Head the ball cleanly and with power off the forehead. Attack the ball, meet it with the flat of the forehead, and direct it down to a target or up and long to clear.
A server lofts the ball for the player to head, from a standing header first, then a jumping header. Attack the ball and meet it on the flat of the forehead, heading it down to a target for an attacking header or up and long to clear. Keep the eyes open and the neck firm. Serve gently and rotate roles, and always coach safe, age-appropriate heading loads. Heading loads: no deliberate heading at U11 and under, and at U12-U13 keep it to roughly 15-20 headers in a session and under 30 minutes of heading a week, using a correctly sized and properly inflated ball (US Soccer and FA guidance).
Under US Soccer's heading guidance there is no deliberate heading at U11 and below, and limited heading in training between U12 and U13. That is why this drill floors at twelve, and it is worth a coach knowing the rule rather than discovering it. It also shapes how the first sessions should look: low volume, hand-fed serves, and no contested balls until the technique is secure.
The technique itself comes down to one decision, which is whether the player attacks the ball or lets it arrive. Attacking it means the head is moving forwards through contact, the neck is braced, and the player controls where it goes. Letting it arrive means the ball hits a stationary head, which produces no power, no direction and considerably more discomfort. Almost every young player's aversion to heading comes from having experienced the second version.
Contact should be on the flat of the forehead, at the hairline, which is the hardest and most stable part of the skull and the part a player can actually aim with. Contact on the top of the head is where the sore, badly-directed headers come from.
The two non-negotiables are eyes open and mouth shut. Closing the eyes at the last moment is the most common fault and it makes the contact point a guess. Mouth shut protects the jaw and stabilises the neck.
Direction is decided by where the forehead is relative to the ball at contact: above it sends the ball down, underneath it sends the ball up and long.
Save it to your private drills, then change the animation, adjust positions, swap equipment, or drop it into a session block. Or start from a blank pitch and build your own.