Tennis anyone?
The Start Smart Sports Development Programs has unveiled Start Smart Tennis as its newest sport-specific program. Start Smart Tennis joins the other sport-specific programs of baseball, basketball, football, golf and soccer, as well as the general skill development program.
The City of Leesburg (Fla.) and the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Youth Sports (Calif.) recently served as pilot sites for Start Smart Tennis – and both programs were met with resounding success.
“We’re extremely pleased to see our first Start Smart Tennis programs run so smoothly and have such a positive impact on the young participants and their parents,” said Andy Parker, director of the Start Smart Sports Development Programs. “Tennis is quickly becoming a popular sport among youth in this country once again and we certainly are looking forward to watching Start Smart Tennis help fuel enthusiasm for the sport and play a role in growing a new generation of young tennis players.”
Similar to other Start Smart sports-specific programs, Start Smart Tennis is a developmentally appropriate introductory tennis program for children ages 5-7. The program prepares children for organized tennis in a fun, non-threatening environment without the threat of competition or the fear of getting hurt. Age appropriate equipment from Head® and Penn® is used in teaching ground strokes, serving, volleying and running/agility.
The program features four different stations, where children can learn about and practice various aspects of the game. Children are taught to master simple tennis skills, such as balancing a tennis ball on their racket while moving in different directions, bouncing the ball on their racket as many times as possible, hitting the ball in midair in the direction of their parent, and negotiating an agility course created by the coaches before the session.
Like all Start Smart programs, Start Smart Tennis is designed for the children to work one-on-one with a parent or guardian in a safe, pressure-free environment.
Start Smart Tennis is now available in the traditional Start Smart group setting or in the new Start Smart At Home format (http://shop.nays.org).
For more information on Start Smart Tennis, or any of the other Start Smart programs available, click on the Start Smart link on the left-hand side of the home page.
