USTA School Tennis for Physical Educators
More Than Just a Game - Enrich the lives of your students through tennis.
Tennis is the ideal sport to help achieve the health and wellness goals of schools. The USTA is the ideal partner to help you bring it to your students.
Every day the USTA and its partners help kids learn not just a sport, but self-confidence, sportsmanship, and the habits of an active, healthy lifestyle. We are committed to making sure that all kids have an opportunity to play and learn from this lifetime sport.
What the USTA offers to help grow tennis through the schools:
- Training - (Free school teacher in-services, organized play training, Recreational Coach Workshops)
- Curriculum - (Described in detail below)
- Equipment Assistance - (new equipment is age appropriate and easy to use, discount programs available)
- Staff Support - (technical expertise for program start-up and play formats, recommendations for converting play areas for tennis)
To learn more about the schools program and its impact on hundreds of thousands of school children read the School Tennis Notebook.
Bringing Tennis to Schools
As the national governing body for the sport, the USTA is committed to producing relevant, up-to-date materials for physical education teachers, extracurricular staff and after school providers.
>Curriculum Kit - The USTA has developed a cutting edge in-school curriculum, the Physical Educators Guide for Teaching Tennis in Schoolsand teacher training program to help educators feel more comfortable offering tennis in school settings.
The newest tennis curriculum has eight easy-to-follow lesson plans (download here) created for teachers, by teachers that can be used in any school environment. Written in conjunction with renowned physical education expert, Dr. Robert Pangrazi, the lessons are:
- Based on NASPE standards.
- Designed to fit unique time and scheduling needs.
- Flexible enough to accommodate small and large groups.
- Fun and challenging for all kids and adaptable for students with special needs.
- Targeted towards grades 3-6 and can be adapted to higher and lower grade levels.
- Able to be taught on any flat surface - No courts required!
Click here for a sample lesson from the eight provided in the Tennis Pocket Guide, Curriculum supplement.
The Physical Educators Guide for Teaching Tennis in Schools (Curriculum Kit) is available for instant purchase from Gopher Sport Catalog for $49.95.
The Curriculum Kit is also available through your USTA sections by purchasing an Organization Membership and attending a USTA teacher in-service.
Teacher In-Service Workshops - These workshops complement a teacher’s large group management skills and demonstrate how to quickly transform a school gym or playground into a dynamic tennis-playing environment and allow students to experience instant success in a fun and safe manner.
Equipment Support - Equipment loans and discounts are available to qualifying schools that are linked with an after school tennis program. Modified tennis equipment including easy-to-rally tennis balls and portable nets make the game fun and engaging from the moment a child first picks up a racquet.
To receive the new Physical Educators Guide for Teaching Tennis in Schools, a school must become an Organization Member of the USTA (one year membership is $35) and the physical educator attends a USTA in-service or school tennis training. For more information on the new curriculum and scheduling a school training for your school district, contact the school coordinator in your section: USTA Sections and School Tennis Coordinators.
The USTA is continuing to create resources and tools designed to make starting an after school tennis program easy and enjoyable for organizers. Check back for additional materials as they are developed.
Suggested formats and best practices that have been used in successful programs include:
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| Who wants to play tennis? |
After School Tennis Organizers
Information and the resources that are available through the USTA on how to organize school tennis programs available here.
The After School Tennis Organizer Kit is a great way to get started.
No-Cut Coaches Recognition and Resource Program
For more information on this program and how to register on the newly enhanced, interactive website visit: www.usta.com/nocut
Top Reasons for School Tennis Programs:
> "Playing tennis is an excellent way to engage kids in regular physical activity to help them live longer, healthier lives." - American Heart Association
>Every child should have the opportunity to engage in healthy, lifelong activities in a safe and supportive environment with their peers.
>Over 20% of children ages 6-18 are overweight, and that number has increased 200% over the past 3 decades. A recent study by the National Association for Sports & Physical Education showed that physically fit children performed better academically. Tennis is one of the few sports that can be played for a lifetime and uniquely benefits children like no other sport. Through tennis kids gain both physical and psychological benefits.
>Tennis players score higher in vigor, optimism, and self-esteem, and lower in depression, anger, confusion, anxiety, and tension than other athletes and non-athletes. (Dr. Joan Finn and colleagues at Southern Connecticut University)
>Tennis outperforms golf, running, weight-lifting, and many other sports in developing positive personality characteristics like sociability, mental focus, competitiveness, adventurousness, spontaneity, creativity, and assertiveness. (Dr. Jim Galvin, author of The Exercise Habit)
>The average person burns more calories playing tennis than doing low impact aerobics, weightlifting, riding a stationary bike, hiking, walking a golf course, or playing softball, baseball, or volleyball. (www.nutristrategy.com)