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Writing a practice plan for your softball team may seem daunting at first, but the more you do it, the better you will get and the easier it will become. Every task needs a plan - from t-ball to the US National Team - and a coach with a well-thought-out plan in mind (and on paper) will run a more efficient and productive practice. Don't wing it. Organization is a huge part of coaching, and these steps will help you create a plan that is right for your team.
Of course it is to get better, but at what? What is the focus? While you can practice many skills in a block of time, you always want to start with the most important things first. Even the most seasoned coach has had a practice plan (or twelve) go off the rails, so starting with the most important tasks will help ensure you accomplish your goals. Here is a list of Alabama's Practice Objectives, something they use every year to ensure they cover important tasks in each practice.
Every coach does this a little bit differently. Some use electronic planning aids, others will stick with paper and pencil, this part is completely up to you. Practice plans may be team-focused, small-group-centered, full of drills and rotations, or rooted in competition. Different parts of the season, practice facilities, and more will dictate what any given practice may include. The NFCA network of coaches put together this guide of Practice Planning Resources to help you get started in planning your practice and give you options of format and even drills to include.
Over the course of the season, the goal of your practice plans should be to build upon each other. Each new practice plan should continue to incorporate portions of previous practices, while adding nuances of more difficult skills. For example, the first time you teach bunting, it's unlikely you will use two hours to teach EVERYTHING about the short-game. However, you may take 30 minutes and teach stance, timing, bat grip, position in the box, and execution strategy. The next practice, you may review all those things in 10 minutes and add additional time to discuss a squeeze bunt and how it is different than a sacrifice. This process of skill-building will keep the material fresh in the mind of the student-athlete, while also building on more nuanced information. Rome wasn't built in a day, and your team won't be either.
Things to consider:
Another thing that varies between certain coaches and programs is what to do with the practice plan. Some coaches keep one copy for the head coach only, others give or send a copy to all coaches, and others will send the entire plan to the team or post the plan in the dugout. This varies a lot, however, you should think about the positives and negatives of each strategy: some teams perform better when they know what to expect, and others may dread something at the end of practice so much it alters how they focus. You know yourself and your team, so you do what you think is best, but be consistent with the approach.
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