Tennis Tots is a fun and interactive way for kids to develop emotionally, physically, and socially… while picking up the fundamentals of tennis.
Tennis Tots is the brainchild of Matthew McTurk, ex Tennis professional and twice Men’s Yorkshire Doubles Champion. As the Head Tennis Coach at Heaton Tennis & Squash Club in Bradford Matt developed the Tennis Tots programme over a number of years. Since starting the programme back in 2008 we have seen a great demand for sessions that allow parents to fully engage with their children and we feel Tennis Tots provides just that.
Tennis Tots started in Bradford in 2008 and because of the popularity of the classes it has taken on more venues and you can now attend Tennis Tots classes in Leeds, Bradford, Harrogate and York.
Tennis Tots goes far beyond just getting kids started playing tennis, it aims to provide an all round approach for children to develop many different skills whilst learning a sport that can stay with them for the rest of their lives. It is our hope that Tennis Tots reaches as many children and parents as possible to introduce more families to this great game and also to help tackle the issue of childhood obesity.
Incorporating many of the early years learning goals, the Tennis Tots curriculum provides a unique experience for children to develop physically, socially and emotionally and helps provide an environment to get children ready for a classroom setting and indeed serves the children well into their school years and beyond. Using a structured approach to each session children learn to listen to instructions whilst having fun and learning about numbers,colours, shapes and letters as well as developing their tennis skills of course.
‘The beauty of the Tennis Tots programme is that sessions take place within Community Centres, Sports Centres, Church Halls and Studios making it accessible to anyone. ‘Tennis is a unique sport which has so many crossovers from other sports. Tennis incorporates striking, catching, throwing and running and on top of all this it’s a sport that can be played for a lifetime as well as with your family’.