The age groups noted earlier are a guideline and it is quite likely that when coaching 10-12 year olds there may be a player that has no experience with basketball and accordingly is at the stage of a much younger player. Similarly, there may be an 8 year old player that has been involved in basketball for 3 or 4 years and has skills that are more advanced than older players. Accordingly, it is important that the coach make an evaluation of the skills of each player and be prepared to make variations to include all players in activities to their level of skill and experience. This may require different players to participate in activities differently - for example, some players may use their preferred hand when dribbling and others may be challenged to use their non-preferred hand.