Lee County Tennis In-Service
National Trainer Prepares Lee's Teachers for Tennis Instruction
Oct 3, 2007
If Susie Bessire, community coordinator for the USTA/Florida’s Region 7, has anything to say about it, every child in the entire region, from kindergarten through high school, will have held a racquet in his/her hand, and will have had plenty of fun doing so. In pursuit of that objective, she has garnered the help of USTA National Trainer Susan Allshouse, who conducted a Lee County Schools in-service at Ida S. Baker High School in Cape Coral on September 27.
Lee Teachers Take Tennis Teaching RefresherCourse
Twenty teachers and one student from 16 Lee County schools attended, and quite a few were returnees from last year’s workshop. According to Bessire, “A lot of teachers here today did this last year…training they only have to come to every two years, but they all pretty much came again this year because they had so much fun last year.” Judging from the laughter, and the hoots and hollers, learning to teach tennis to kids is worthy of a second, or even third trip to the workshops.
The teachers pick up quite a bit more than fun at the workshops, however. One attendee, Monica Smith, who didn’t seem to mind celebrating her birthday in a high school gym, teaches Kindergarten through Fifth Grade at Tanglewood Elementary School in Fort Myers, and was attending for the first time. Asked why she attended, she said that she came to, “get some pointers…to learn more about the defined rules…and to get some instruction, and some equipment.”
USTA Equipment a Bonus
The equipment supplied by the USTA is a tremendous bonus for schools that become affiliated with the USA School Tennis Program, formerly known as the USTA Schools Program. According to Bessire, “Once their schools become USTA members and agree to teach one unit of tennis in their PE classes, and agreed to link to some other playing opportunity for the kids outside of class, then they get a curriculum kit.” The kit includes an 18-racquet package complete with foam and/or compression balls, a DVD, a CD, and lesson plans that tie in to FCAT and the Sunshine State Standards. Schools also can take advantage of a “buy one, get one free” option on mini-nets.
Lee County School District Provides Funding
In keeping with the cooperative relationship Lee County maintains with many community based youth programs, Lee’s School District has agreed to pick up the membership tab ($25) for any school that chooses to take advantage of the myriad benefits of the USA School Tennis Program. Jean Amundsen, an eighth-grade science teacher at Varsity Lakes Middle School, hopes to coach a team at Varsity Lakes, and intends to take full advantage. When asked if the in-service would help her with her coaching she replied, “I think this will be a fun way to approach the kids with tennis that they can enjoy because this is a sport that you can use your whole life.” This was her second workshop, and from her tone, it isn’t likely to be her last.
Tennis Workshop Good for Kids
One attendee whose experience supported the notion that elementary and middle school kids would relish the opportunity to learn tennis in the proposed format was nine-year-old Melissa Menard of Bayshore Elementary. Melissa tagged along with her mom, Melanie Menard, who teaches physical Education at Bayshore. Asked what she was doing there amongst all those adults, Melissa responded, “I go to the same school as her [Melanie] and nobody else was able to come get me except for my brother, but I wanted to come with my mom, because she said it would be a lot of fun.” Melissa admitted that she was having a lot of fun, and thought that what she was learning at the in-service would help her get better at tennis.
USA School Tennis Program is Fun Learning
Having fun while getting better at tennis is precisely what the USAA School Tennis Program is all about on the surface, but it offers more. In Bessire’s own words, “The kids will have the opportunity to learn a life time sport, learn the value of teamwork and a team sport as well as an individual sport, lead a healthy lifestyle and have the opportunity to continue to play tennis either at their school or at a nearby park program or private facility.”
Multiple Tennis Opportunities for Lee County Kids
With 17 Lee County schools confirmed as participants this year and another potential 10 who may renew from last year, the Schools Program has the potential to become a critical a component of the county’s physical education curriculum. When combined with the Lee County Community Tennis Association’s (LCCTA) Ralleyball and Junior Team Tennis initiatives, the children of Lee County have myriad opportunities to learn and enjoy an activity that they can embrace for a lifetime. Kudos to the schools and teachers who have committed to providing such opportunities.
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