Coaching Young Athletes

Making Discus Safe, Fun, and Imaginative for Kids

The image above shows the discus set-up I used at an athletics come & try day for kids with disability.

Notice the cones leading the path to a clearly marked waiting point and the entrance to the discus cage. A common safety issue with discus events occurs when kids lean against or put their fingers through the cage while waiting for their turn. Kids peeking around the edge of the cage to watch the thrower before them can also be a big problem! We need to keep the kids away from the cage.

Words alone often aren’t enough. In this case, clear visual cues – like the cones leading to the circle – were incredibly effective in guiding the kids safely to the throwing area and keeping them clear of the cage.

But what really captured their attention was a story. Waiting in line is not what kids want in sport. So, I turned the activity into a space adventure:

• The discus became a “Spaceship”
• The throwing circle was the “Launch Pad”
• The landing sector was the “Galaxy”
• The cage turned into the “Forcefield” that can’t be touched!
• Cones marked the “Passage to the Space Station”
• The kids were “Pilots”
• Each throw was a “Mission”
• And the command to throw? “3…2…1…Blast Off!”

To make it even more fun, we marked different landing zones along the sector lines with coloured cones. We named them “Mercury,” “Venus,” “Mars,” and “Jupiter.”

Bringing imagination into the session helped the kids stay engaged and follow instructions.

Visuals and stories can be just as powerful as instructions alone, often even more so. When it comes to teaching kids, safety starts with structure, but engagement takes imagination.

Try This Too

Involve the kids in giving the countdown and blast-off signal. This keeps them engaged and actively participating in the event.

Why These Strategies Matter

• Inclusive and engaging activities build buy-in.
• Kids are more likely to come back to sport if it’s fun and imaginative.
• Safety improves when kids are focused, not distracted or bored.

Free Download #1

Want a printable ready-to-go activity sheet?

Download the “Space Mission: Discus Adventure” here for free.

Reflective Questions

Whether you’re a coach, helper, or activity leader, the questions below are designed to help you reflect on how you work with kids, especially in busy, high-energy settings like athletics. Writing down your answers will help the information stick. Use the questions to help you plan set-ups that are safer, clearer, and more engaging. There are no perfect answers; just useful ideas to explore!

1. Have you ever seen an issue with safety at a throwing event or another sports activity where kids need to wait their turn? What contributed to it? How could it be solved?
2. Think about a time when kids struggled to follow safety instructions. Was there a way to make the message clearer through visuals or stories?
3. What simple story or theme could you create for another event, like long jump, hurdles, or relays? Or another sport?
4. How can we make our coaching more inclusive for kids of all abilities and attention levels?

Free Download # 2

Do you want a printable copy of these questions?

Download the reflective questions coaching toolkit here for free.

Your Turn: What’s Worked for You?

Have you used stories or visuals to help kids learn a skill? Share your ideas in the comments. We’d love to hear them!

Further reading

How To Teach Discus To Young Athletes E-Book (plus bonus cheat sheet) by Coaching Young Athletes

Articles:

10 Quick And Easy Teaching Tips For Discus

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