The main skill for a young athlete to have in the sport of tennis is good eye-hand coordination. It is the basis of the sport, along with footwork. The way a parent or elementary school P.E teacher can help this along, is to do ball-to-hand and ball-to-racket exercises at home or at school. The following is a basic instruction:
1. Stand the young player across from you without a tennis racket
2. Gently toss balls to both sides of the players body. This will encourage the player to move in order to catch the ball.
3. When the player can do the drill with some confidence, you can move on with a tennis racket. Toss balls so the player can gently tap the ball up off the racket
4. Make sure the swinging action is gentle. This simple drill should bring confidence to the young player.
The Spring tennis clinics have brought out some nice young tennis athletes. They’ve all done well in the drills they were taught by the instructors. Some of the students got to the point of holding a rally with the tennis ball. Lets keep the kids playing and enjoying the life sport of tennis!
– Coach Nils