We had another amazing Saturday at Jackie Robinson Tennis Club. It was the third week at Kings County Tennis League's newest site and attendance continues to grow. We had about 25 participants, the majority of whom were returning students.
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We focused on basic footwork and coordination along with an introduction to the forehand. The class began with a warm-up and group stretch. We then split up into three groups that rotated among stations: a foot workstation using cones, a target practice station, and a forehand technique station. The kids are showing significant improvement and seem to really be enjoying themselves on the court. Due to the warm weather, we were sure to take plenty of water breaks.
Once each group had rotated through all the stations, our Site Coordinator, Christine, facilitated the off-court conversation. This week, Christine led a discussion about healthy expression of our emotions. Christine did an amazing job of engaging with the students and teaching them about different emotions--such as anger, jealousy, and sadness--and the best ways to cope. She made it very easy for the kids to share stories of times they experienced negative emotions and how they responded. She also encouraged the students to give examples of how they’ll better manage their emotions in the future.
We ended class with Breakout, which the students absolutely love. It's a fun-filled game that involves hitting forehands, running and catching. The students always have a great time with this game.
The highlight of class was calling out the names of the students who were able to borrow a racquet for the week because they had attended three classes. It was clear that the kids that were able to take a racquet home felt a great sense of accomplishment and pride and those that were not able to felt as though that had something substantial to strive towards. Overall, it was a great class with amazing volunteers and stellar students.