Generally the younger the age the less time should be spent on unobtainable success with ball in the air drills. The older the girls get the more passing and catching should be in the practice. Shooting incorporates the same motion as throwing so spend more time on shooting than shuttles. Three to four girls can shoot at the same time too and in less than a minute every girl has completed her skill. Shuttles are not appropriate for a younger age as it involves two girls playing and some bigger number standing in line waiting for them to chase down the missed ball. They will lose attention quickly that way.
Cradling in a fun relay in teams of three where the ball is dropped and scooped or even handed off is more appropriate for 8U & 10U. Using the space behind the goal is foreign to most new players so your relay could include an aiming point back there. An underhand scoop pass and basket catch from close range will be more successful. Do some overhand, too, but at this age you need more "you did it!" drills than "nice try" drills. Hungry Hippos is a game they may already know and involves ground balls, running, cradling and competing. Fun!
How much more you incorporate ball in the air drills for older ages completely depends on success ratio. The temptation is to keep hammering shuttles because you want them to be able to do it. Is lacrosse enjoyable for your players if they keep failing? You can always come back to it later. Set them up to succeed. What drills can you do so your girls have success at practice and are all smiles? In a 3 v. 3 or 4 v. 4 free play game with an emphasis on attempting three passes (and perhaps with one of them to a player behind the goal) they are playing versus drilling. In that type of drill they are in game mode trying to complete passes. But even the contested ground ball is a success whereas a miss in shuttles and retrieving the ball is just work and not any fun. Fun games involving skills and objectives will improve them more than line drills. Will it be messy at first? Yes. But so are unproductive shuttles in so many other ways.
