At the leader's signal, children must change to a different type of movement while traveling around the perimeter of the court. Have them:

• Walk fast
• Jog
• High step or march
• Side shuffle
• Hop on one foot, alternating feet

Have the children count aloud as they do the following stretches:

• Neck rolls -- six times to the left and six times to the right
• Arm swings -- do six rotations forward and six rotations backward with each arm
• Ready, set, stretch -- in a starter's block position, extend the right leg, then the left, and hold each for six counts
• Wrist rolls -- do six rotations forward and six backward with each wrist

Place three racquets equidistant between the relay team and the net -- one racquet on the baseline, one on the service line and one at the net. Place two balls for each child and parent on the racquet at the baseline. Children, or parents and children alternately, take a ball from the racquet at the baseline and run to place it on the first racquet. They return to the baseline to pick up another ball, bring it to the racquet at the net and return to tag the next person in line. The relay can be run in reverse to return all the balls to the baseline.

• Be sure to tell the children the parts of the court used in the drill.

Use a foam or low pressure ball the children can control with their racquets to do the following skills. To add difficulty, do any of these drills in a limited space, taking only one step or while standing on one foot:

1. Bump-ups with a bounce -- drop the ball and bump it up after the bounce, then let it bounce again and bump it up

2. Bump-ups -- bump the ball gently and keep it from hitting the ground

3. Bounce-downs -- use the racquet to dribble the ball

Demonstrate and have the class shadow the forehand drive. Use a "shake hands" grip and a sideways stance with centered racquet as the ready position, and have the class mirror the backswing, forward swing, contact point and follow-through.

Hang up to five dangling balls on each teaching cable . Place spots to correctly position kids. In all drills, stress contact point in front of the children as they:

1. Hit a stationary ball to understand shot basics. A parent-coach stabilizes the ball between each hit

2. Hit a ball gently swung by a parent, who catches the ball between hits as the child prepares to hit again

3. Gently hit consecutive balls with a controlled, compact stroke

• Good drills for this are "10 Club," "20 Club," "30 Club" and "World Record."

One-on-one, each parent-coach should stand several feet from a child and gently hit forehands to them according to the children's skill. This may resemble the bump-ups with a bounce practiced earlier. Have parent-coaches stand with their backs to the fence to keep balls from spraying.

• Have a coach and student demonstrate before the class begins playing.
• Use foam or low pressure balls children can more easily control.
• Allow the children to play freely, however, gradually stress "shot-of-the-day" basics.

While children are playing No-net tennis, rotate a few at a time to play Small-net tennis individually or as doubles teams.

A good ratio for this game is one assistant or parent-coach who can control the ball well to four or six students. The coach stands across the small net from two players who share the court as a doubles team. The coach should alternate balls to the players, reminding them to keep their feet moving between balls. After a specified number of balls played or minutes, the doubles team can be switched out with a waiting team.

• Excellent games for rotation are "5 and You're Out," "10 Club," "20 Club," "30 Club" and "World Record."
• Spots can help children understand their positions on the court.
• Another parent-coach can help keep waiting children occupied at a safe distance.

Parents should participate with children on homework assignments, and everyone should warm up with standard exercises before playing:

• Bump-up tennis -- solo, with and without a bounce
• Wall tennis -- stress getting ball back with control, consistency and some footwork to forehand stance
• No-net tennis -- practice forehands with medium high bumps and consistency