Garrison, Irene

English

James Madison University

June, 1930] THE VIRGINIA TEACHER 167 GAMES leading to tennis I. Introduction Tennis is a game that stimulates the phys- ical, mental, and social life of an individual. These values are recognized everywhere, and for this reason it has become one of our leading sports. Every girl wants to know how to play tennis, and every girl should know how to play tennis. Yet very often tennis is omit- ted entirely from the physical education program in our schools. This, I believe, is due to two major reasons. First, the equip- ment is too expensive. Second, the physical education classes are generally too large for the game to be taught successfully. There are, however, games similar to tennis, the teaching of which may be adapted to the physical education conditions existing in most of our schools. These are ring ten- nis, handball, and paddle tennis. Through these games the fundamental skills of ten- nis are taught. A school having a playing area the size of one tennis court can make four ring tennis or paddle tennis courts, and in a regular sized gymnasium there is ample wall space for at least four handball courts. By play- ing doubles in any one of these games, six- teen girls may be used at one time, while the rest of the class act as scorers or lines- men, or practice the skills among them- selves. If the school is financially unable to fur- nish nets for ring tennis and paddle tennis, a white tape may be used. For the official rubber ring used in ring tennis may be sub- stituted a heavy rope ring, which is less ex- pensive. The balls used for paddle tennis and ring tennis may be ordinary ten-cent balls about the size of a regulation tennis ball. If standard paddles for paddle tennis cannot be afforded, handmade ones will serve the purpose. This game is especially suited to younger girls. The lower net, the shorter and lighter paddle, and the small court make the game active without being exhaustive. II. Outcomes A. Skills 1. Ring Tennis a. Service b. Forehand toss c. Backhand toss 2. Handball a. Underhand stroke b. Service c. Quick location on court 3. Paddle Tennis a. Forehand stroke b. Backhand stroke c. Service d. Quick location on court The above skills are related to tennis in the fol- lowing ways: 1. In the forehand and backhand swing as used in ring tennis and paddle tennis the move- ment of the arm and feet is identical with that used in the forehand and backhand stroke of tennis. 2. In the_ playing of any one of these games an opportunity is given for the practice in placing one's self at the right place on the court, a skill which is very essential to the tennis player. 3. Although the arm movement as used in the service in the above games is unlike that used in tennis, the foot movement is similar. The service in these games also affords an opportunity for learning how to direct a ball, a matter which is of greatest importance in tennis. B. Knowledges 1. Rules of games a. Ring Tennis (see Spalding No. 11SR) b. Handball (see Spalding No. 114R) c. Paddle Tennis (see Spalding No. 115R) 2. Principles underlying skills a. Forehand stroke 1. Left side should face net. 2. As arm swings from shoul- der, parallel to ground, the weight is transferred from back to front foot. b. Backhand stroke 1. Right side should face net. 2. As right arm swings from THE VIRGINIA TEACHER [Vol. 11, No. 6 back to front, parallel to ground, the weight is trans- ferred from back to front foot. c. Underhand stroke (as used in handball) 1. Feet should be together; arm well back, palm facing front, hand cupped. 2. As ball comes toward you, arm is swung forward and under to meet the ball. At same time, a step is taken with left foot (as in under- hand pitching). d. Service 1. Ring Tennis—same as fore- hand toss. 2. Handball—same as under- hand stroke, except that the ball is bounced by server. 3. Paddle Tennis—same as forehand stroke except ball is bounced by server and must be directed so as to fall in the service court di- rectly opposite. e. Quick location on court. After having made a play get quickly into center back of court so as to be ready to return ball or ring com- ing from any direction. Attitudes 1. Joy of game for game's sake. 2. Desire to become really skilled in games preliminary to tennis. 3. Desire to learn how to play tennis. 4. Appreciation of good plays wheth- er made by own or opposing team. 5. Ambition to be a good sport a. To be courteous at all times to opponents and umpire. b. Not to make alibis. c. To be a good winner as well as a good loser. III. Presentation The remainder of this article will deal only with paddle tennis. This unit was made for a class of about twenty-one girls divided into three squads of seven each. The class was carried on in a gymnasium large enough for three paddle tennis courts. This unit was presented in the early spring. A. Introduction to game 1. Explain origin. 2. By use of blackboard explain pad- dle tennis court. 3. By use of blackboard give a clear explanation of object and progres- sion of games. 4. Tell the general relationship of paddle tennis to tennis. 5. Pass out sheets with rules to be learned. (List of rules will be found at the end of this unit.) B. Presenting technique of game 1. Demonstration of each stroke 2. Mimetic drill of each stroke. (Class in lines facing instructor.) 3. Squad work. (A squad to each court.) a. Let squad leader divide squad in half, No. 1's bouncing ball to No. 2's, who hit the ball, us- ing correct form. Teacher helps each squad as needed. b. Let children practice strokes against wall. (This is an ex- cellent way of practicing foot work.) c. Let children practice strokes across the net from both sides of the court. 4. Squad competition a. Each girl takes five tries at serving from both sides of court. Recorded on squad card. b. Each girl takes five tries at forehand stroke from both sides of court. Recorded on snuad card. June, 1930] THE VIRGINIA TEACHER 169 c. Each girl takes five tries at backhand stroke from both sides of court. Recorded on squad card. d. The scores are transferred from the squad cards to large poster on which the squad to- tals and individual totals are kept. Note : At end of unit see sam- ple of squad card and poster. C. Playing game 1. Place three sets of doubles on the three courts. (Each couple plays another couple from that squad.) 2. Use those not playing for scorers and linesmen. Change about. 3. Present strategic plays from time to time. 4. Competition between squads a. Winning teams of squads play; losing teams play. b. Keep record of scores on pos- ter. 5. Competition between classes a. Each class has three teams (doubles). b. Each team in one class plays all teams in other class. WORK SHEET ON PADDLE TENNIS I. Home Work A. Study list of rules given you and an- swer following true-false questions. 1. The person serving may stand anywhere in the court, provided she is back of service courts. 2. The service is delivered from right and left side of court alter- nately until end of game. 3. A service to be good must fall somewhere in service court di- agonally opposite. 4. It is not necessary for the receiver to let the served ball bounce before hitting it. 5. In calling the score the receiver's score is called first. 6. The first point a player wins is "thirty." 7. Two more successive points have to be made after "deuce' 'in order to make "game." 8. If the server makes the first point after the "deuce" the score would be "ad out." 9. If the service is incorrectly given, the server does not get a second chance. B. Draw a diagram of paddle tennis court, naming sections and lines. C. Describe the forehand and backhand strokes, giving positions of body and movement of arms and feet. D. Optional (Two out of three) 1. Bring to class any pictures you can find of tennis players in act of per- forming forehand or backhand stroke. 2. From your experience in playing paddle tennis, write out two or three plays you have found to be especially good. Why? 3. Make a paddle, using same dimen- sions as one used in class. II. Study Hall Jobs A. Study pictures of backhand and fore- hand strokes as found in Anderson's Tennis for Women. III. Recess Jobs A. Volleying ball against wall. 1. Use forehand and backhand al- ternately, recording number of successive "good" strokes. (Hit- ting ball on first bounce and above line on wall, which represents height of net.) 2. Do the above three times each day for five days, recording best score each day. B. Directing ball. 1. Take ten tries at target from posi- tion diagonally right and then 170 THE VIRGINIA TEACHER [Vol. 11, No, 6 from position diagonally left of target by bouncing ball and using forehand stroke. 2. Do the above five different days, recording the number of success- ful tries out of the ten strokes from both right and left. 3. Do the same by bouncing ball and using backhand stroke. CARD FOR RECORDING RESULTS Volley ... Forehand Backhand 1st DAY 2d DAY 3d DAY 4th DAY 5th DAY All&y U-* SfrtK* CtuA ftijht C»«rf ' IT/y aut" " ' Ur.,.% C..ff L/t Ctaf* 33 fr. Diagram cf Toddtc Tennis Cawt RULES FOR PADDLE TENNIS 1. The players shall be on the opposite sides of the net. The player who first delivers the ball is called the Server, and the other the Receiver, At the end of the first game the Receiver be- comes Server, and the Server becomes Receiver, and so on alternately during the remaining games of the match or set. 2. Before commencing to serve, the Server stands with both feet back of the base line (end SQUAD I Name of Girl Allen, Mary CO line of the court) to the side of the center. Both feet must remain behind this line until the ball is struck. 3. The service is delivered from the right and left sides of the courts alternately, beginning from the right in every game, and the ball served must strike the ground in the service court di- agonally opposite. The Server must not touch the ball with any part of his body, or anything he wears or carries, except his racket. 4. If the first ball is incorrectly served, the Server may try another from the same spot. If the second ball is also incorrectly served, the Server must change to the other side of the court and a point is scored for his opponent. 5. The last of the two players to return the ball over the net correctly—that is, striking it be- fore it has bounced more than once, and sending it within the bounds of the opposite court—scores a point for herself. 6. On either player's winning her first stroke, the score is called IS for that player; on either player's winning her second stroke the score is call- ed 30 for that player; on either player's winning her third stroke, the score is called 40 for that player, and the fourth stroke won by either player is scored game for that player, except as follows; If both players have won three strokes, the score is called deuce; and the next stroke won by either player is scored advantage for that player. If the same player wins the next stroke, she wins the game; if she loses the stroke, the score re- turns to deuce, and so on until one player wins the two strokes immediately following the score of deuce, when the game is scored for that play- er. If a player has scored no points, her score is "love." In calling the score for any game, the Server's score is called first. 7. The player who first wins six games wins the set; except that if both players have won five games or more, either player must gain a lead of two games to win a set. 8. In playing "doubles," or with four players, the rules are the same, except that Servers and Receivers alternate on each side. As each game is begun, the Receiver of the preceding game be- comes the first Server, and vice versa. m to Bowman, Ruth Carr, Ellen METHOD OF RECORDING SCORES 1. Place in first square number of good strokes 2. Place in square under first square score for out of five taken from right side of court. left side. June, 1930] THE VIRGINIA TEACHER 171 SQUAD I 1ST DAY 2D DAY 3D DAY 4TH DAY STH DAY SQUAD TOURNA- MENTS Serve Forehand Backhand Daily Ind. Scores Serve Forehand Backhand Daily Ind. Scores Serve Forehand Backhand Daily Ind. Scores | Serve Forehand Backhand Daily ind. Scores Serve Forehand Backhand Daily Ind. Scores TOTALS Girls' Names 1. Allen, Mary 2. Bowman, Ruth 3. Carr, Ellen — — — — — — — 4. 5. 6. — — — Squad Totals — = — SQUAD II 1. Barker, Katherine — 2. Collins, Sue 3. Davis, Elizabeth 4. — 5. — 6. — — Squad Totals PADDLE TENNIS TOURNAMENT Inter-Class Tournament (Doubles) Team IA—6 Team IB—3 Team IIA—7 Team IB—5 Team IIIA—4 Team IB—6 Team IA—8 Team IIA—6 Team IIIA—5 TeamllB—6 TeamllB—2 Team IIB—7 Team IA—4 Team IIA—3 Team IIIA—4 Team IIIB—6 Team I IIB—b Team IIIB—6 TOTALS A Class 4  B Class 5  The above tournament will be carried on between two classes, the teams of each class playing every other team in the other class. BIBLIOGRAPHY Anderson, L. E.—Tennis for Women. Barnes & Co. 1926. Spalding—Modcrofc Sports (No. 114R) Spalding—Handball (No. 11SR). 1930. "Paddle Tennis"—Sportsman, January, 1930. Irene Garrison A. S. 1930. BELTEIN, OR MAY DAY, IN SCOTT "Bethink thee of the discord dread That kindled when at Beltane game Thou ledst the dance with Malcolm Graeme.' Lady of the Lake, Canto II. "The damsel dons her best attire, The shepherd lights his beltane fire." Lord of the Isles, Canto I. "But o'er the hills, in festal day, How blazed Lord Ronald's beltane-tree, While youths and maids the light strathsper So nimbly danced with Highland glee!" Glenfinlas, Stanza IV. 

Games Leading to Tennis

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Games Leading to Tennis

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