to work hard, play as a team, and be competitive positively. The competitive spirit can spill over to better grades in school and better friendships. Competitive individuals are likely to attain success in their careers and lives.

Develop Physical Literacy

Physical literacy gives one’s best ability when participating or performing in physical activity and sport. You can count it as one of the benefits of basketball drills for kids. When your youngster starts playing basketball, they develop compassion and accountability for the welfare of others, in addition to creativity. It allows children to create their problem-solving skills and live active lifestyles that they would not have done without physical literacy.

Teaches Discipline

Discipline teaches children to work hard when they want to acquire something. Basketball is a disciplined game, and your children are taught the rules and regulations to succeed. Your youngster is trained to continue doing something, even if they don’t find it enjoyable the first time. They will learn to follow instructions from coaches, mentors, and trainers without offending.

Respect Authority

Children will learn to follow the instructions of their coach and the calls by the referee. They might disagree, but the sport’s rules are to follow the directions of the officials. In turn, they receive valuable training in discipline and teamwork. They will carry this experience outside of basketball, teaching your children how to follow guidelines and apply this lesson in academics and social settings.

One of the lessons taught in basketball is to respect authority. This training is vital to children who grow up in a setting without control. It breaks down barriers and teaches them how to act correctly in certain situations.

Teamwork

Players and coaching staff work as a unit. They have the same goal. Every member has each other covered; a mistake will call teammates’ attention. Kids who play basketball are disciplined this way.

5 Best Basketball Drills for 7-Year-Olds

Kids under 10 have a short attention span. That’s why drills are designed to be fun to keep your tyke involved. They’ll feel that it’s a fun game while learning. Beginners will train for 30 minutes once a week, and the schedule progress to twice a week once the kid shows interest.

The drills are quick and straightforward, focusing on muscle memory to get them to start playing on the court as quickly as possible. 

Watching this video is a good way to excite your young hoopsters before a drill. This medium will show them how kids play basketball.

Basketball Ball Handling Drills for 7-Year-Olds

If you want to communicate with the young hoopsters, it should be in a language they can relate to. Storytelling will keep them entertained. It’s not about the sport or how they dribble the ball; it’s about them. 

The goal is to relax them using either the left or the right hand for dribbling. The basketball size is 4 with a circumference of 22″ and 10 ounces.

Check out these basketball dribbling drills for 7-year olds; they are fun, simple, and effective.

Drill #1: Left hand should be at the back while the right-hand dribbles the ball.

Drill #2: Let them get into a rhythm until the ball bounces smoothly.

Drill #3: The bounce should not exceed the waist.

Drill #4: Once they gain control, let them move around while dribbling the ball.

Drill #5: Switch hands; the right hand is at the back while the left-hand dribble the ball. Repeat Drills l- 4.

Drill #6: Once they have reasonable control, let them change hands while dribbling.

Drill #7: If they have reasonable control with either hand, let them move around while dribbling.

Things may not be turning out as expected. There are loose balls all over, and kids are getting frustrated. Consider showing this video during break time, and this will teach them to dribble the ball properly. 

Basketball Shooting Drills

We’re not after shooting accuracy. Our focus is to work on the shooting form and let the youngsters feel how a basketball rolls of their fingers.

Drill #1: The shooting arm is vertical, in front of the face and the palm facing up.

Drill #2:  Put the ball in the shooting hand with the other hand lightly touching the side of the ball.

Drill #3:  Push the ball upwards using the shooting arm’s wrist and fingertips.

Drill #4:  Catch the ball and repeat drills 1-3.

Drill #5:  The non-shooting hand should only hold the ball in place and not push the ball.

Basketball Passing Drills

There are three types of passing in basketball: bounce, chest, and overhead. Our young hoopsters haven’t developed the muscles for an overhead pass. We’ll leave the overhead pass and focus on the other two keys.

Bounce Pass

Drill #1: Put a leg forward towards your target.

Drill #2: The ball should be at chest level.

Drill #3: Use both hands when passing.

Drill #4: The thumb should be pointing to the floor.

Drill #5: The ball should bounce once before a teammate receives a pass.

Chest Pass

Drill #1: The ball should be at the chest with both hands.

Drill #2: Aim for your teammate’s chest.

Drill #3: Step a foot forward, pointing to your target.

Drill #4: Your arms should be extended with palms out when releasing the ball

Drill #5: The thumb should be pointed downwards.

Basketball Defense Drills 

Playing defense is one of the most manageable fun basketball drills for 7-year olds. You can’t keep kids in one place. They are very busy with their feet. They can have their fill because this drill is all about footwork.

Drill #1: Place the kids in a defensive posture with bent knees and about a quarter squat.

Drill #2: Extend their arms with their hands up.

Drill #3: Let them take a step to the right side with the right foot while dragging the left foot.

Drill #4: Repeat this 2 or 3 times.

Drill #5: Switch feet, the left foot takes a step to the left side while dragging the right foot.

Drill #6: Repeat this 2 or 3 times;

Drill #7: Continue switching the left and right foot until they get used to it.

Drill #8: Maintain the hands and arms posture, and keep them busy. The hand is part of the defense and also for balance when moving.

Drill #9: Once they are familiar with the drill, add more fun by dribbling a ball and letting them react to your movements.

Drill #10: If they show good lateral movement, inject forward and backward movement.   

Basketball Offense Drills 

For 7-year-olds, the offense is a combination of footwork, dribbling, and shooting. We don’t expect these hoopsters to acquire the skills at a tender age. Making it a fun game to keep them interested is a step in the right direction.

Footwork

Footwork is how players get past their opponent and score. Kids under ten don’t have the movement to pivot, slide, or drop steps. Spend at least 10-15 minutes on footwork drills every session. Check their lateral movement, and once there’s an improvement, proceed with the frontal and backward movement.

Dribbling

Keep the kid’s head up, open the palm, and start dribbling. Start with five dribbles on the right hand and switch to the left hand. Spend at least 10 minutes for the ballhandling drill.

Shooting

Spend at least 10 minutes for the shooting drill. Kids will love to heave the ball to the hoop 6 feet high. Expect Hail Mary shots to give high fives to every successful attempt.

Fun Basketball Games for 7-year-olds

It’s hard to get the attention of kids under 10 for a few minutes, much less get them to learn the basics of basketball. But it is possible. They won’t know the difference between play and work once they watch this video. The trick is to put learning dribbling, passing, and shooting into a fun game.

You’ll see the excitement build up with a smile on their face and the glow in their eyes. They’ll be eager to perform these two fun basketball drills waiting for them.

Red Light, Green Light 

If you’ve watched “Squid Games,” you might have a blast viewing the episode “Red Light, Green Light.” But this is far different from the Netflix movie; it’s all about developing basketball skills for kids. The drill will teach kids to dribble, body control, and movement.

Step 1. A player will be assigned a judge/traffic light and stand on a baseline without a ball.

Step 2. The rest of the young hoopsters will face the judge with a ball in hand, standing at the opposite baseline.

Step 3. Green light means the players can run and dribble the ball, moving towards the judge. Red light means to stop dribbling and stay stationary.

Step 4. When the judge calls red light, a player moving is out of the game.

Step 5. The goal is to reach the baseline where the judge is standing without being called out. The first basketeer to get to the baseline is deemed the winner.

Musical Basketballs

Of all the basketball drills for 7-year olds, your kids might be familiar with this one, and it’s similar to “Trip to Jerusalem” or “Musical Chairs.” It’s a fun game to develop their shooting game.

Step 1. Prepare an audio player for playing music.

Step 2. Each player should have a basketball.

Step 3. All basketballs are placed around a circle.

Step 4. Players circle the basketballs while the music plays.

Step 5. Each player gets a basketball and shoots at the hoop when the music stops.

Step 6. Players who make a basket sits down. 

Step 7. Players who missed the hoop try again.

Step 8. The last kid standing is out.

Wrapping Things Up: Basketball Drills for 7-Year Olds

Introducing basketball drills for 7-year olds is not easy. Kids of this age have no concrete behavior to listen, understand, and do drills. You were a kid once; you know that they’ll get bored and complain if they do the same thing repeatedly.

Drills should be fun and exciting so they won’t know the difference between play and work. They should enjoy playing so their love for the game will grow.

Hopefully, the drills we prepared can spark interest in your child’s practice.

We hope you enjoyed this post! If you did, be sure to check out our other basketball FAQ articles here.

You might also be interested in our posts about:

> Basketball Drills for 10-Year Olds

> Basketball Drills for 5-Year Olds

> Basketball Drills for 6-Year Olds

> Basketball Drills for 8-Year Olds

> Basketball Drills for 9-Year Olds