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NEWS - THE LATEST FROM NEW SOUTH WALES
| New South Wales - Published on June 10‚ 2009 |
 BY WILLIE QUAN
Welcome back to all our coaches and schools for 2009. I’m sure it will be another successful year and that the children will continue to benefit from the Kids Tennis Foundation Program.
We also welcome new school, Revesby Public School. I have no doubt that the students participating in the lessons will greatly enjoy and benefit from them. I will have more to report on this new school in our next newsletter.
To kick off the year, we were fortunate to receive ground pass tickets to the Medibank International Sydney tennis tournament held at Homebush in January. The tickets gave some very lucky KTF kids the opportunity to experience the excitement of a major tennis tournament which they thoroughly enjoyed.
Our thanks to Medibank International tournament director, Mr Craig Watson, for his ongoing support of KTF and the donation of these tickets, giving KTF children a wonderful day out at the tennis.
I received some fantastic feedback from schools, coaches, students and parents commenting on how much the children enjoyed the tennis at Homebush:
“I would like to thank you and Kids Tennis Foundation for giving me the opportunity to watch world-class tennis action at the Medibank International. I really enjoyed the atmosphere and even got the opportunity to get up close to the players courtside. Thanks again for the experience!”. Darren
“Thank you for the tickets to attend the Medibank 2009 at Homebush. We had a fantastic day and saw some great tennis. We even got to see Nalbandian and other great tennis stars either playing or practising. Thank you”. Mikaela
“I would like to thank you for the ticket to this year’s Medibank tournament at Homebush. I had a great time watching lots of great tennis matches. I even got Mike Bryan’s autograph. I like watching doubles matches the best”. Chris
“I would like to thank you for the ticket to watch the tennis at Homebush. I got to see a lot of really good tennis players and saw Lleyton Hewitt practising. I have never been to Homebush before and it was great. Thanks”. Matt
“On behalf of the children, I would like to thank Kids Tennis Foundation and Tennis New South Wales for the tickets to attend this year’s Medibank International tournament at Homebush. It gave them an opportunity to see famous tennis players whom they have only seen on TV and meet some of them at Fanfest. It truly was a very memorable day and once again, thank you”. Cathie
Report from Jesmond Public School, Jesmond
For the past year Jesmond Public School’s primary students have been improving their tennis skills with coach Michael Mills, a 27 year old Victorian from Geelong. Michael provides equipment and activities each week for a class of willing and enthusiastic students, and reported that he has seen much success in his classes and he finds it very rewarding helping the students to play and enjoy tennis.
“Jesmond Public School students really enjoy the KTF program and their skills have developed a great deal. For some students it is the first time they have held a racquet”, said Mrs Cheryl Perrin, the senior primary teacher at the school.
Report from Avondale Primary School, Cooranbong
“Just a note to let you know that we at Avondale School really appreciate the program that Kids Tennis Foundation provides for students in need. Our students love their coach Geoff Booth and look forward to playing tennis with him each week. We are finding that our students are having less behavioural problems and that their confidence and self esteem is continually growing.
The students who were able to attend the Medibank International were very excited about getting their tickets. On the first day back to school after the holidays I had many come to tell me how much of a great time they had. I had some students tell the whole school of their experience at assembly. Thank you so much for enabling these disadvantaged students experience something very special.”
Report from Ellangowan Public School, Casino
“Thank you again for the opportunity to have our school as part of the Kids Tennis Foundation Program.
We have started our tennis for the year with Trent coming out from Casino each Friday. We have 29 children taking part in the lessons each week. They are enjoying the opportunity to develop, revise and improve the skills they have gained by being part of the Program. Thank you for providing Trent. He works well with the children and is obviously committed to what he does.
As part of an overall emphasis on an active lifestyle within our school, tennis has been important in raising the awareness of parents and children to the benefits of playing sport and joining local teams. Over three quarters of our children are now involved in travelling to town to take part in some form of organised sport throughout the year. These activities include nippers, physical culture, soccer, rugby league, ballet, cricket and of course tennis.
In the past children from this area would not have done this. The ongoing program at our school conducted by Kids Tennis Foundation has been a major agent of change within our community.”
Metford Public School
Adolfo Garcia (pictured with KTF coach Linda Bullent) with a class of children from Metford Public school, who conducts the KTF Program at Metford Public School, reports:
“The children at Metford Public School have really enjoyed playing tennis with us each week and appreciate us being there so much that it’s worth every minute.
They are a fantastic group of children with bundles of personality and enthusiasm, who love the opportunity to hit tennis balls with us and learn a little more about how to play the game each week.
The Hunter Tennis Resort has the privilege of being involved with Kids Tennis Foundation in the delivery of tennis to children at Metford Public School. Once a week 2 coaches from the Resort go into the school, with all the equipment and deliver tennis sessions to 4 classes over a 2 hour period. In every session the emphasis is on fun and games but the children are still learning the basics of how to play and are definitely enjoying the game. Each week we try to incorporate some co-ordination work into the session, as well as encouraging the children to play the actual game over mini nets and playing with modified tennis balls.
We work with the same group of children for the whole term, and then the classes rotate so that other children in the school have the opportunity to have a go too.”
FEEDBACK FROM KIDS AND PARENTS:
It is always great to receive letters from the students and parents. We appreciate you taking the time to write to us and we value the feedback you provide about the program.
Students at Ellangowan Primary School wrote:
“Thank you for sending Trent out to teach us tennis, I know that Trent wouldn’t remember, but I got him out, ha ha, my tennis has improved!”. Jack
“Thank you for sending Trent out to our school and teaching us how to play tennis. I love to play tennis and I have learnt a lot being with him”. Tahni
“Thanks for sending Trent out, I think that I have really improved since I first started. At first, I could barely hit the ball, but now I can. Some of my favourite games that get my body moving are: Tennis Cricket, Animals, Jail Break 1 & 2 and Champions”. Jack B
Feedback from parents from Avondale Primary School:
“Brendan really enjoys his tennis and finds it very rewarding. Brendan sees an occupational therapist and it has been helping improve his upper body strength and his ability to cross his mid-line, this in turn is helping with his hand writing and his ability to sit still and concentrate. We feel it is very worth while, also helps with his self-confidence.”
“Thank you for the opportunity so that our son is able to be involved in this Program, we feel his confidence has improved, and also his tennis skills. He looks forward to tennis each week, and we would like to encourage this sport to continue for him.”
“Stephen really enjoyed the game called “Jail” and was always excited about how many “hits” he got each week. Because of his vision disorder, actually hitting the ball was a real thrill for him. He also liked that it was a “special” thing he got to do. It has been a wonderful opportunity for him. Thank you.”
THANKS!
A very big thank you to Tennis New South Wales for donating new tennis racquets to KTF for use during programs in NSW. We are very appreciative of their generosity and continued support.
We are always in need of additional tennis equipment such as racquets and balls (new or used) for our KTF programs. If you would like to donate please contact me on 02 9554 9818.
Thank you to all schools and coaches who have taken the time out to write and submit reports. It is always valuable to know that the KTF programs are appreciated and enjoyed by all. |
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