“A good lesson isn't one perfect shot. It's a shot that still works next week.”
Developing the whole child across several areas at once: technique, tactics, movement, mind and social skills. Also means building a broad base of movement from many activities, not only tennis.
“We train the athlete and the person, not just the forehand.”
Teaching the same skill through many different drills, games and conditions so the child learns to use it anywhere.
“Same shot, ten different games.”
Adding difficulty in small steps, from simple to complex and from easy to hard, so the child keeps succeeding while being stretched.
“We add one new challenge at a time.”
Using games as the main teaching tool at young ages. Children stay engaged longer and learn to use skills in real situations.
“If it looks like they're just playing games, that's the plan working.”
How children learn movement, and how coaches teach it.
Developing the whole child across several areas at once: technique, tactics, movement, mind and social skills. Also means building a broad base of movement from many activities, not only tennis.
“We train the athlete and the person, not just the forehand.”
Teaching the same skill through many different drills, games and conditions so the child learns to use it anywhere.
“Same shot, ten different games.”
Adding difficulty in small steps, from simple to complex and from easy to hard, so the child keeps succeeding while being stretched.
“We add one new challenge at a time.”
Using games as the main teaching tool at young ages. Children stay engaged longer and learn to use skills in real situations.
“If it looks like they're just playing games, that's the plan working.”
The areas every session and every player report should cover: technical, tactical, physical (movement), mental, and social/communication. Competition and organization are added for older players.
“Here's where she's at in each of the five areas.”
Learning a skill moves through three stages: rough (the child gets the general idea but the movement is clumsy), refined (the movement becomes smoother and more accurate), and flexible (the player can adapt it under pressure and in new situations).
“He's in the rough stage with the serve. Clumsy is normal right now.”