British Soccer Camp

I signed all three girls up for a week long soccer camp.   Annabelle and Natalie were in a 3-5 year old group that met from 9-10.  Katie was in a 6-8 year old group that met from 10-12.  The coaches are from England (and Scotland and Ireland).  They come over for the summer and tour around the states doing soccer camps.  Katie did it last year and I was really impressed.  They keep things fun while teaching soccer skills.  Basically, the kids felt like they played games the whole time.

Annabelle really liked it.  This was her first formal experience with sports and she was really excited.

I was very happy that she got right in and had a great time.  After watching her big sister for so long it was finally her chance to get there and have some fun.

Great coaches!

Natalie was sooo excited to have shin guards and her own ball.  (Everyone got a ball the first day of camp.)

She was less interested in staying with the group.  She would last around 20-30 minutes and then take off and just kick the ball around on her own in a different part of the field.  Sometimes the coaches would come and try to coax her back in.
(That's Katie in the background).

"Mom, call my cell phone so I can have an excuse to leave." 
Actually, when she was ready to leave the group she would look over at me and start scoping out a good opportunity to sneak off.

Then she'd grab her ball and run for the sidelines.  I encouraged her to participate but never really pressured her.  The only reason I signed her up was because she'd be in the same group with Annabelle.  She had a great time that week and that's what mattered. 
She would say things like,
"I'm the best soccer player ever!"
and
"Soccer girl, to the rescue!"

At the end of the week they had a little ceremony with the coaches where they got an evaluation on their soccer skills.

Katie had already decided that she's not going to sign up for soccer in the Fall.  She's ready to take a break and maybe try something different. She's done 4 rounds of it plus the camp last summer.  She was still a good sport and hung in there during some long, hot days.

Apparently, girls that play soccer have a higher rate of head and neck injuries.

Wonder why?
Maybe we'll find a sport with less impact.
Badminton?

This beach umbrella totally saved us that week.  Three hours on the soccer field every day would have had us fried without it.
Overall, it was a fun experience. I know Katie doesn't want to do it next year but we'll see about the other two.