Tennis has long been embedded in Australian sporting culture. As one of the very few sports that you can play for a lifetime, tennis can provide health and lifestyle benefits to Australians of all ages! Furthermore, in terms of sporting development in children, playing tennis is a great option on many levels! It’s equally mental as it is physical, therefore promoting both strong psychological and physiological development. Including but not limited to; promoting teamwork, hand-eye coordination, gross motor control, balance, communication, socialness, flexibility, agility and speed.  So, if your child has a passion for tennis and is interested in attending a tennis sports camp this holiday season, you might be left wondering ‘how do I choose the best holiday camp for my child?’. In today’s article, we will outline the key factors that you should be looking for that will help you choose the best tennis holiday camp for your child! 

Read on to find out more about the Best Tennis Holiday Camp for Kids

A Tennis Holiday Camp Should be More than Simply ‘Baby-Sitting’tennis holiday camp

When choosing a tennis holiday camp to attend, the most important element in your decision-making process should be, ‘how can this camp help develop my child’s sporting skillset?’. For a child that truly wants to develop their tennis abilities, a sports holiday camp should be much more than simply a baby-sitting experience.   What we mean by this is that the best tennis camps will offer structured, skill-based programs. Designed by professional tennis coaches, to improve your child’s sporting skill set and have fun, whilst developing a deeper love and enthusiasm for their chosen sport.  Multi-sport holiday camp options might keep kids busy during the school holidays. However, this format of exposure to many sports at once means it will be hard for kids to gain any real improvement! An example of this might be; just as they discover their love for tennis, the program then changes to cricket drills.  At Australian Sports Camps we believe that improvement requires focus and repetition. And when you’re trying to choose the best holiday camp for your child, the best sports camps are those that are truly designed to better your child’s sporting development. And not just solely provide supervision services for your child. 

The Ideal Camp Duration is 3 Days

Our belief is that the best sports camps are those that offer 3-day programs. This is because 3 days is the optimal mix between improvement and engagement! By attending a sports camp for 3 days, participants can experience multifaceted drills and techniques, which will allow kids to see genuine improvement in their sporting skillset. Furthermore, 3 days of sporting fun is a great way for kids to learn important social skills such as leadership, listening skills, consideration of others, and the ability to connect to others and make friendships! The development of these skills helps prepare children for a lifetime of effective communication and healthy social interactions.  Many participants arrive at sports camps without knowing anyone and are forced to interact with new people and make new friends. And it’s so difficult for kids to make these connections in just one or two days! At the end of your child’s camp experience, they should feel like they have genuinely improved in their sporting abilities and have had plenty of fun along the way! And is why the ideal camp duration is at least 3 days long. 

Sports Camps Should Always be Fun and Include some Match Play

Although it’s very important for kids to see improvement in their sporting techniques throughout sports camps, the most important thing is that they had fun learning, playing and making new friends. Especially for younger players and beginners who might be experiencing their first tennis lesson Sports camps should always strive to provide participants with a fun and engaging activities and drills, that deliver that balance of improvement and engagement. This includes ensuring participants experience match play sessions! Throughout a camp run, kids internalise what they’ve learnt from their experiences, and participating in match play lets them ‘put it all together’. Also, gaining match play experience allows kids to visually & physically see their strengths and weaknesses in their game. In addition, to using what they’ve learned through the camp in a game-day situation.  tennis camps

Camps Should Provide Quality Coaches and Great Facilities 

Ensure that your chosen holiday camp employs professional coaches, in addition to providing great sporting facilities.  This is a must when choosing what camp is right for your child. At Australian Sports Camps, all our coaches possess; a minimum level one coaching accreditation, or they are a senior coach with multiple years’ experience coaching and playing their relevant sport.  Also, all ASC coaches must-have, a validated working with children check and or police check.  Furthermore, many coaches will also be first aid qualified and all ASC camps have dedicated first aiders in attendance.  These requirements are necessary to ensure that each camp participant is receiving high-quality coaching. From professional players, who can genuinely help improve your child’s sporting abilities. In addition to ensuring that each participant is safe throughout the camp run.  Also, great facilities are imperative to a positive camp experience. Your chosen sports camp should provide both high quality indoor and outdoor facilities, in cases of extreme weather. Additionally, all facilities should provide good turfs and equipment, ready for use, throughout the entirety of the camp duration.

There Should Always be a Focus on Safety and Cancer Council SunSmart Policies

Every organisation conducting sport and recreation events has a duty of care, and legal responsibility to ensure a safe environment for all.  Especially since Tennis is predominantly a summer sport, your sports camp should provide strong sun smart policies.  Ensuring, participants are kept sun-safe.  Australian Sports Camps promotes and adheres to the SunSmart recommendations of the Cancer Council of Victoria.  We remind camp participants at regular intervals to reapply SPF 30, or higher grade, sunscreen.  Additionally, participants are reminded to wear clothing covering exposed areas while resting. Furthermore, when extreme weather conditions occur, we modify our program. Also, we make the best and most appropriate use of the venue’s indoor facilities including natural shade.  This minimizes the risk of overexposure to UV and heat stress.  To learn more about ASC’s sun smart policies, click here!

What Does ASC Provide?

For more information about who we are and what we provide, please watch this short video! tennis kids camp australia We hope that you enjoyed this article. At Australian Sports Camps, our goal is to provide structured skill-improvement camps. Where participants have fun whilst developing a deeper love and enthusiasm for their chosen sport. ASC provides the best sports coaching & facilities for boys and girls of ages 6 -16, of all sporting abilities! Our 3-day Tennis camps are perfect for children who have a passion for tennis, and want to improve their skillset! Additionally, check out our partner programs, which are an alternative option to the traditional camp experience.  If you’d like to learn more about us, please see http://shop.australiansportscamps.com.au/about-asc/. Additionally, if you have any questions regarding our camps and for all other enquiries, please contact us on 1300 914 368! We look forward to seeing you at ASC camp this coming school holidays!

Tennis is a great sport for kids.  So, we want them to have fun and be able to play to the best of their ability. Our following top tennis tips will provide help for just that.  Not only does tennis teach kids valuable life skills like concentration, dedication, tactical thinking and self-confidence.  But, it has a whole range of physical developmental benefits for them too.  Such as hand-eye coordination, gross motor control, balance and body coordination, flexibility, agility and speed. Most kids who play a sport such as a tennis spend hours watching their sporting heroes on TV.  Dreaming of playing just as skilfully and effortlessly someday.  Whether your child is just starting out or has been playing tennis for a while, there is always room for learning and growth.  So, in this article, we have shared some top tips for kids that will help to improve their tennis game.

TOP TENNIS TIPS FOR KIDS

Practice Controlling Your Serve

The first of our top tennis tips is on how to control your serve. The service is the most important shot in tennis.  So, it’s crucial to spend time on getting it right, in order for kids to improve their game.  Take the time to set up the shot, focusing on the accuracy of ball placement.  Rather than, how hard and fast you can serve the ball to your opponent. Many new players try to hit serves as hard as they can at 100% velocity.  However, the stance, toss and weight transfer are the fundamentals of serve to focus on first. Your stance should be well balanced and positioned.  So, the rest of the serve flows easily.  The toss of the ball should be consistent so that you can hit the ball in the best spot every time.  Also, your weight transfer will use your body’s momentum in the serve to increase your serving power. Top Tips For Kids To Improve Your Tennis Game Practice Controlling Your Serve

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Position Your Back Leg Correctly

A player not being positioned correctly is the number one cause of missing a shot in tennis.  They may have a good stroke technique, but if their footwork is not on point, they will be off balance and lunging to get to the ball. It’s important to ensure that you have your body weight fully loaded onto your back leg before playing every shot.  Getting your weight behind the ball like this will allow you to transfer that weight and power into the shot.  Also, it makes for more consistent play.

Stick To A Pattern

It’s extremely important for beginners to find a pattern of play that works for them and stick to it.  This allows them to practise and rely on the shots that they are good at.  Instead of losing focus and becoming scattered by trying to play too many risky shots. Professional players will only have one or two patterns of play throughout a match. They always try to hit their strongest shots by delivering what they know will work. Don’t try to get too creative on the court, instead find your pattern and stick with it.

Don’t Be Reckless With Your Shots

While you’re still learning, it’s recommended that you don’t get too reckless with your shots. Instead of aiming for the line every time, pick an area of the court where you know you can play a solid shot without putting your game at risk. By doing this you will win more points and your confidence will grow. With this added confidence, in time you will become more comfortable at pinpointing your shots closer to the line. Top Tips For Kids To Improve Your Tennis Game Don't Be Reckless With Your Shots

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Identify Your Opponent’s Weaknesses

In identifying your opponent’s strengths and weaknesses, you can then base your game plan around this information.  By targeting their weak points and trying to avoid any opportunity for them to play to their strengths. Every match has a five-minute warm-up beforehand. You can use this time to hit various shots to your opponent and see how they react to them.  Therefore, identify their weak spots and any tendencies and patterns.  This will allow you to strategize.  Thus, come up with a game plan to defeat your opponent based on those strengths and weaknesses.

Have Plenty Of Water And Snacks

This may seem more obvious than our other top tennis tips.  However, if you watch the professionals play, you’ll notice that they’ll be sipping on water or a sports drink and nibbling on a snack during each changeover. Make sure you have enough fluids and slow-release energy snacks for the duration of your game.  It’s important.  This will help keep you hydrated and energised during the game.  Both very important factors if you want any chance of winning. top tennis tips

Extra Tennis Coaching

Another great way for kids to improve their game is to enrol in a tennis camp. Australian Sports Camps run 3-day Tennis Coaching Camps over the school holidays for kids aged 6 to 16 years. The programs are run by an experienced coaching panel with guest appearances by leading state or Australian players and coaches. The camps provide children with the chance to meet their sporting idols and make friends while having fun playing tennis. The innovative program covers all facets of tennis with more top tennis tips, taught within high-quality facilities and is designed to improve a child’s tennis skills and maximise their enjoyment of the game.

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