Bigger Better Tennis - Paul Dale

I have recently joined a team of coaches at a large club. During my first week, I noticed two very different approaches to coaching beginners. The club we all work at has a thriving beginner coaching program. It's been a long time since I've worked with beginners, and it's  my first coaching experience using the "Coloured Ball" system. We use balls with varying degrees of pressure, making it a little easier for young children to control the ball.   The "Blue" balls are used for very young beginners, followed by Red, Orange, and Green, and eventually, players use the standard yellow tennis ball. Working alongside young players and many different coaches has uncovered two different teaching philosophies used worldwide, not just at our club. The first philosophy, and most common one, is; 1. Function Follows Form Coaches who adopt this philosophy believe that students should be taught the correct form of the stroke from the beginning and that function (the a...