Andy Knibbs For 20 years I used a predominantly command and control style of coaching. A typical lesson consisted of a warm up of 5 minutes or so, followed by some analysis of what I had seen and how we might work on this. From there we would go backwards and forwards trying to fix something with … Read more
A few months ago, I was asked to cover a tennis coaching session with a group of 10-11 year old children. For the main part of the session the children focused on moving their opponents so that they could get into a position to finish the point. This was then followed by a competition in … Read more
Recently my 5 year old son showed some interest in wanting to play tennis. As a tennis coach and a tutor I have a few balls and rackets around the house. We are also fortunate in having a bit of space in our kitchen and after setting ourselves up a couple of metres apart, I … Read more
My passion for tennis was ignited at around the age of seven, after finding my mother’s tennis racket gathering dust in our garage. With no access to any tennis courts, my neighbour and I would regularly practice our tennis skills in the road where we lived. On one particular day, an elderly lady who lived … Read more
Recently, I met up with a football coach to discuss how he could use a performer-centred coaching approach with his junior team. During the meeting we discussed our playing and coaching experiences and he told me about a problem that he had developed with heading the ball. After missing a few headers in a game … Read more
A couple of weeks ago, I was assessing a level 2 UKCC qualification in tennis and I noticed a trainee coach struggling for something to say to one of his pupils during his on-court assessment. He had set up a drill which involved the players hitting cross court for depth, and he had explained and … Read more
Focus is about concentrating our attention or energy on something. Sometimes children can demonstrate a high level of focus, especially if they are watching their favourite TV programme, reading a good book, or playing a imaginary game, and no matter what distractions are going on around them, they stay focussed. However, at other times children … Read more
The skills of child-centred coaching are transferable to any area of a child’s life. You might initially learn them to help your child develop more confidence in football, and then go on to discover how you might apply to help your child learn to read and write, play a musical instrument or solve a problem … Read more
What kind of learning environment do children need to maximise their potential and build self belief? About 9 years ago, I was trying to help my son aged 7 years to play tennis. As a coach and a player, I desperately wanted him to play well and I thought that I could help him by … Read more