Bringing tennis to schools through USTA training
USTA’s school training helps you achieve your school's health and wellness goals through tennis! No courts are required and schools can effectively offer PE with tennis sized right for age and ability. PE teachers can access standards-based curricula and equipment to help grow tennis in your students' PE classes.
USTA Heart of America recently hosted a training for physical education teachers in the Raymore Peculiar School District interested in bringing tennis into their curriculum. A total of 24 K-12 PE teachers were in attendance including two high school tennis coaches. This training covers the necessary skills and provides the resources PE teachers need to bring tennis into their schools.
During these trainings nets, makeshift nets (such as two cones connected with caution tape), balls and racquets are provided to familiarize the teachers with the equipment they’ll need and alternatives they can use. A range of different activities from individual skills to team play are demonstrated by the instructor. Teachers then get to try the activities firsthand to get a better understanding of how they work and ask any questions they may have. Throughout they are shown how to progress and regress each skill to make it easily adaptable to meet the individual needs of students.
“It’s important to offer a training like this because we are all about developing and promoting the game of tennis as well as growing it,” said Rebecca Falkner Axelrod, executive director of USTA Heart of America. “So being able to do tennis in the school system, where tennis may not be offered previously, it’s just introducing more students to the game.”
The curriculum provided by the USTA also meets the Society of Health and Physical Educators (SHAPE) America standards and competencies that PE teachers need to meet in their classroom setting. This turnkey approach makes it easier than ever to incorporate tennis into the curriculum and adapt it to their students’ individual needs.
“All teachers are provided access to the K-12 curricula no matter what grade they teach therefore in their classrooms they’re able to, in class, see the range of their students currently and pick from different lesson plans or activities that can either progress or regress to where they’re at,” said Jaren Glaser, USTA Heart of America tennis service representative.
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See more photos from the training here.
The benefits of bringing tennis into schools can be seen both on and off the court. In a study it was found that 48 percent of tennis players maintain an “A” average. In addition, 81 percent say they will attend college, 73 percent have never been sent to the principal’s office and 82 percent volunteer in their communities. The sport also promotes improved physical health and well-being, enhances problem-solving and builds self-esteem in students.
Not to mention offering tennis in PE class opens up lifelong opportunities for students outside the classroom as well. In order to provide access outside of school and as part of USTA’s commitment to diversity and inclusion, USTA partners with organizations that provide those opportunities. Some of these opportunities include summer camps, after-school programs, parks and recreation programs, and more.
Stephanie Waterman Foundation (SWF) is a National Junior Tennis & Learning Network (NJTL) school partner that will be working closely with the Raymore Peculiar School District. Scott Hanover is SWF’s executive director and was in attendance during this training to educate teachers on the opportunities SWF can provide to their students outside the classroom. Organizations like this one are great resources for school programs as they provide a pathway to play beyond the school day for under-resourced children in the area.
When asked about offering USTA training to schools Hanover said: “Tennis is truly a lifetime sport, and it’s something we definitely need to be introducing in physical education. It’s great to see a game kids can play when they’re in kindergarten that they can also play when they’re 90 years old. It’s a great thing to have as part of the curriculum.”
Interested in bringing tennis to your school district? Reach out to USTA Missouri Valley Community Play Manager Lindsey Hall at hall@movalley.usta.com for more information.
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