The skill acquisition essential reading section consists of articles we strongly advise you read before delving deeper into the specifics. You will find articles that give you background information that will help you understand the overall process of skill acquisition including how purposeful play, fundamental perceptual motor skills, deliberate play and deliberate practice all relate to each other and are important at different stages.

his section provides you with valuable information on what research tells us should be the guiding principles of skill acquisition, the defining capabilities of expert performers and the best way to learn. The articles and accompanying videos in this section deliver what can be complex information in an easy to understand manner, making it easier for you to facilitate successful learning experiences for young athletes.

Deliberate play and deliberate practise are both important concepts of skill acquisition. This section helps you understand exactly what they are, their benefits and when they are important in the skill development process, as well as lots of practical information about how to facilitate deliberate play and deliberate practise that relates to all sports.

his section teaches you how anticipation and pattern recognition skills help kids play sport at a higher level. Skill acquisition research is showing us the importance of these skills to sports performance. The articles and videos contained in this section will help you facilitate experiences for young athletes that lead to the development of anticipation skills and the ability to recognise patterns in their sport.

Tactics and decision making skills are defining capabilities of expert performers. In this section you will find information on how tactical and decision making skills lead to successful sporting outcomes, how these skills develop and what you can do for kids beyond ten years to facilitate the improvement of these skills over time.

his section will help you go about designing practise activities in keeping with key skill acquisition principles. It will also give you plenty of practical examples that relate to lots of sports. You will find articles that will help you facilitate the right environment and culture to enhance skill learning.

The skills and pressure section helps you understand how pressure, which mostly comes in the form of competition, can affect skill performance. This section will teach you how you can facilitate skill learning experiences that will lead to pressure resilience skills in the future, and how you can manipulate play and practice to improve skill performance under pressure.

This section teaches how your interactions with young athletes is crucial in helping them develop self reflection and evaluation skills which are essential to long term skill improvement. You will also find lots of information on how play and practise activities can be designed to emphasise feedback, which in turn helps athletes to reflect on their experiences.

This section looks at how the brain changes as athletes acquire more efficient and adaptable skills. Understanding these changes will help you be clear and consistent in your approach to the skill learning process in the long term. You will also find valuable information regarding critical periods of brain development and how the play and practise you facilitate - and your interactions in and around this play and practise - can shape brain development.

In the competition section you can hear from coaching experts on all aspects of competition including planning, interacting with athletes before, during and after competition, and how coaches should approach competition for different ages.