Time:
60 minutes
Equipment:
Foam, low pressure or large rubber balls, racquets, spots and small net
1. Welcome/roll call (3 min.)
2. Warm-up
Warm-up zone (5 min.)
In a sectioned area of the court, have each child do the following:
- Jump in place
- Jumping jacks
- Squats
- Jump from a squat
- Balance on one foot
- Hop on one foot
Slow stretches (2 min.)
Do the following stretches six times each, counting aloud to keep the class in sync:
- Roll neck left and then right
- Circle arms forward and backward
- Raise hands to sky and bend down to touch toes
- Trunk twists with arms spread like an airplane
3. Motor skills
Ball pickup relay (5-10 min.)
Place three racquets equidistant between the relay team and the net: one racquet on the baseline, one on the service line and one at the net. Place two balls for each child and parent on the racquet at the baseline. Children, or parents and children alternately, take a ball from the racquet at the baseline and run to place it on the first racquet. They return to the baseline to pick up another ball, bring it to the racquet at the net and return to tag the next person in line. The relay can be run in reverse to return all the balls to the baseline.
Ball traps (5 min.)
A parent-coach rolls a ball alternately to the left and right of the child, who must trap it against the ground with his or her racquet. The child pushes the ball back with her racquet. As children have success, start a "5 Club" or the parent-coach can move further away from the child to increase the tracking skill.
4. Racquet skills
Three-strikes groundstrokes (10 min.)
Use spots to position the child sideways to the net. A parent-coach tosses a foam or rubber ball to the child and counts how many the child can get over the net before three misses. Call "bounce, hit" for children who need help with timing. If the child gets five, move her back one step from the net. Do forehands and backhands separately.
Three-strikes volleys (10 min.)
Place spots to correctly position the child in front of the net. Toss balls underhand and count how many the child can get over the net before missing three. If the child gets five, then try for placement to the parent or to a target.
Racquet skills relay – forehand (5-10 min.)
Divide the children into two lines facing a short net. Coaches toss rubber balls, foam or low pressure balls to each child, one at a time. Children hit the ball back over the net and run to the end of the line. The first team that gets a specified number over the net wins the relay. The winning team takes a step further back from the net and the relay is repeated.
5. Wrap-up/homework (2 min.)
Practice suggestions:
Practice forehands with a parent tossing the ball. If the child can hit seven out of 10 forehands, then see how many consecutive forehands they can hit without missing.
Practice bump-ups with a balloon.
