Kids Love Tennis at Western Prince William Tennis Academy

Western Prince William Tennis Academy Campers 2013.

For the second consecutive year, Patriot Head Tennis Coach Rob Dulin will hold his Western Prince William Tennis Academy (WPWTA) at Patriot High School from June 2 to July 3.

WPWTA is designed to teach kids the basics of tennis and have them hone their skills, while working with others and having fun in the process. WPWTA has innumerably also contributed to various blogs on the internet, thanks to their expertise in the field. You can check out these head tennis racquets reviews that they've reviewed.

The camps are especially designed so campers can progress from one session to the next. Although they will be joined with new campers along the way, Dulin and his instructors watch the progression of each player, creating lessons to help them build upon their skill set. One way Dulin does this is by keeping his student-to-instructor ratio low.

The other way is separating children into two groups, based upon age. Each camp, Juniors and Minis meet four days a week, per week-long session, at the tennis courts at Patriot High School.

The Juniors, ages 8 to 13, meet Monday through Thursday at 5:30 p.m. for a two-hour session each day. After June 19, meeting times changes to 9:30 a.m.

The Minis, ages 5 to 7, have a shorter sessions, meeting from 4:45 p.m. to 5:30 pm., also Monday through Thursday. Their meetings times also change after June 19, starting at 8:30 a.m. as of June 23.

The Minis' camp is designed to introduce young children to basic tennis skills in a low-pressure situation. Dulin works on creating a positive experience for campers while incorporating the age-appropriate, proven USTA “quick start” method. He and his instructors give each child the attention they require by employing a 4:1 student to teacher ratio.

Junior campers prepare to play "Living, Breathing, Dying," with Rob Dulin.

For Juniors, Dulin emphasizes stroke technique, tennis rules and etiquette. He and his instructors lead the campers in basic drills within a friendly environment, while also incorporating dynamic activities so that tennis does not become monotonous, nor too competitive. Like the Minis, Dulin also keeps the student-to-instructor ratio small with Juniors, in this case limiting camps to six campers per instructor.

When Bristow Beat visited Dulin at his tennis academy last year, students were taking turns hitting the tennis ball as though it was their turn at bat. Everyone got a shot, and they progressed rapidly through the sequence. Students were having fun. Everyone got a turn, and no one was standing around waiting for a return.

Dulin said he was interested in offering the camp because he feels that tennis is a sport that people should learn when they are young.

“If you don’t learn it when you’re younger, it’s really hard to pick it up when you’re older,” Dulin said.

He also has horror stories of how parents’ attempts to teach their children tennis only result in becoming frustrated with hitting them balls their children could not return. That is a sure fire way to discourage the whole family from the sport, Dulin explained. He think that small group lessons are much more fun for the children and more relaxing for the adults.

He also hopes his tennis academy will bring more of the western Prince William community into the tennis fold. He said it just makes sense, since almost every HOA community as at least one tennis court. But children won’t play unless someone introduces them to the sport.

“A lot of it is just introducing them to a new activity, especially here where there are so many tennis courts,” Dulin said.

Dulin watches as Ariana Grant serves the ball.

Parents have to see the need, but Dulin explains that it is a very practical sport to learn. Like swimming, it is the kind of sport that people can continue into adulthood. Dulin said it’s ideal because one only needs to find one tennis buddy to hold a match.

Parents also spoke highly of the WPWTA.

“Coach Dulin is a phenomenal coach and teacher,” said Gina Butler. "He’s really good at differentiating skill sets, so the kids are having a wonderful time.”

Lisa Grant agreed. “We’re thrilled to have this so close to home. My older kids have done his track camp. It’s so positive.”

As Dulin wants to keep his camps small, he encourages parents to sign up their children in advance. Students will be registered in the camps on a first come first serve basis.

Readers can register their children for one of the camps or find out more information at the WPWTA website.