Our local rec league prepares by having just one pre-season meeting. Mostly, we go over the differences between our rec rules and NF rules. I make up a "matrix" showing the differences at the different grade levels. This takes about 30 minutes to review. Then, the experienced guys leave and the newbies stay for another hour to go over mechanics and floor positioning. We usually assign an experienced ref to do on-site mentoring during the newbie's games their first season. That guy gets paid a full game fee, so the guys don't mind doing it at all.
If someone misses the meeting, they have to fill out a form that says:
I missed the meeting because
a) I was hit by a car that day and was in the hospital
b) Some other reason
If a), they can continue in the program. If b), they are dropped.
