Articles in the Kelly's QuickStart Journal Category
Featured, Kelly's QuickStart Journal, Tennis »
Since my departure from college tennis and the National Championship team at Duke University, I have immersed myself into QuickStart tennis, dedicating most of the my time to 8 & under junior development. For me, it has been a process of scaling back, not only the intensity, but learning how to teach tennis through the sheer enjoyment of the game. It is, of course, success that keeps many people coming back for more. However, at the fresh age of 4 – 8 years old, it is often …
Featured, Kelly's QuickStart Journal »
As the summer approaches, kids are being relinquished from their baseball, lacrosse, and soccer seasons. Tennis now is becoming an option for the summertime. For 5 & 6 year olds, tennis may even become an option to start with. I am finding more and more kids of that age group are finding their way to the tennis courts.
A group that has continued to challenge me is the 10 & under group. As a teaching pro, I am put in a tough position through the …
Kelly's QuickStart Journal »
As our program has grown, we have had to find new ways of keeping the atmosphere lighthearted, but remaining in control of each exercise we do. Clayton, my trusty assistant, has done an amazing job transforming himself from a person who couldn’t remember what it was like to be 5 years old to one who is now engulfed in their language. We are both learning how to speak it as we add on each week of QuickStart.
We added a couple of new ideas to today’s practices. Our …
Kelly's QuickStart Journal »
In April, we started our QuickStart program with 2 kids in our 6 & under class and 4 kids in our 8 & under class. Today, a mere three weeks later, we had 8 kids in our 6 & under class and 12 kids in our 8 & under class. We have gone from 6 to 20 in a matter of weeks. We are getting kids to take tennis lessons right out of the gates. This is great! As happy as I am to see the influx of kids, I …
Kelly's QuickStart Journal »
There were lots of fun activities on the QuickStart courts this weekend. My husband and I decided to battle my mother and brother-in-law in some QuickStart doubles. Although we were past the height requirement (or at least they were), we played with the appropriate QuickStart equipment. This is the best my serve has ever been!
This weekend also marked the first day for Junior Team Tennis to be played in the QuickStart format at Bur-Mil Park. We did a very wise thing before today’s match. On Friday, we invited all our …
Kelly's QuickStart Journal »
Yesterday was the christening of our brand new permanent QuickStart courts. It also marked the last day of our first 3 week session of QuickStart instruction. In these first three weeks, I followed the suggested QuickStart manual, practice by practice, tweaking it to fit my personality, teaching style, and my kids’ general ability. In our first 5 and 6 yr old class, I found it difficult to manage a mere 2 kids of two very different skill levels. One of these children had limited coordination, and found it difficult to …
Kelly's QuickStart Journal »
My name is Kelly Parker. Tennis has led me around the world, and now it has led me to a 36 foot court. I think throughout all my experiences, the 36 ft court is just as intimidating to me as anything else I have done on a tennis court. I start this blog in an attempt to document my experiences in the new QuickStart tennis format. My goal is to enjoy the experience with the kids, and have an open mind about this new initiative that is becoming the face …
