Tennis Practice Plans for Kids
Youth tennis works best with lots of balls, small courts, and constant contact. Coach Coach builds practices where kids rally, move, and hit hundreds of balls instead of waiting their turn at the baseline.
Tennis practice plans by age
Every age is different. Pick your group for age-appropriate drills, structure, and a ready-to-run sample plan.
What to work on in youth tennis
Groundstroke fundamentals fed rapidly so kids get real reps, not one ball a minute.
Movement and tracking games that make contact easy and fun.
Simple serves and cooperative rallies to keep the ball in play.
Mini-court games and points so skills show up in real competition.
Gear: A racquet per kid, a big basket of balls (low-compression for young kids), and cones.
A sample tennis practice plan
Here's a real plan Coach Coach generated for a youth tennis team. Yours is tailored to your age group and what you want to work on.
🏆 Tennis Practice — Ages 9-10 — 60 min
⏱️ Warmup (10 min)
- Relay Races with Rackets — Set up two lines of cones about 10 meters apart. Kids run back and forth while balancing a ball on their racket. If the ball falls, they pick it up and keep going. This warms them up and gets them familiar with handling the racket.
🎯 Skill Work (30 min)
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Groundstroke Stations (15 min) — Divide the kids into three groups of four. Set up three stations: forehand, backhand, and volley. Each station has a coach or helper feeding balls. Rotate every 5 minutes.
- Coaching Cue: "Keep your eye on the ball and follow through."
- Success Looks Like: Kids making contact with the ball consistently and showing improvement in technique.
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Serve Practice (15 min) — Pair up the kids and have them practice serving from the service line. Encourage them to focus on tossing the ball consistently.
- Coaching Cue: "Toss high and hit through the ball."
- Success Looks Like: Kids getting the ball over the net and into the service box more often than not.
🏃 Game Time (15 min)
- Mini Tennis Matches — Set up four mini courts using cones to mark boundaries. Play 2v2 matches with shorter boundaries to keep rallies going. Rotate every 3 minutes to give everyone a chance to play different opponents.
- What to Look For: Kids using the skills practiced in drills, having fun, and cheering each other on.
🧊 Wrap Up (5 min)
- Racket Tap Relay — Line kids up and have them pass a ball down the line using only their rackets. Finish with a quick group cheer. Ask, "What's one thing you learned today?" High-fives all around.
🎒 What to Bring
- 12 rackets · 24 tennis balls · 12 cones · 4 sets of temporary lines or chalk for mini courts
📋 Coach's Cheat Sheet
- "Keep your eye on the ball and follow through."
- "Toss high and hit through the ball."
- Common Mistake: Kids tend to rush their shots. Encourage them to slow down and focus on technique.
- Praise loudly when a kid makes a good effort to correct their form.
✅ Coach Coach Check
- Every kid gets touches in every drill
- No standing in long lines
- At least one small-sided game
- Age-appropriate intensity
Coach your best practice tonight
Tell Coach Coach your age group and what to work on. Get a complete tennis practice in under 30 seconds — free.
Build your tennis planTennis practice questions
How do I run a group tennis lesson for kids?
Use lots of balls and a rapid feed so nobody stands waiting. Set up mini-courts and stations so multiple kids hit at once, then finish with point play.
Should young kids use smaller courts and softer balls?
Absolutely — red, orange, and green low-compression balls and smaller courts (the Net Generation / 10-and-under setup) let kids rally and succeed from day one.
What should beginner tennis players focus on?
Contact and rallying first — forehands, backhands, and keeping the ball in play. Fancy technique matters less than lots of successful hits.