Tennis has long been embedded in Australian sporting culture. As one of the very few sports that you can play for a lifetime, tennis can provide health and lifestyle benefits to Australians of all ages! Furthermore, in terms of sporting development in children, playing tennis is a great option on many levels! It’s equally mental as it is physical, therefore promoting both strong psychological and physiological development. Including but not limited to; promoting teamwork, hand-eye coordination, gross motor control, balance, communication, socialness, flexibility, agility and speed.  So, if your child has a passion for tennis and is interested in attending a tennis sports camp this holiday season, you might be left wondering ‘how do I choose the best holiday camp for my child?’. In today’s article, we will outline the key factors that you should be looking for that will help you choose the best tennis holiday camp for your child! 

Read on to find out more about the Best Tennis Holiday Camp for Kids

A Tennis Holiday Camp Should be More than Simply ‘Baby-Sitting’

When choosing a tennis holiday camp to attend, the most important element in your decision-making process should be, ‘how can this camp help develop my child’s sporting skillset?’. For a child that truly wants to develop their tennis abilities, a sports holiday camp should be much more than simply a baby-sitting experience.   What we mean by this is that the best tennis camps will offer structured, skill-based programs. Designed by professional tennis coaches, to improve your child’s sporting skill set and have fun, whilst developing a deeper love and enthusiasm for their chosen sport.  Multi-sport holiday camp options might keep kids busy during the school holidays. However, this format of exposure to many sports at once means it will be hard for kids to gain any real improvement! An example of this might be; just as they discover their love for tennis, the program then changes to cricket drills.  At Australian Sports Camps we believe that improvement requires focus and repetition. And when you’re trying to choose the best holiday camp for your child, the best sports camps are those that are truly designed to better your child’s sporting development. And not just solely provide supervision services for your child. 

The Ideal Camp Duration is 3 Days

Our belief is that the best sports camps are those that offer 3-day programs. This is because 3 days is the optimal mix between improvement and engagement! By attending a sports camp for 3 days, participants can experience multifaceted drills and techniques, which will allow kids to see genuine improvement in their sporting skillset. Furthermore, 3 days of sporting fun is a great way for kids to learn important social skills such as leadership, listening skills, consideration of others, and the ability to connect to others and make friendships! The development of these skills helps prepare children for a lifetime of effective communication and healthy social interactions.  Many participants arrive at sports camps without knowing anyone and are forced to interact with new people and make new friends. And it’s so difficult for kids to make these connections in just one or two days! At the end of your child’s camp experience, they should feel like they have genuinely improved in their sporting abilities and have had plenty of fun along the way! And is why the ideal camp duration is at least 3 days long. 

Sports Camps Should Always be Fun and Include some Match Play

Although it’s very important for kids to see improvement in their sporting techniques throughout sports camps, the most important thing is that they had fun learning, playing and making new friends. Especially for younger players and beginners who might be experiencing their first tennis lesson!  Sports camps should always strive to provide participants with a fun and engaging activities and drills, that deliver that balance of improvement and engagement. This includes ensuring participants experience match play sessions! Throughout a camp run, kids internalise what they’ve learnt from their experiences, and participating in match play lets them ‘put it all together’. Also, gaining match play experience allows kids to visually & physically see their strengths and weaknesses in their game. In addition, to using what they’ve learned through the camp in a game-day situation. 

Camps Should Provide Quality Coaches and Great Facilities 

Ensure that your chosen holiday camp employs professional coaches, in addition to providing great sporting facilities.  This is a must when choosing what camp is right for your child. At Australian Sports Camps, all our coaches possess; a minimum level one coaching accreditation, or they are a senior coach with multiple years’ experience coaching and playing their relevant sport.  Also, all ASC coaches must-have, a validated working with children check and or police check.  Furthermore, many coaches will also be first aid qualified and all ASC camps have dedicated first aiders in attendance.  These requirements are necessary to ensure that each camp participant is receiving high-quality coaching. From professional players, who can genuinely help improve your child’s sporting abilities. In addition to ensuring that each participant is safe throughout the camp run.  Also, great facilities are imperative to a positive camp experience. Your chosen sports camp should provide both high quality indoor and outdoor facilities, in cases of extreme weather. Additionally, all facilities should provide good turfs and equipment, ready for use, throughout the entirety of the camp duration.

There Should Always be a Focus on Safety and Cancer Council SunSmart Policies

Every organisation conducting sport and recreation events has a duty of care, and legal responsibility to ensure a safe environment for all.  Especially since Tennis is predominantly a summer sport, your sports camp should provide strong sun smart policies.  Ensuring, participants are kept sun-safe.  Australian Sports Camps promotes and adheres to the SunSmart recommendations of the Cancer Council of Victoria.  We remind camp participants at regular intervals to reapply SPF 30, or higher grade, sunscreen.  Additionally, participants are reminded to wear clothing covering exposed areas while resting. Furthermore, when extreme weather conditions occur, we modify our program. Also, we make the best and most appropriate use of the venue’s indoor facilities including natural shade.  This minimizes the risk of overexposure to UV and heat stress.  To learn more about ASC’s sun smart policies, click here!

What Does ASC Provide?

For more information about who we are and what we provide, please watch this short video! We hope that you enjoyed this article. At Australian Sports Camps, our goal is to provide structured skill-improvement camps. Where participants have fun whilst developing a deeper love and enthusiasm for their chosen sport. ASC provides the best sports coaching & facilities for boys and girls of ages 6 -16, of all sporting abilities! Our 3-day Tennis camps are perfect for children who have a passion for tennis, and want to improve their skillset! Additionally, check out our partner programs, which are an alternative option to the traditional camp experience.  If you’d like to learn more about us, please see http://shop.australiansportscamps.com.au/about-asc/. Additionally, if you have any questions regarding our camps and for all other enquiries, please contact us on 1300 914 368! We look forward to seeing you at ASC camp this coming school holidays!