WHY IS TENNIS SCHOOL VARAŽDIN 1181 A GREAT CHOICE FOR YOUR CHILD

• We provide you with a quality and motivating environment
• Children are guided by professors with a master's degree in kinesiology and tennis coaches, who provide the child with motivation for training, social skills, and develop basic motor and psychological abilities.
• coaches take excellent care of their groups and establish long-term communication and a common vision with children and parents

PROGRAM:

• We have an annual work plan and a calendar of events.
• all programs are goal-oriented (knowledge standards and ways of progress are determined)
• We actively participate in the athlete-parent-coach triangle (we monitor progress and set goals together)
• organization of the professional team and forms of work (coach responsible for each child, comprehensive approach to training - interweaving technical, tactical, fitness and psychological content at each training session)
• education and guidance for parents (introduction to the specifics of the tennis process, preparation of the entire family for the sports journey, and information about tennis equipment)
• involving parents in club activities

VISION:

• In the first year, we will assess your child's interest in tennis together with you.
• With your help, we can teach your child to work hard and to recognize the days when motivation to exercise drops.
• We enable each child to transition to a more demanding program in a timely manner, as coaches actively monitor the progress of each individual.

Sensorimotor development with tennis

Sensorimotor is defined as the organization of sensations for the purpose of their use in everyday life. Sensory systems include vestibular (movement), proprioceptive (muscles and joints), tactile (touch), visual (sight), auditory (hearing), olfactory (smell), and gustatory (taste). Since sensorimotor development is a prerequisite for the acquisition and development of higher cognitive functions, it is very important to carry out activities that stimulate the development of sensorimotor skills in children.

In tennis, we hold the racket in our hands, hit the ball with the racket string, hear the opponent's shot and anticipate our own movement towards the opponent's shot. With our coaching demonstration, we also provide children with the correct information they receive through their visual receptors. All this in just one sport, which makes it very useful for your child's development.

During tennis lessons, during the warm-up, we instruct the child to place their body in different positions, where they must concentrate on specific muscle groups, exert a certain amount of tension on them, and maintain balance. The better developed the sensorimotor receptors are, the faster the central nervous system will receive information about the body's position.

We recommend enrolling your child in a tennis school as early as the preschool period, as this is when sensorimotor skills develop best.

Tennis coach,

abs. Kinesiology Oto Rihtarić

Tips for parents

Recommendations for raising my competitor

Raising my competitor: Talent development

Recommendations for the successful upbringing of a tennis competitor through the period of acquiring the basics of the game of tennis, the transition period, and the period when the tennis player reaches the top level.

First level: SPORT PRESENTATION / FOUNDATION
Age: 4 – 10 years
Recommendations:
Allow your child to have high expectations.
Ensure that lessons have an element of play and are based on the fundamentals of technique.
Recognize your child's interest and provide opportunities and support for them to be successful.
Help make the tennis experience have an element of play.
Pay less attention to wins/ranking.
Expose the child and encourage the child's participation in different sports/activities.
Concentrate on positive things (cheering for your child).
You focus on good parenting (emphasize a positive attitude and life skills).
Stay composed during matches and games. Try to hide nervousness and negative emotions (remember that tennis is fundamentally a sport).
Allow the coach to do his job.
Emphasize good behavior and fair play.
Don't talk about tennis constantly at home.
Emphasize activities outside of tennis.
Limit the amount of training and matches (this will avoid premature "burnout").
Always stand behind your child (providing unconditional love and support).
Believe in your child.
Provide transportation.
Provide enough opportunities to play tennis.
Avoid putting pressure on the child.
Play tennis with your child.
If you have the knowledge/opportunity, teach your child.
 
Second stage: UPGRADE / TRANSITION
Age: 10 – 14 years
Recommendations:
Provide transportation, logistical and financial support.
Do things that help keep tennis a fun activity, as the pressure of competition gradually increases.
You focus on good parenting (emphasize a positive attitude and life skills).
Stay composed during matches and games. Try to hide nervousness and negative emotions (remember that tennis is fundamentally a sport).
Find a professional coach who understands the process of developing a top athlete over a period of 10-14 years.
Allow the coach to do his job.
Emphasize good behavior and fair play.
Encourage your child to win, but it is even more important to encourage him/her when he/she is doing his/her best.
At home, tennis may be a topic of conversation here and there.
Don't coach your child – simply give them basic encouragement.
Be sure that the coach is doing his job professionally and is helping the child develop.
When your child experiences success, it is important to keep that success in perspective so that the child continues to fulfill their responsibilities (both at school and at home).
Include family activities that are not related to tennis, especially during tournaments.
Believe in your child and at the same time have appropriate expectations regarding tennis.
Emphasize core values: "work hard", "if you do something, do it right", "take responsibility for yourself and your actions", "sacrifice if you want to become good at something".
The child should be given time to recover mentally after the match before discussing the match.
Avoid criticizing after the match.
Try not to react emotionally after mistakes or losing a match.
As your child becomes more successful and the object of attention, be careful not to judge your parenting skills by your child's success.
Reprimand your child for unsportsmanlike behavior and disrespect for others.
Leave serious topics for a private conversation with the coach - never in the presence of the child.
Admit your mistakes if you are wrong.
Never interrupt a training/class.
If you are a parent-coach, be aware of the difference between these two roles (when you are off the field, you should not give instructions/criticism to your child).
Ensure optimal motivation: be sure that your child really wants to play tennis and, if so, hold them accountable for fulfilling their training responsibilities.
Concentrate on long-term development, not on wins/ranking.
Don't put pressure on your child to win.
As a parent, don't tie your approval to how your child plays.
Try to make the child responsible for preparing equipment and partners (for doubles play or for training).
 
Third level: TOP LEVEL
Age: 14+
Handouts:
It is important to care about your child as a person, not just as an athlete.
Reduce the level of motivation because the player needs to learn and strive to motivate himself.
Be prepared to reduce your influence as your child becomes more independent (needs to travel without you more often, relies on the coach for tennis decisions).
Provide emotional support and encourage your child.
Create opportunities for your child to become independent (he should be responsible for equipment, partners, and knowing the time of his match).
Believe in the child and his/her ability.
Avoid coaching and match analysis.
Stay calm during matches and games. Try to hide nervousness and negative emotions. Continue to develop stress management skills.
Allow the coach to do his job.
Emphasize good behavior and fair play.
Encourage your child to win, but don't "push" him to win. Be careful not to focus on the outcome of the match.
Explain to your child that tennis is a game in which there are both excitement and disappointment: the child needs to learn to control his emotions.
Provide security to the child, relax him.
Give your child an honest opinion or information.
Help your child get involved in activities outside of tennis to keep life "normal.".
Provide unconditional love and support.
Include family activities that are not related to tennis. Act as a resource in the decision-making process and expressing opinions, but allow the child to make the final decision (collegiate/professional tennis, agents, sponsors, etc.).
Emphasize core values: "work hard", "if you do something, do it right", "take responsibility for yourself and your actions", "sacrifice if you want to become good at something".
Avoid lengthy and detailed criticism after the match.
Don't react emotionally after mistakes and lost matches.
As the stakes get higher and higher, don't forget that tennis is a game and that it should also have an element of fun.
Find an expert coach who understands the process of developing a top athlete over a period of 14+ years.
Don't change your behavior after your child "jumps to a higher step.".
Provide off-field support, such as handling finances and contacting agents/sponsors.

Education through experience

Children learn best from what they experience, and experiences can be positive and negative. Therefore, it is the duty of every parent to try to instill in their child's psyche what is positive through their actions. It is their great responsibility to cultivate positive personality traits in their children. Therefore, they must know which actions have a positive and which have a negative effect on the child.

POSITIVE ACTIONS:
1. A child who experiences tolerance becomes patient.
2. A child you encourage becomes self-confident.
3. A child who is praised will appreciate good.
4. A child who experiences honesty becomes just.
5. If a child lives in safety, he becomes trusting.
6. If a child experiences approval, he will be satisfied with himself.
7. A child who is talked to is capable of thinking.
8. A child who has obligations and responsibilities becomes responsible.
9. A child who lives in a clean environment becomes tidy.
10. If a child experiences parental love, he will know how to love and be loved.

NEGATIVE PROCEDURES:
1. A child who is bullied and punished becomes aggressive.
2. A child who experiences hostility becomes argumentative.
3. A child who experiences indifference becomes lonely.
4. A child who experiences criticism frequently begins to judge himself.
5. A child who is often criticized does not feel the love of those around him.
6. A child who is ridiculed becomes withdrawn.
7. A shamed child begins to feel ashamed of himself.
8. An inadequately rewarded child becomes distrustful.
9. A pampered child becomes lazy.
10. Privileged arrogant child.

From the above examples, it can be concluded that our actions influence the personality traits of the child. Children will be as positive or negative as they are depending on how their parents, coaches, and environment treat them.
This is where the power of upbringing is manifested, and thus the successful life and progress of our children.
Therefore, try to eliminate all negative practices from your upbringing by focusing on creating an educational climate that will enable children to develop into healthy, good, and successful people.