Introducing
abc123 Tennis
Bringing FUN movement
activities for fundamental
reading and math to the tennis
court, playground or gym
The abc123 Tennis Program Combines
Fundamental Math and Reading
with Fun Sports Activities
Think outside the box and bring fun movement activities for math and reading to the tennis court, playground or gym. abc123 Tennis combines athletic activity and academics through fun game play. Children learn by cooperative play. Kids participate in a variety of fun Progressions for Player Improvement (Developmental Drills), where games, exercise and learning are merged!
The program includes Instructor Guides featuring 70 fun Progressions for Player Improvement (Devolpmental Drills). The program also uses a flexible lesson plan format and includes over 100 energetic movement Games.
Learning is through cooperative game play and a set of 26 transition balls. These specially created balls are marked with a letter on one side and corresponding number on the other side. Children select a marked ball to count, identify letters and numbers and associate letters with words while rolling, tossing, catching, bumping, hitting, running or bouncing the ball.
The abc123 Tennis program is a great addition to any PE Class, tennis instructional program, recreation program, or special needs program and can be used by coaches or parents. Merging tennis with learning and movement, abc123 significantly improves children’s tennis, math and reading skills as well as reducing obesity rates!
The Mind-Body Connection for Children
A child’s body communicates through a complex set of movements that children learn before they are born. It is well known that exercise improves circulation throughout the body, including the brain. Exercise also boosts metabolism, decreases stress and improves mood and attention, helping the brain perform better.
The part of the brain that processes movement is the same part of the brain that processes learning. The brain cells actually become more resilient and pliable making them ready to link up. It is this linking up that allows children to retain new information. Studies on childhood learning have proven that physical activity is important to keeping our brains healthy and our minds sharp.
“Brain-compatible learning” weaves movement, math, reading, social skills and physical education together.
Keeping Kids Active – Fighting Obesity
Lack of physical activity was found to be the most significant factor in contributing to childhood obesity. It is no surprise that the amount of physical activity a child under the age of ten participates in is directly related to their body-weight and overall health.
There are many factors that contribute to the problem of obesity, including the amount of screen time children are spending on computers, iPods, cell phones and gaming systems. Another important change is in the educational system where PE class time has been reduced for many school-age children.
abc123 was created to encourage kids to keep active and healthy; it helps fight obesity by offering a program that merges fun sports activities with fundamental math and reading skills.
Improving Math Skills
Even with increased awareness over the past several years, educators have learned that children in the United States continue to lag behind other countries when it comes to math skills. If you ask kids why they do not like math, you will get the same answer, “because it is not FUN!” The trick to any good program is to make it FUN and keep kids engaged. Children need to be excited in their learning environment. This is the concept behind the abc123 program.
Enhancing Reading Appreciation
and Language Skills
Reading is an essential part of communication. Language skills are vital for children’s reading and writing development. The best way to teach the alphabet and basic reading principles is through repetition and practice. abc123 makes the fundamentals available to children in a variety of fun, interesting and interactive ways.
A New Way of Teaching Tennis Skills
for Kids 10 & Under
The problem with typical tennis instruction is that over the years it has evolved into a tennis class or group lesson with young kids standing in line waiting for their turn to try and hit a ball over a net. This is a problem especially for young kids because they have very little patience for waiting and standing around to hit the ball because they become bored and are not engaged or having fun.
The USTA (United States Tennis Association), the governing body of tennis in the U.S., has recognized this problem and they have created a program for teaching kids 10 & Under. The USTA 10 & Under program uses age-appropriate racquets, lower compression balls and smaller courts and net sizes. All of these changes help kids to play and be able to hit the ball back and forth very quickly. The USTA and First Lady Michelle Obama’s “Lets Move” campaign have also teamed up to encourage kids across the country to get active, try tennis and lead healthy lifestyles.
The abc123 Tennis program embraces this style of teaching and utilizes and enhances the program by adding math and reading components.
Helping PE Instructors
Physical educators are keenly aware of the importance of keeping children active. Many studies have proven that activity is an integral part of brain health, especially for growing children.
The abc123 Tennis program offers physical educators an opportunity to teach a tennis program that merges physical activity with fun fundamental math and reading activities. Fun movement ball games for PE class are provided as well.