Campers are offered tennis pointers at Kidpower camp
The Kidpower Sports Skills Camp season wrapped up with a week of tennis camp held from July 14-17. Fourteen youngsters were treated to instruction from the WV Director of Programming USTA Tennis Instructor, Kyle Hoffman on Monday, July 14.
Hoffman ran the kids through a variety of drills and games that assessed and developed basic skills of the game. As a special treat, each camper received a youth tennis T-shirt that was earned in a competitive game or activity. Coach Charlene Galluzzo taught the skills for the remainder of the week drawing activities from the USTA Youth Tennis Manual.
A variety of games were used to develop footwork, basic skills, racket control, strategy and teamwork. The 5-8 year olds loved Alligator Walk, Caterpillar Shuffle and Swamp Crossing.
Four Square, King/Queen of the Court and Baseball were among of the favorites of the 9-12 year olds.
By far, “Jail”, was the number one game for all ages. A ball is tossed over the net and the player tries to put the ball in play. If successful, the player rotates to the end of the line, but if an error is committed, the player rotates to the opposite side of the net. To get out of jail, the player must catch the ball off of one bounce or in the air. This was a highly competitive and fast paced game that every child enjoyed. By week’s end, the stays in jail were shorter and less frequent.
At the beginning of each session, parents stuck around and volleyed with their sons and daughters getting a first hand look at how much their skill level developed over the week. This is a good sign that the game will be reinforced long after camp becomes a memory.
“A big thank you to Betty, Georgeanna, Christianna, Mandy, Matt and Angel for jumping in and assisting with snacks, drills, stations, and games,” Galluzzo said. “We are grateful to Bob Riggs and Janice Bonner from the Middlebourne Parks and Recreation Department for providing support and a great facility in which to play and practice. Students and their families enjoyed the great meals provided by the Tyler County Schools summer feeding program. Thank you Trudy Pethel for preparing the meals and Amanda Kimble for providing us with menus.”
This Kidpower Sports Skills Camp provided a safe place for kids to learn and play for four weeks over the summer at the Stealey Green Community Center in Middlebourne. Overall fifty youngsters took advantage of the free camp sessions this year.
Tyler Consolidated High School and Middle School students: Sarah Davis, Taylor Ebert, Abbi Fletcher, Lilli Orr and Sydney Yoho volunteered their time to assist with camp and earned community service hours. Special acknowledgment is awarded to Gwen Davies, A.I Boreman Physical Education teacher, who donated her time to assist with coaching the volleyball camp; and Middlebourne Mayor Charlie Delauder and the Stealey Green Community Grant for sponsoring this special four-week summer event.