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Xavier Luna

What Is QuickStart Tennis?

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Many in the tennis world – fans, recreational players and professionals – have been interested in helping children ages 10 and under get into the game and have a positive experience right from the beginning. QuickStart Tennis offers exactly that.

The pathway to success on the courts for the youngest players

QuickStart Tennis is the equivalent of Little League baseball, AYSO soccer or youth basketball. Designed by the United States Tennis Association (USTA), the governing body of tennis in the United States, this innovative program was launched in 2008.

All QuickStart programs, including ours at Advantage, include lessons and playing opportunities that aim to make tennis more accessible to children ages 3-10. Young players move quickly through a series of transitional stages.

Customization makes the game accessible right away

Graduated sizes of racquets, lower-bouncing balls and scaled-down court sizes create a game that is customized to each child’s age and ability
The result? Players learn to rally faster and enjoy the game sooner. Children eventually move to full-court tennis and a lifelong love of the game.

QuickStart is the world’s fastest-growing children’s tennis program, with more than 400 participating professionals and sites around the NYC Metro area alone!

Why QuickStart Tennis works

The format overcomes the factors that intimidate young players: full-sized courts, and full-sized racquets. These hurdles put the game out of reach for many, making tennis instruction more like a lesson in frustration!

QuickStart is the polar opposite. It offers “real tennis,” scaled down for children in every way – from equipment to court size. Youngsters can start playing during their first lesson, making the game available, accessible and enjoyable.

What better way to introduce boys and girls to the game!

Stages of play – and accessibility

QuickStart Tennis Development
Red 1
The first QuickStart stage is for beginners ages 3-6. Customized for the smallest players, it features a 36’ x 18’ court, large red foam/felt balls and 19” racquets. The balls bounce lower and travel less distance. This means children can control the ball and racquet, develop proper swing technique and get a real sense of playing the game.
QuickStart Tennis Stages
Red 2
This stage is for players ages 5 to 8 who can consistently hit the ball over the net with the instructor. Still using the smaller courts and 21” racquets, players now work with large red felt balls and learn basic technique for forehand, backhand, volley and serve.
QuickStart Tennis Orange Stage
Orange
When children ages 6 to 9 can maintain an extended rally with the instructor and use basic tennis techniques, they move to the orange stage — generally for 6 to 18 months. Now they play on larger courts, 60’ x 21’, with racquets that range from 23” to 25.” They also use a low-compression ball that travels a little faster and farther than in previous stages. Students are taught intermediate technique for footwork, net play, and serves as well as basic strategy, how to play points and keep score.
Green
This stage is for students ages 8 to 12 who can rally, place the ball with intention, place the volley for winners when necessary and are beginning to understand strategy and tactics. Players move to regulation size courts and use green felt balls to continue learning the game for 6 to 18 months.

Summer Tennis Camp Tips

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How to Ace the Season: Summer Tennis Camp Tips

Tennis is often called the “sport of a lifetime,” because of how long people play and how their love of the game endures. Yes, playing tennis requires endurance and concentration, but there’s also a big element of fun, which makes it very appealing to many children. If your child is intrigued with the game, it’s time to introduce it.

Whether your daughter or son is just starting kindergarten or learning how to drive, has never picked up a racquet or is ready to train for competition, you can provide an unforgettable summer camp experience. Here’s what to look for in a summer tennis camp.

Instruction for different ages and abilities.

At Advantage All City Junior Tennis camp, for example, we emphasize creating a positive environment for children ages 5 to 17 to receive training and instruction from some of the best pros in the sport. Whether players are beginners or more advanced, we want to be a part of their growth in the game!

We serve players of all ages and skill levels. For beginners and younger children, we customize the instruction and the equipment. In the Advantage QuickStart program, players start with smaller racquets, work in smaller areas than traditional tennis courts, and use slower-bouncing balls. The process evolves as the player’s age and ability increases.

Recreational players hone their skills, get fantastic exercise, enjoy the game and make new friends. We also train players who want to become serious tournament competitors. Everyone gets the opportunity to learn, improve and make progress at their own pace.

Look for lessons that extend off the courts.

Young people benefit from learning tennis and the values it involves. In addition to seeking a well-rounded experience, keep an eye out for the skills necessary to be great on – and off — the court, such as:

  • Perfecting your serve
  • Proper form
  • Playing with integrity
  • How to be a good sport
  • Mental preparation
  • Setting goals

Check out the atmosphere at camp.

Make sure that children play with others their own age, so it’s easier to learn tennis skills and discover new friends. See that the teaching focus is on correct form, versus hitting the ball “in” or “out” or a culture of right/wrong or pass/fail.

Find an atmosphere that builds confidence, encourages a work ethic and promotes good sportsmanship…and most of all, fun! Once your child learns tennis fundamentals, enjoying the game – and the summer – is easy!

Building Self Confidence at Sports Camps

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A Summer of Growth — The Self-Confidence and Sports Camp Connection

Parents and their kids love camp for all kinds of reasons. Camp keeps kids engaged all day, helps them make new friends, learn new skills, enjoy games and have fun. But it turns out there are even more benefits.

New skills. New confidence.

With all the optional activities camps offer — everything from swimming to rock climbing to basketball and tennis – girls and boys learn to focus on technique, strategy, and individual and team development. Counselors create a fun, friendly atmosphere where it feels safe to try new things, find new talents, push to master new skills and make new connections with other campers. So it’s no surprise that kids stay active and stretch in new ways!

Because camp takes place away from parents’ supervision, kids feel more independent. This freedom helps them discover room to grow and build resilience and confidence. At Advantage Day Camps, we always teach the fundamentals of good sportsmanship while we help each boy or girl improve individual skills. Our low camper-to-counselor ratio ensures that participants have the opportunity to achieve their full potential on the court, in the pool – everywhere camp takes place.

It’s all available at a camp near you!

Sports help campers learn how to work together and achieve experiences, memories and friendships that can last a lifetime. And have a fantastic time doing it. So we are excited to tell you that Advantage Day Camps are conveniently located in the heart of midtown Manhattan as well as on green and spacious Roosevelt Island.

Your camper can enjoy a full range of activities – from tennis to rock climbing and swimming to numerous art projects. Our three camps offer different mixes of action and activity, so there’s a perfect choice for every camper. We’re looking forward to a great fun-filled summer. Here’s to camp!

Kids and Sports: Making the Right Match

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These days, it’s practically impossible to overlook one of the challenges facing our nation’s kids: too little exercise. Many boys and girls don’t have access to sports programs at all, others may have experienced poor teaching methods or a too-intense atmosphere that makes them reluctant to try again.

At Advantage Tennis, we see first-hand how introducing kids to sports – in the right way – can create a healthful, lifelong good habit of exercise, along with so many other benefits. Of course, not everyone grows up to be a tennis star. Many kids have no interest in fierce competition and the pressure that can accompany it. But everyone likes to have a good time!

First comes fun. Then comes instruction.

Every Advantage Tennis class is designed to help even the youngest players enjoy their time on the courts. We appeal to their natural curiosity and openness to new things, with games and drills that feel like play, but actually, teach them the basics of tennis. When even the shyest children see everybody else laughing and running around, it’s only a matter of time before they’re on the courts, too.

Xavier Luna, Director of Advantage All-City Junior Programs in New York City, knows this inside and out. He explains, “We make sure every one of our students is enjoying the experience…our fun-first, no-pressure approach means children learn to love the game. Then we help them hone their skills, cultivate their talent and see how far they can go with tennis and still look forward to every serve.”
Luna says more on the topic in this recent Huffington Post article.

Learning lifelong lessons.

Even without a competitive atmosphere, we believe in encouraging children to do their best. They learn to pay close attention and focus on what they are doing – skills that will serve them in many other situations, as well. We also cover sportsmanship and appropriate behavior on the court, with coaches, other players, parents and more. Good manners matter every day, for everyone.

So whether you want your child to develop physical strength and coordination, inner strength, a positive attitude or just have some fun, sports can go a long way toward meeting all of these goals. At Advantage, we especially recommend tennis!

How to Teach QuickStart Tennis

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QuickStart Tennis – the perfect blend of discipline and fun for kids

Teaching tennis to the youngest players is a fantastic way to introduce them to the game, help them develop their skills and begin a life-long love of tennis. To make the game more accessible, the USTA pioneered the scaling of tennis equipment to kid-friendly sizes for children as young as age 4.

Seeking a delicate balance.

Some programs focus exclusively on kids’ on-court enjoyment.  They believe that if young players feel successful, they will love playing the game and continue for a lifetime. So these programs teach the skills needed to put a ball in play (serve) and rally, regardless of proper technique. But this can foster bad habits, causing frustration, injury, or quitting.

Other programs focus exclusively on kids’ technical proficiency.  They teach proper technique of all tennis strokes so that players develop good habits from the very beginning and improve their athletic ability in sync with their tennis game. Skill-trainings are often disguised as games, to hold students’ interest. But this teaching method will not necessarily help children rally – or feel like they are succeeding — for a few years.

A blend of the best teaching philosophies.

Advantage QuickStart strives to motivate success and build proper technique simultaneously. We teach proper technique and how to serve and rally as early as age 4. When the kids begin to rally, good technique may take a back seat to getting the ball over the net. Our coaches help players keep proper technique front and center, too.

Scientific studies prove that children’s learning is 60% visual, 20% verbal, and 20% through kinesiology (experiencing or performing the activity).  QuickStart coaches show, tell, and let the kids perform the fun exercises using proper technique – ingraining it in their muscle memory.

Everybody participates. Everybody wins.

We believe QuickStart is the best path to technically sound strokes, rallying, and having a blast on court. We also believe in educating parents to work with their children between lessons.

Our tennis pathway/teaching philosophy is easy to grasp, even if you have never set foot on the court. The QuickStart pathway helps parents see what their child needs to accomplish at each level in order to advance. Since group classes are generally limited to one hour, it’s very important for parents to encourage their children to practice their skills and to join in on these practice sessions.  The extra practice time is “tennis homework” that will help players reach the next level sooner – thanks to the player, coach and parents.

Keeping kids engaged at every level.

We make sure kids have so much fun, they want to keep playing. Our coaches interact with children before, during and after the lesson – combining enthusiasm and warmth with very high energy and positive reinforcement. Each lesson wraps up with a fun game, fun homework activity, and high-fives to all kids.

Coaches mention the lesson objective at the beginning of the class so students understand what they will be learning. The lesson objective is repeated 2 more times during class, followed by a quick review at the end.  Combining rallying skills — Rally me, bungee, ups/downs, walk the dog, lobster trap, and more — with fun technical skills such as Fruit Salad, Fireball and Crocodile makes class and “homework” really fun! And that leads to a lifelong love of the game.