Parents ask for the difference between Mini Tennis and Junior Tennis more than any other question, usually because their child has been in one for two terms and is ready for something harder.
Mini Tennis, six to nine
The job is to make the ball predictable. Slower balls, smaller courts, and games where rallying is the point. A child leaves Mini Tennis able to keep a ball going and knowing which side of the racket they are supposed to be using.
Junior Tennis, ten to thirteen
The job is to make the ball *theirs*. Serve, ball control, and points that are scored and counted — including the ones that are lost. Children at this stage learn more from a match they lose narrowly than from a drill they complete perfectly.
The step up is not about hitting harder. It is about being responsible for the score.
If you are between the two
Age is a guide, not a rule: a nine-year-old who has played for three years and a nine-year-old in their first term are not the same player. Tell us which class they are in and what they can already do, and we will place them. Call 778.961.2100.
