How to Plan Lacrosse PE Lessons with Soft Sticks

Quick answer

How do you plan a soft-stick lacrosse unit for PE?

Teach soft-stick lacrosse in a fixed order: grip and cradle first, then scooping, then throwing and catching with a partner, then short small-sided games. Use one soft stick per student, soft balls, and no-contact rules from the first lesson. Keep passing in pairs instead of long lines so students stay active, and assess a few students per class with a simple checklist.

• Order: grip and cradle, scooping, throwing and catching, moving with the ball, small-sided games.
• Leave about a stick length plus an arm's reach of free space around each student.
• Non-contact from the start: no checking, no stick-to-stick contact, sticks below shoulder height.

1 more point

• SHAPE America recommends moderate-to-vigorous activity for 50 percent of PE class time.

What equipment do you need to teach lacrosse in PE?

Plan one soft stick and about one soft ball per student, because cradling and scooping drills need a ball for each person. For a class of 24, that is 24 sticks and roughly 30 balls, with spares for the ones that roll under the bleachers. Hard rubber lacrosse balls carry a different injury risk and belong to programs that issue protective gear. For a beginner class, use soft, pliable balls and ask your administrator about district rules on eyewear and other gear before the unit starts.

The rest of the kit is probably in your equipment room already:

• cones or poly spots for personal spots, passing lanes and goal gates
• hula hoops that serve as targets or ball nests
• pinnies for scrimmage teams
• a bin per group, so no loose balls sit on the floor between rounds
• about 6 ft of open wall per student if you want wall passing

Let each student pick a top hand in the first lesson and switch to the other side once the cradle is steady. If your stick heads are symmetrical, students can change hands without changing sticks.

Which skills should come first: cradling, scooping, or passing?

Start with grip and cradle. A student who cannot hold the ball in the pocket has nothing to do after a scoop or a catch, so stick control comes first. Scooping comes next because it ends in a cradle and makes loose balls playable. Throwing and catching with a partner follows once students trust the pocket. The USA Lacrosse PE curriculum, described on the SHAPE America blog, lists the same early order for grades K–2: stick introduction, cradling, scooping, then throwing.

Older classes add tactics. The same curriculum lists dodging, on-ball defense and stick protection for grades 6–8, and the draw, team preparation and game analysis for grades 9–12. For another stick-and-ball unit, see our floor hockey guide. Our team handball guide covers a game with the same passing and open-space tactics, played without sticks.

How much space do you need for passing lines and small-sided games?

Skip long passing lines. SHAPE America recommends 50 percent of class time at moderate-to-vigorous intensity (dodgeball position statement), and eight students waiting behind one thrower work against that. Use pairs in separate lanes.

On grass, walk the field before class and check for holes and wet spots. Indoors, collect loose balls between rounds, because a ball under a sneaker is a slip risk.

Partner Pass Streak turns the pairs setup into a game. Partners stand about 10 ft apart and throw to each other's stick during a one-minute round, counting consecutive catches. A drop, or a throw the partner cannot reach with one step, resets the count to zero; the player who dropped it picks the ball up by hand and the pair starts counting again at once. A pair's score is its best streak of the round. The round ends at the whistle; the Countdown Timer in PhysEdPrep has a 1-minute quick pick with a whistle at the end. Balls that roll out of a lane are collected at the whistle, and a pair that loses its ball takes a spare from the bin. Pairs with a streak of 8 or more can step back one pace for the next round; adjust that threshold to your class.

What no-contact rules should you set before the first scrimmage?

Read these rules aloud, ask students to repeat them back, and practice the stop signal once at walking speed. A soft stick or ball can still hurt a shin or a face at close range.

• Sticks stay below shoulder height and are never swung like a bat.
• No checking, no slapping at sticks, no body contact. Defenders cover space and intercept passes.
• Pass and shoot below shoulder height at a teammate's stick or a target, never at a head.
• Throw only when the receiver is looking and has a target stick up.
• At the whistle the ball stops and every stick head goes to the floor.

Gate Lacrosse is a first scrimmage built on these rules. Play 3-on-3 or 4-on-4 on a half court. Each team defends a gate of two cones about 6 ft apart on its end line, with no goalie, so no shot is aimed at a person. A team scores one point when it passes or shoots the ball through the other gate below shoulder height after at least two passes. A dropped ball or an out-of-bounds pass is a turnover: the player who lost it picks the ball up by hand and gives it to the nearest opponent, who restarts with a pass from that spot (or from the boundary line after an out-of-bounds pass) while defenders stay an arm's length back. A contact foul gives the ball to the fouled team at the same restart. Flip a coin for first possession: that team starts with a pass from behind its own gate, and after a goal the team scored on restarts the same way. Keep the area behind each gate clear of people, because missed shots roll or fly past the end line. A game ends at 5 goals or at the whistle, then teams rotate to a new opponent.

How do you adapt lacrosse for mixed-ability classes?

The USA Lacrosse curriculum, as the SHAPE America blog describes it, uses R.E.E.L. (Rules, Equipment, Environment, Learning Strategies) as a memory aid for modification options. Here is one way to apply each; change one at a time and let students pick their level.

• Rules: beginners may pick up a dropped ball by hand and place it in the pocket, while stronger players need three passes before a shot.
• Equipment: offer a larger, softer ball for students who lose track of the ball in flight.
• Environment: shorten passing distance to about 6 ft, widen the gates, or play 2-on-2 so each student touches the ball more often.
• Learning strategies: let a partner roll or toss the ball by hand while the other works on the cradle, and post picture cues at each spot.

Mix levels on every team. The Team Creator in PhysEdPrep builds teams at random, balanced by skill or split by gender from your saved class rosters. Our guide to fair ways to pick teams without captains covers more options. For individual accommodations, follow each student's IEP or 504 plan, and see our guide to building an adaptive PE curriculum.

How can you assess stick skills without stopping play?

Choose four to six students per lesson, tell the class what you are looking for, and mark what you see during rotations or scrimmages. Over a unit of about 6 to 8 lessons, that covers a class of 24 once or twice. Use three levels: not yet, developing, secure. A roster with one column per skill and one letter per mark is enough.

Tie each skill to a standard. In SHAPE America's 2024 National PE Standards, stick skills fall under S1 (motor skills), and keeping the no-contact agreement and sharing the ball show up under S3 (social skills). Our guide to PE lesson plans and the SHAPE standards covers how lessons connect to them.

Frequently asked questions

Where can I find lacrosse PE lesson plans as a PDF?

Start with the USA Lacrosse physical education curriculum: the SHAPE America blog post links to its elementary and secondary "Lacrosse in Schools" lesson plans on SHAPE America's downloads page and describes skills by grade band (K–2, 3–5, 6–8, 9–12). Check that page for the current file format and access terms, since links on older posts can change. Compare any teacher-shared PDF with your equipment, space and no-contact rules before you use it.

How many lessons should a first lacrosse unit have?

Plan about 5 to 10 lessons, one or two for each skill block from grip and cradle to small-sided games. A class with no stick experience needs the upper end. Classes that already know stick-and-ball games such as floor hockey may need fewer lessons on cradling and scooping.

Do I need goalies in a first soft-stick unit?

No. Use cone gates or hoops as targets so no shot is aimed at a person. Add a goalie only after your district approves the equipment and rules for it, and keep every shot below shoulder height until then.

Can I teach lacrosse with only 12 sticks for 24 students?

Yes. Split the class in half: one half works with sticks in pairs while the other half feeds balls by underhand toss or observes with a checklist, then swap at the whistle. In scrimmages, run two 3-on-3 games with the 12 sticks while the other students keep score and watch for contact fouls, and swap after each game.

Do students need helmets or pads for soft-stick lacrosse?

Usually not for the setup in this guide (soft balls, soft sticks, no contact), but your district's policy decides, so ask your administrator before the unit. Each lesson plan in the USA Lacrosse PE curriculum has an equipment box at the top, so check it for every lesson you borrow. A harder ball or contact play changes the safety plan and usually calls for protective gear.