Floor Hockey Games in PE: 9 Stations and Drills Your Students Will Love
Updated: 2 days ago
Hockey season is here, and your students are probably already talking about it! Floor hockey is one of the best ways to get kids excited and moving in PE. The game is easy to adapt for any ability level, and with modified equipment and simple rules, students can learn it safely and have a blast doing it. With hockey growing more popular with kids every year, many of your students will be eager to build their skills right there in your gym.
Floor hockey is packed with skills that fit naturally into a PE unit. Passing, stick handling (dribbling), and shooting all work well in floor hockey lesson plans, helping students build real skill while staying active. Try shooting accuracy challenges, stick handling drills, and passing games, and add team challenges that build teamwork and communication. Above all, keep it fun! Add exciting twists and change things up often. A floor hockey spin board is an easy way to add variety.
In this post, I'll share a variety of floor hockey drills, stations, and games you can use in your lesson plans, with details and tips to make your floor hockey unit more engaging and fun. It's time to grab the sticks and get playing. Let's go!
Quick Answer: The best way to teach floor hockey in PE is with safe, modified equipment, short skill stations for stick handling, passing, and shooting, and then small-sided games where students put those skills to use. Keep sticks below the waist, keep groups small, and give every student lots of touches on the ball or puck.
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Can Floor Hockey Activities Help Students Meet Standards?
Floor hockey games aren't just a blast. The skills students build also support district, state, and national PE standards. The activities in this post line up with SHAPE America Standard 1: Develops a variety of motor skills.
National Physical Education Standards are used under license from SHAPE America.
Tips for Implementing Floor Hockey in Physical Education
Small group games and stations are a great way to teach the fundamentals of floor hockey while keeping it fun! These 10 tips will help you create floor hockey experiences your students will love.
1. Put Safety First: Use modified floor hockey equipment, such as foam balls, lightweight nets, and sticks with foam blades. Safer equipment creates a better learning environment and gives students more chances to succeed.
2. Plan for Success: Plan activities that fit your students' age and skill level, and choose the stations and small group games that best match your group's needs.
3. Make It Fun: Build fun into your floor hockey unit with exciting station tasks, challenges, relays, and games.
4. Give Everyone a Chance to Play: Make sure every student gets plenty of "touches" on the ball or puck. In games, keep every player involved so no one is left out.
5. Reinforce Positive Behaviors: Encourage students to take turns, show good sportsmanship, respect each other's ability levels, and cheer each other on!
6. Modify Activities as Needed: Have a few versions of each activity ready. If students are struggling or cruising, adjust the activity to better meet their needs.
7. Warm Up Well: Start every floor hockey class with a warm-up that uses whole-body movements to get muscles ready. My instant activities post has quick ideas.
8. Use Stations to Teach Skills: Stations are a great way to practice shooting accuracy, stick handling, and passing.
9. Add Small Group Games: Once students have practiced a few key skills, use the power of play to make learning fun! Small-sided games, relays, and group challenges can be adapted for every skill level.
10. Cool Down and Reflect: End every floor hockey lesson with a cool-down and a few minutes of reflection. Have students think about what they learned, what went well, and what they can do better next time.
Need more floor hockey stations for your PE classes? Cap'n Pete's PE Stations: 20 Fun Floor Hockey Activities & Games will take your class to the next level. For a full unit, check out the Floor Hockey Skills & Games Unit with 10 K-5 lesson plans.
9 Engaging PE Floor Hockey Stations and Games
Check out these nine floor hockey stations and small group games. They're perfect for getting your students energized!
1. Circle Dribble (Stick Handling)
Overview
Students sharpen their stick handling by weaving around cones in different directions. Skill Focus: Stick Handling
Equipment and Set-up
1 hockey stick and ball/puck per student
7 to 15 cones
Place a ball and stick at the start of each circle course
Students line up at the start. Keep the lines as short as possible (2 to 4 in a line)
Station Instructions
Students work in partners or small groups and take turns stick handling around the circle course.
Remind them to keep the ball close to the blade and their eyes up.
Dribble the ball around the outside of the cones in a counterclockwise direction
Dribble in and out of the cones in a zig-zag pattern
Walk first, then jog as you travel
At the halfway point, everyone at your station switches and goes clockwise
2. Partner Wall Pass
Overview
Students take turns passing a ball off the wall and receiving it with a partner. Skill Focus: Passing and Receiving
Equipment and Set-up
2 hockey sticks and 1 ball/puck for each pair of students at the station
Gym Wall
Place 2 sticks and a ball in a designated station area near a gym wall
Station Instructions
Students work in partners and take turns passing to the wall and receiving the rebound, using both forehand and backhand passes.
One partner passes the ball against the wall while the other receives it
Take turns with your partner passing to the wall then receiving it
Gradually move further away from the wall
3. Face-Off Fun
Overview
Students take turns facing off against an opponent while a third student drops the ball as the referee. Skill Focus: Reaction Time and Face-Offs
Equipment and Set-up
2 hockey sticks and 1 ball/puck for each trio of students at the station
Place 2 sticks and a ball in a designated station area on the gym floor
Station Instructions
Students work in groups of three, taking turns facing off and dropping the ball or puck as the referee.
One student drops the ball while the other two face off
Players start with the tips of their blades almost touching
After each face-off, players try right away to gain possession of the ball
After 3 drops, switch out the referee
4. Roll It Ramp
Overview
Students take turns passing or shooting a ball up a ramp, trying to make it land in a bucket on the other side. Skill Focus: Passing and Shooting
Equipment and Set-up
1 hockey stick and 1 ball or puck for each small group at the station
A poly spot to pass from
Place a stick and ball on a poly spot across from a ramp (a tilted table, as shown in the video below)
Watch the video above to see award-winning physical educator Randy Spring (@MrSpringPE) run the Roll It Ramp and other GREAT floor hockey stations in his Minnesota program!
Station Instructions
Students work in pairs or groups of three, taking turns shooting a ball up a tilted ramp to try to land it in the bucket.
Pass or shoot the ball so it travels up and over the ramp in front of you
Try to hit it with just the right amount of speed for it to drop into the bucket on the other side
Try passing or shooting from different distances
After 3 successful shots, move the bucket closer or further away from the ramp
5. Hockey Bowling
Overview
Students take turns shooting (2 shots) from a poly spot, trying to knock down a set of bowling pins. Skill Focus: Shooting Accuracy
Equipment and Set-up
1 hockey stick and 2 balls or pucks for each small group at the station
A poly spot to shoot from
Place a stick and ball on a poly spot across from a set of bowling pins
Station Instructions
Working in pairs or groups of three, students take turns trying to knock down the pins.
Take turns shooting from the poly spot to knock down the pins
Take 2 shots in a row, just like real bowling
Have a partner clear the fallen pins before your second shot
Try shooting from different distances
Keep score by counting how many pins you knock down while you're at the station
6. Shoot on the Goalie
Overview
Students take turns switching between shooter and goalie. Skill Focus: Stick Handling, Shooting, and Goalkeeping
Equipment and Set-up
2 hockey sticks and 1 ball or puck for each small group at the station
A poly spot to start and stick handle from
A cone or line to shoot from
A hockey goal (an upright mat or 2 cones set apart work too)
Place a stick and ball on a poly spot across from the goal
Station Instructions
Students work in small groups and take turns trying to shoot the ball past the goalie.
Stick handle in from a start line and take a shot on the goalie (only 1 shot)
Try to score a goal by getting it past the goalie and into the goal
Switch places with the goalie
The former goalie brings the ball back to the next shooter in line
From My PE Classes
We used soft floor hockey sticks with foam blades and plastic handles, and they were very safe. My students loved the floor hockey stations, especially going 1 on 1 against a goalie. I loved playing goalie myself. Students took turns, one at a time, trying to shoot and score on me... and they did!
7. Hit the Targets (Floor Hockey Game)
Overview
Students try to knock balls off a row of cones set up along the center line. Skill Focus: Stick Handling and Shooting Accuracy
Equipment and Set-up
1 hockey stick per student playing in the game
Several balls or pucks
Several Cones with a large ball on the top
Set up 2 end lines (for shooting) with a row of cones in the middle
Place a ball on top of each of the cones
Players start from behind their end line with a stick and a ball
Game Instructions
Players use their hockey ball or puck to knock the larger balls off as many cones as possible within a set time. It's exciting and challenging!
Shoot to knock the ball off any of the cones on the center line
Each ball you knock off counts as a point for your team. Use a scorekeeper if you can
Assign someone to put the balls back on top of the cones after they're knocked off
After you shoot, dribble a ball back to your end line and shoot again. All shots must be taken from behind the line
The team with the most points wins
8. 3 vs. 3 Pin Ball (Floor Hockey Game)
Overview
Students play an action-packed game of 3 vs. 3, trying to knock down the other team's three bowling pins! Skill Focus: Stick Handling, Passing, Shooting, and Defending
Equipment and Set-up
1 hockey stick per player
1 ball per group of 6
6 bowling pins (3 at each end)
1 team starts with the ball (the other team gives them space)
Follow your floor hockey safety rules, and assign a referee for each game to make the final calls
Game Instructions
Two teams of 3 play against each other, trying to knock down the other team's pins on their end line.
The 3 players on each team work together to stick handle, pass, and shoot at the other team's pins
A knocked-over pin stays down until the end of the game
When a pin is knocked down, the team that was scored on gets the ball
Keep sticks below the waist at all times for safety
The first team to knock down all 3 of the other team's pins wins
9. Small-Sided Floor Hockey Games
Overview
Teams of 5 play a modified version of floor hockey inside the gym. Skill Focus: Stick Handling, Passing, Shooting, and Defending
Equipment and Set-up
1 ball or puck for each game
Scrimmage vests (2 colors)
2 goals or 4 cones per playing group
2 to 4 cones to mark midline
Folded mats set in between games to block the balls from entering the other games
2 hula hoops per game for penalty areas
Game Set-up
Create 1, 2, or 3 playing areas in the gym using goals (or cones for goals)
Separate the games with mats, or have waiting students sit between games until their team rotates in (teams of 5 to 7)
Mark goalie boxes with tape
Players begin in the formation shown in the diagram below. Note: the diagram shows only 1 of the 2 teams in each game.
Game Instructions
Players set up with 1 goalie, 2 defenders and 2 forwards. One team starts with the ball at the midline
The game is played using most regulation floor hockey rules with some modifications
Defenders must stay in their own half of the playing court. If they cross the line, they are offside and have to go to the penalty hula hoop and count to 50
The “goalie box” is off-limits to all players except the goalie
There is no contact or high sticking in the game. If physical contact or high sticking occurs, the player causing the infraction must go to the penalty hula hoop and count to 50
When players go to the hoop to count, play continues without any stoppage
Shots must be taken outside the opposing team(s) goalie box area
Final Thoughts
Floor hockey stations, activities, and games are a great way to get your students engaged and active. Mix up the skill focus and keep things fun and challenging for every level of player. The 9 stations and games in this post help students build stick handling, passing, shooting, accuracy, and team play. I hope you enjoy watching your students have fun while learning the fundamentals of floor hockey! If you want everything in one place, the Floor Hockey PE Bundle has lesson plans, stations, and skill signs.
Do you have go-to floor hockey activities or games your students love? Share them in the comments below. I can't wait to read your ideas!
Looking for lacrosse activities for PE? Check out this article on my blog:
Need Resources?
Do you need sport skill stations for your PE program with detailed instructions and eye-catching graphics? Here's one to help!
Fill in the form below to download 20 FREE Sport-Specific PE Station Signs. This PDF download includes two cards from each of these sport station sets: 1. Base Games, 2. Basketball, 3. Floor Hockey, 4. Football, 5. Lacrosse, 6. Paddle & Racket Sports, 7. Soccer, 8. Team Handball, 9. Track & Field, and 10. Volleyball.
This freebie set will boost your PE curriculum for years!
20 Sets of Sport Stations for PE
If you're looking for a way to really spice up your PE program, Cap'n Pete's PE Sports Stations: 10 Product Mega Bundle is the perfect supplement. It includes over 200 fun, sports-themed station signs and cards (20 stations per sport) to use in your gym or teaching area.
You can find this bundle in my Teachers Pay Teachers store: PE Stations: 10 Resource Bundle, Sports Activities & Games
This collection helps you teach important skills and concepts from 10 traditional sports: basketball, base games, football, floor hockey, lacrosse, paddle and racket sports, soccer, track and field, team handball, and volleyball.
About Pete Charrette
Pete Charrette is a National Board Certified physical education teacher and former Georgia PE Teacher of the Year with more than 30 years of experience teaching elementary PE. He is the creator of Cap'n Pete's Power PE and has developed more than 1,000 PE and health resources used by teachers around the world. Pete loves helping PE teachers build programs their students enjoy.
